Oregon Exchanges/Volume 6/Number 3

Oregon Exchanges

For the Newspaper Men of the State of Oregon

Vol. 6

Eugene, Oregon, February, 1923

No. 1

PLANS ENLARGED FOR ANNUAL OREGON NEWSPAPER CONFERENCE

THE complete Conference program will be sent to the newspaper men of Oregon not long after the issuance of this number of Oregon Exchanges. The announcement is being held up to await definite word from certain features for the program. The features this year promise to be unusually interesting. The dates are March 22, 23, and 24.

Among the subsidiary meetings planned to accompany the Conference are:

Oregon Newspaper Syndicate. Daily Newspaper Association. Associated Press Members. United Press Clients. -

Editorial Association Executive Committee. Trade Journalism Section.

Advertising Men’s Section.

The program committee has had the ad vantage of consulting several dozen editorial programs that have been presented

Professional Writers’ Section.

in various parts of the United States in

Reception for Women of Party. Time will be allowed on the program for reports from several important com

the last year, and the prediction is made

mittees appointed at

that Oregon will be able to hold as good a meeting and present to the delegates as

ences and at Association meetings. Es

much food for thought and as valuable results of experience as any state in the country.

Entertainment will be furnished by the School of Journalism, the University, the

Eugene Chamber of Commerce, and the Associated Students. A large number of rooms has been reserved at the local ho tels. The fraternity houses are offering

their hospitality to those editors who pre fer to get an intimate glimpse of student life. Special arrangements are under way to make the convention period enjoyable and interesting to the ladies of the edi torial party, and a very special invitation will go out to editors urging them to bring their wives and the other ladies of their families with them.

pecially important will be the report of the legislative committee which will take

this opportunity of lining up for future efforts. Some of the committees are: Committee on Legislation—C. E. Ingalls, Corvallis Gazette-Times;; Hal Hoss, Oregon City Enterprise; E. A. Koen, Dallas Observer. Committee on Standardization of Paper Sizes and Column Widths—Lee Drake, Astoria Budget; Ralph R. Cronise, Al bany Democrat. Committee on Policy Toward Agency Discount—A. E. Scott, Washington

County News-Times; A. E. Frost, Ben ton County Courier. Committee on Homer Davenport Memor

ial—John T. Hoblitt, Silverton Appeal. Page:Oregon Exchanges volume 5.pdf/239

HOW ASTORIA DEFIED FIRE AND DID "BUSINESS AS USUAL"

By RALPH D. CASEY

Professor of Journalism, University of Oregon

[The December issue of Oregon Exchanges was compelled to go to press with out an adequate account of the achievement of the Astoria papers in continuing publication the face of the heartbreaking difficulties following the fire which wiped out their plants together with the whole business section of their city. Mr. Casey's article catches the spirit in which the Astoria publishers triumphed over the flames.—Editor.]

ASTORIA publishers, editors and reporters gallantly upheld one of journalism’s traditions when they refused to be put out of business by the recent fire which destroyed the business section of the city. The Astorian and Budget were burned out, but neither suspended publication, even temporarily. Quick to adapt themselves to a difficult situation, editorial and business staffs worked long hours and with tireless energy in order that there would be no break in publication. One of these days copies of the Astorian and Budget issued after the fire will be prized exhibits of historical societies and newspaper annalists.

When earthquake and fire visited San Francisco in 1906 newspapermen the country over were proud of the spirit shown by the journalism fraternity of the Bay City in face of the crisis. It may be recalled that in the course of the publication five years later of Will Irwin’s series on American journalism, Collier’s Weekly called attention to the Call-Chronicle-Examiner, the newspaper issued by the combined editorial staffs on April 19, the morning after the earthquake. The achievement of the San Francisco papers was a splendid example of journalistic enterprise. The work of Astoria newspapermen is no less worthy of praise.

An editorial printed in the Astorian on December 9, the day following the fire, declared: “Astoria will not stand in stunned dismay, pondering on a past disaster. . . . Let every citizen unite with the common purpose to advance, to grow again; let none lag; let none be dismayed. . . . ’Let’s Go.'"

