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Typo: A Monthly Newspaper and Literary Review, Volume 4
[miscellaneous paragraphs]
The French postal authorities are now considering a novel proposition for the transmission of newspapers to subscribers. It is proposed that the proprietors of each journal should send to the general post office a list of subscribers, together with a sufficient number of copies of the paper; the post office undertaking to distribute them to the subscribers without further trouble on the part of the publishers, so that it will not be necessary for the latter either to band them or address them in the usual way.
An appreciative subscriber in the South Island writes renewing his subscription, and sending us the name of a new subscriber, and says: « My own paper you will of course continue to send ad infinitum [that is more than we care to undertake!].. You will pardon me making a few remarks regarding the noble little paper representing the Craft. To some of the Dunedin printers—even men of business—it seems scarcely known. This is not as it should be. It should be in the hands of every printer—employer and employé—in the colony. » And our correspondent makes some suggestions as to the best means of attaining this end. If our subscribers all did as he has done—interested themselves in behalf of the paper—both Typo and the Craft generally would benefit.
In the editorial columns of a newspaper, it is right and proper that a side should be taken, and current events freely criticised. But in a bare index of the year's events party bias is out of place. The Illustrated London Almanac contains such a record, which is quite colorless except where Irish politics are concerned, when the partizanship displayed is remarkable. The mistake that « the colony » of Queensland objected to Sir H. Blake as Governor is perhaps excusable on the part of an English chronicler—in the colonies it is well known that the cry was raised by a few unpatriotic land leaguers solely to embarass and annoy the home government. This however is the style of item in relation to Irish affairs: « —— m.p., sentenced to six months' imprisonment for taking part six months before in a meeting of the national league. » — « —— m.p. and —— M.P., sentenced to one month's imprisonment for alleged offences under the Coercion Act. » (There is no such Act!) « —— m.p., sentenced without trial to four months' imprisonment. » — « —— m.p., contrary to ordinary legal procedure, -sentenced to another term of four months' imprisonment. » — « —— illegally removed from court by order of Mr Cecil Roche. » — « Letter from Pigott confessing the forgery of the fac-simile letters. » — « Dr Tanner, m.p., vindictively sentenced to three months' imprisonment.! » « —— m.p. and—— m.p., sentenced to two months' imprisonment. Police evidence proved false. » And more of the same kind. In most cases the italic represents a suppression of the truth or a perversion of facts. As a record of Irish affairs, the list is absurdly imperfect. The murder of Inspector Martin at the post of duty couid not be omitted; but he is merely said to have been « killed. » Beyond this the record is little else than one of the « vindictive » sentences, « illegally » passed by means of « false police evidence » on Irish agitators. It is only fair to the compiler to add that he refrains from prefixing the epithets « Beast » and « Bomba » to Mr Balfour's name— otherwise the record might have been an abridged transcript from United Ireland.