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Poe's Misc
[Text: Edgar Allan Poe, "Puffing (Part II)," Columbia Spy, November
30, 1844.]
PUFFING -- No. 2
In an article under this caption, we last week pointed
out: the ruinous effects of the policy pursued by certain of our country
editors, of praising indiscriminately individuals connected with newspapers
and periodicals in Philadelphia and other cities. We proved conclusively,
we think, the evil resulting to country editors from an undue indulgence
in the habit; that it militates against the standing of the country presses;
that it lessens their influence at home and abroad; that it cripples their
enterprise, and utterly unqualifies them to bear up under the heavy competition,
which, through the puffing of steam presses, the puffing of their own allies,
and the continual and unceasing puffing of country editors, the city press
are enabled to bring down upon us! We stated, too, that it is an evil by
which many of the people have suffered, and of which they have just cause
to complain. As long as country editors continue to recommend such papers
as we mentioned last week to their friends, in preference to their own--as
long as they continue to fill up their papers with prospectuses of papers
inferior to their own -- as long as they allow their journals to be the
instruments of these literary humbugs, -- so long will country papers be
kept in their present condition. But if they resolve at once to remove
this prop, whereby all these humbugs are supported -- they must
fall, and the conductors of country papers will receive that patronage
which rightfully belongs to them. This is the only obstacle which has cramped
the enterprise of country publishers -- and it is the easiest thing in
the world to remove it. We are satisfied that there is as much enterprise,
tact, talent and ability employed on country papers as there is on those
of the cities; but as long as this evil lies in the way, it would be useless
to invest any considerable amount of capital in any enterprise -- and particularly
in the publication of newspapers.
We are gratified that our remarks of last week have
been appreciated by many of our cotemporaries, both in and out of the city.
We are gratified -- because we spoke nothing but the truth -- and advocated
that which of right belongs to the success of country establishments.
Our esteemed cotemporary of the United States Gazette
is the only one, we believe, that has objected to our remarks, and he has
done so in a very indirect manner. He, no doubt, is aware of the benefits
to be derived from newspaper puffing; and we are, therefore, not surprised
at the manner in which he has been pleased to view our remarks. Instead
of considering the evil complained of, however, he accuses us of "venting
a little spleen" upon the writings of Joseph C. Neal, Esq., author of those
extremely witty, extraordinary and astonishing papers, entitled "Charcoal
Sketches"; and for the purpose of disqualifying our remarks, he quotes
another editorial of ours, having no bearing whatever on the question,
-- calls out all his scholastic learning and eruditeness, and detects,
what he terms, "a queer collocation of words to express ideas as singular."
Wonderful discovery! We are gratified, however, that the reading of the
second article mollified the pain which, he says, he experienced in perusing
the first. Had this not been the case, we doubt not but that that pain
would have lost to the community one of the most distinguished members
of the corps editorial !
[This item was first attributed to Poe by Spannuth. In later years,
it was rejected by T. O. Mabbott.]
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