Typewriters set up on packing boxes in temporary editorial quarters rattled “Let’s Go.” Linotypes rescued from the flames took up the command. A press utilized in the shop of a foreign language newspaper did its best to heed the exhortation, and every man of the staff of the Astorian obeyed the editorial dictum even before it was uttered.

The Budget staff attacked its problems with like ardor. Last October the Budget went into a new building on Exchange street. The fire was no respecter of the new structure, however, leaving only the walls standing. With the exception of office furniture and files, the Budget’s equipment was practically a total loss. Three linotypes, a Ludlow and job presses were damaged beyond repair.

Mimeograph is Used

The Budget building was burned at 7 a. m., leaving the staff without a home and without equipment to issue the regular afternoon edition, which would tell the story of the fire. But reporters went ahead gathering and writing the news. Merle Chessman borrowed a mimeograph machine from an abstract company out side of the fire zone, set it up in the Y. M. C. A. and from noonday to 3 p. m. the Budget got out four editions on the mimeograph, telling in succinct fashion the story of the catastrophe.

E. N. Hurd, publisher of the Signal at Seaside, turned over his plant to the

with important local news and advertising.

copy.

Budget on the following day and the Astoria paper got out its editions in the

Astoria» had a similar experience. Stores

began moving into temporary quarters aud wanted space to announce their new

neighboring town.

The editorial office

remained in the Y. M. C. A. Copy went

by automobile to Seaside where DeWitt Gilbert of the Budget staff was on the job as superintendent of make-up.

bert’s knowledge of the

The advertising manager of the

locations and to continue to advertise their products. The columns of the Bud get could not accommodate all the ad

vertising copy that was submitted, ac

Gil

mechanics

C. T. Larson, advertising manager,

found himself swamped with advertising

of

cording to Mr. Larson, and he printed the

printing, learned while a student of jour

ads in the order in which they came into

nalism at the University of Oregon, stood him in good stead. He set many of the

his office, retail shops waiting their turn.

heads himself and made up the pages.

ing the fire every man on the payroll was retained, according to Mr. Chessman. “We didn’t miss a payroll,” he says.

Foarron Pm-zss Hears The Budget published at Seaside

a

week. Offered the use of the press of the Tove-ri, the foreign language newspaper that escaped the fire, the Budget mechani cal staff and make-up editor returned to

Throughout the difficult period follow

How THE Asmarm Wonxan

The Astorian staff worked heroically immediately after the fire. The spirit of “Let’s Go” animated every reporter, edi

Astoria. Copy was set on rescued linotypes of the Astoricm which were installed in a build ing on Astor street. However, after two

days in Astoria the Budget returned to the Seaside shop. Meanwhile composing stones, and new job and head type were ordered. Advertisers were clamoring for space in the paper to announce resump

tion of business and the Budget was able

tor, member of the business staff, and the mechanical force. Just as the paper was going to press on the day of the fire the power went off and the issue of the Astorian was missed on that day. Friday morning the fire, by a surprising spurt under one of the hollow streets, reached the Astorian building. Quick work on the part of employes saved two of the

linotypes.

Undaunted by the loss, the

to turn out a four-page paper daily.

December 21 the Budget set up inter types and job presses in a store room of the Sanborn-Cutting Co. in Astoria and has published in its own town since that date. It moved into its own building, which had been restored by emergency crews of carpenters, on January 14. The Budget went to eight pages on January 12. Anvrnrrrsrso FLOODS In The Associated Press and United Press services were cut off at the time of the fire and were not resumed until several

weeks afterward.

The

loss of tele

graph news apparently did not worry Budget subscribers. The paper was jammed

news and mechanical forces reported at

the shop of the Towri Friday night. Re porters wrote their stories in a room that housed the linotypes. The staff turned

out a four-page paper in time to catch

the morning mail and delivery. It was a feat in the face of difficulties that every newspaperman will applaud. In this crisis the staff worked forty-four hours without sleep.

Six pages were iued Sunday morning and again Tuesday following the fire. In succeeding days the Astorian published one eight-page paper and the remainder ten or twelve pages.

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