160 



DEEP FURROWS 



It is quite possible to direct the thought of Toxn- 

 Dick-and-Harry. A skillful orator can swing a crowd 

 from laughter to anger and back again. The politician 

 who prepares a speech for a set occasion builds his 

 periods for applause with every confidence. But it was 

 to the public prints that they who sought the manufac- 

 ture of Public Opinion were in the habit of turning. 



There has always been something very convincing 

 about "cold print." The little boy believes that the 

 cow really did jump over the moon; for isn't it right 

 there in the nursery book with a picture of her doing 

 it? And despite the disillusionments of an accelerated 

 age many readers still cherish an old-time faith in 

 their favorite newspaper a faith which is a relic of 

 the days when the freedom of the press was a new and 

 sacred heritage and the public bought the paper to learn 

 what Joseph Howe, George Brown, Franklin, Greeley or 

 Dana thought about things. This period gave place 

 gradually to the great modern newspaper, the product 

 in some cases of a publishing company so " limited " 

 that it thought mostly in terms of dollars and cents 

 and political preferments. 



When the cub reporter rushed in to his city editor 

 with eyes sparkling he cried out enthusiastically : 



" Gee, I've got a peach of a story ! Old John Smith's 

 daughter's eloped with the chauffeur. She's a movie 

 fan and" 



But it did not get into the paper for the very good 

 reason that " Old John " was the proprietor of the big 

 departmental store which took a full-page advertise- 

 ment in every issue the year around. The editor would 

 have used it soon enough, but the business office ! 



Then there was the theatrical press-agent, a regular 



