Life — August 4, 1898 — page 6: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

Previonsly acknowledge AT LIFES FARM.—ON THE GREEN. Our Fresh-Air Fund. + Presbyterian Ch ory rob kiyn Harriet J. Ma WE Leo and 1 by three little girt< at a Lawn Hilda Wood, Johanna Rother haretty Newton. G. FLD. dr... ere Hood's, Ellsworth, Sheridan. . Everett and Amy P 4.8. Sammis. chtia WM. Laver. Wm. P. Clyde ALB. 8. be. Cash, Annex Hawall.......eeceee Win, Travers Jerome, Jr....... sees $2918 42 20 00 3.00 3.00 3.00 6 00 500 0 War Reporting and Novel Writing. OTHING has been more noticeable in the effect of the war upon newspapers and Perlodicals generally than the abundance of really brilliant writing, from a literary point of view, which it haa produced. There has been plenty of worthless padding, and some exhibitions of deploratle enterprise ot the worst kind. But, all in all, the war has improved the newspapers, ‘The intrinsic Importance of the events happen- ing every day, and the appetite of the public to know about them, have pashed into insignificant mers of the papers those vulgar personalities about millionaires and actresses, puffs for politt- cal nonentities, manufactured scandals, and even Nterary log-rolling, which occupy so much valu. able space In times of peace. The editortal page, as well as the news columns, has taken on & more vigerons tone. The colamn leaders about faction fights in the party, the tirade against the other fellows for principles which they neither believe nor practice, the elaborate slaying of smal! bosses In whom nobody ts Interested, and the petty jealoustes of personal Journalism, have, for the te. been pushed Into the ob- scurity of brief paragraphs. How great a relief this is to their readers: the editors do not realize; they have been simply reformed by the computston of more stirring events. When the war Is over they will probably all return to thelr narrow- minded little ruts of thought. The public, however, will have had their taste of a larger freedom and have seen a wider horizon. Per- haps the public may then express tts disgust for the old way of doing things. A touch of tntellectual “ Imperialism” would be a good thing for the editorial page. o 8 6 THE war correspondent bas distingatshed him. self by some remarkable pleces of descrip- tive writing done under pressure. Mr. Stickney’s account of the tattle of Manila in the Heratd, Mr, Spears’s vivid picture of the bombardment of San Juan in the Sun, and Mr. Thvis's dispatch abont Hobson's reception along the trenches on. his way hack to the feet, are models of descrip- tive reporting. Moreover, they are good specl- mens of writing, from any standard, Each of these men learned how to do tt well by long years, of practice at the trade—Just as Dewey's gunners learned to shoot. The “brilliant young men" who flocked to the war as correspondents for amusement have in no case distinguished them- selves, And that is a good thing for the news- paper bnsiness. . HE right wiht wrong way of reporting @ thing wefe {llustrated the other morning by several accounts of Orderly Keller's description of the wounding of Genera! Worth at San Juan. One perfectly correct and coloriess reporter said of Keller:,** He was most enthustasttc about the