Illinois newspaper directory. History of the Illinois press association

Illinois \'i w si>ai>i k Directory and History"Speaking of employment she s.iys: 'There is one field that I think peculiarlyadapted to women, and that is editing and publishing papers in small towns. I believemost thoroughly in the possibilities of local journalism for women. The best thingabout journalism in all its phases is that it is reasonably compatible with the tastes ofwomen for a sheltered and domestic life. For instance, all my work for the Tribuneexcept the making up of the paper—is done in my library, which is really the rallyingplace for my family clans, so I am with them, and of them, all the time. I doubt if aman could attend to all the business, writing, and editorial work, of a paper with oneeye on the barn and the other on the baby; with one ear for the kitchen, and the otherfor the doorbell.'"Miss Mary Allen West, the gifted editor of the Union Signal, the leading temperancepaper of the Union, with a constituency of IS 0,000 in the United States, in theNational Union, and 24,000 in this state, counting W.C.T.U. and Band of Hope, hasbeen a journalist almost from infancy. She has been a contributor to all the leadingeducational journals of the state, editor of a department of a local paper, an editor ofthe Social Science Journal, of Chicago, of the Home Monthly, of Philadelphia, and aseducator, reformer, leader of thought, of social life, has won an advanced place in thehistory of the times."Miss Frances E. Willard writes of her journalistic experience: 'At 14 my firstarticle was returned, and "Zoa" received good advice, but the publication of "RusticMusings" by the Prairie Farmer, a year later, drove me wild with delight. At 18 I hada work ready, "Rupert Mellville and His Comrades," but before venturing out with itinto the cold world, I sent a novelette, alliteratively embellished "Jenny and John,"to the Ladies Repository, at Cincinnati, which was promptly accepted by Bishop Wiley.A year passed by in which I watched for its appearance even as they who watch for themorning. I then wrote to the editor, who replied that he thought it must have beenmislaid, and they could not undertake to hunt up manuscripts. That was another turningpoint, for, with untold heartache, I decided that if my story had been good it wouldnot have been lost. When nineteen years of age I had an essay in the Chicago Tribune,and gratefully acknowledge the encouragement of its acceptance. When my sister-inlaw,Mrs. Mary B. Willard, and I, urged by the stockholders to be the forlorn hope ofthe Chicago Post, vainly tried to save the day for its already sinking fortunes, after mybrother's death, we received more letters of censure for advertisements "not up to grade,"morally, than of praise for our pathetic struggle to do well. The dear public did notknow that we refused contracts from saloons that would have put breath into the gaspingenterprise, and that the advertisements complained of were beyond our control,having been paid for before we assumed the management. After that experience Ialways had a more intelligent appreciation of the newspaper fraternity.'"Having briefly sketched the past and present of women in journalism, let us recallthe influence of these women on our national life, philanthropic and political."Many can remember when the Nation was 'half slave and half free.' There weremany in the Nation who denounced it as unwise—criminal, but none could devise apractical remedy, and the disgrace of a people boasting of individual liberty, whileholding fast to individual slavery, was continued. The few opposed, scolded, but themajority participated or defended, and public sentiment said let it go on. By and bya hurried housewife commenced to write. She was a journalist—of a family of journalists—whothought she could weave an interesting story from living material, and whilebusied about the work of a modest home she matured a plan. With a foot on the cradlerocker, she penned the thoughts, a word today, a sentence yesterday, a paragraph lastweek; and through the columns of a newspaper 'Uncle Tom's Cabin' burst, blazed upon