neral marches to the grave.

In the world's broad field of battle,
In the bivouac of Life,
Be not like dumb, driven cattle!
Be a hero in the strife!

(_Continued on Page 13._)

CHAPTER II

NEWS ITEMS

"Facts are stubborn things."
LE SAGE.

I. Assignment

Find and report some unusual and interesting thing that has been made or
done by boys or girls. Do not get your information from literature. Get
it from life. Above all, don't make it up. It must be fact, not fiction.

When the city editor gives a reporter an assignment, he does not expect
to answer questions. The reporter's business is to give the city editor
copy, not to rely on him for information. The reporter who does not
promptly learn this fact soon ceases to be a reporter.

II. Getting the Facts

In all writing the gathering of material is more important than any
other one thing. In reportorial work it is almost all-important. Almost
anybody can tell a story if he has the facts. Energy, persistent
politeness, and a pair of stout legs are more essential in reporting
than is a large vocabulary. The pursuit of news is always a fascinating
and sometimes a dangerous game. If you do not believe this, read
_Fighting in Flanders_, by E. Alexander Powell; or _The Events Man_, by
Richard Barry. Above everything else, remember that the most
uncompromising adherence to facts is essential.

Do not make the mistake of supposing that newspaper men fail to
recognize the importance of telling the exact truth. They strive
constantly and strenuously to do so. In the office of the _New York
World_ there used to be, and probably still is, a placard on which
Joseph Pulitzer had printed these three words: "Accuracy, ACCURACY,
=ACCURACY=." All reporters strive constantly to be accurate. If they do
not always succeed, it is due to the difficulty of the task. They have
to work fast lest the news grow cold. Usually they write in the midst of
an uproar. When you are disposed to find fault with them by reason of
their carelessness, remember that Sir Walter Raleigh, unable to
determine the facts concerning a quarrel that occurred under his own
window, concluded that his chance of telling the truth about events that
happened centuries previous was small.

III. Writing

In preparing manuscript the typewriter in these days is almost
indispensable. The value to a reporter of a course in typewriting is
therefore obvious. It is also ob