Englishmen And Their Newspapers

The newspaper is amember of the family in England, and regularly comes tobreakfagt with the other members. The London "Times" is a kind of oldest son among newspapers, and "Punch." the jolly bachelor uncle, who makes ocoas'ional visits. Engiishmen take their newspapers into their confidence, and have a naif way of writing to them on all sorts of subjects. If an Englishman rows down the Thames and stops for luncheon at an inn and is overcharged, he writes to bis newspaper, just as a little boy runs in to complain to his mamma of the rough treateraent of his playmates; and later on this letter is followed by others, in which the cómparatiye merits and cost of light lunclieonson the continent, in Seringapatam, in Kamchatka, and everywhere else where Euirlishiiien have eateii and drunk - and where have they ïiot done these? - ia discussed au fond. If horses stuinble and fall in Kotten Eow, there are letters on the subject which go into the matter of road-building, modern horsemanship, and the like, with quo" tations frorn Virgil and anecdotes of accidents that happened half a century ago. Of late there have been many letters coneerning the lynching of ïiegroes in our Southern States, and here again John Buil, with his ponderous disregard of the fact that he knows nothing at first hand, delivers himself naively, as usual, of his superficial omniscience. Not only the more serious weekly but also the daily newspapers give one the impression that they feel themselves to some extent responsible for the contemporary auditing of the accounts of the Day of Judgment. On the other hand, the better-class ofEnglish newspapers do not indulge in rash suppositions, hasty generalizations, uncertain guesses at probable future happenings, and the daily exploitation i of the personal affaire of notorious nobodies. And one may be permitted to say diffidently that perhaps this is preferable. If Mr. Balfour, for example, were to go abroad for a holiday, it would be considered vulgar to chronile hisdoing and dinings, and absolutely brutal and boorish to write particulars of the dress and behavior of his sister- or of his wife, if he had mu'. The sense of fair-play of a nation of sportstnen, does not permit an editor to torment evenhis enemy Erom behind a woman's petticoats.- December Forum.