orally, and it will be subjected to the
analysis of the class and teacher, who will blame or praise it according
to its deserts. The reporter must defend himself, if attacked. Each
pupil will therefore in turn play the role of a reporter, telephoning a
story to headquarters while the class and teacher enact the part of the
city editor.

VI. Written Composition

After the process outlined in Section IV of this chapter has shown the
reporter how to go about the job, the report is to be written,
proof-read by the teacher, corrected by the reporter, and rewritten
until it is letter-perfect.

VII. Suggested Reading

Kipling's _007_ in _The Day's Work_.

VIII. Memorize

SUNSHINE

Think every morning when the sun peeps through
The dim leaf-latticed windows of the grove
How jubilant the happy birds renew
Their long melodious madrigals of love;
And, when you think of this, remember too
'Tis always morning somewhere, and above
The awakening continents from shore to shore
Somewhere the birds are singing evermore.
LONGFELLOW, _The Birds of Killingworth_.

CHAPTER V

CONSTRUCTIVE NEWSPAPER WRITING

"The drying up a single tear has more
Of honest fame than shedding seas of gore."
LORD BYRON.

I. Introduction

The worst thing about most news articles is that they tell of
destruction, failure, and tragedy instead of construction, success, and
happiness. If one were to judge from the papers, one would be forced to
conclude that the world is rapidly advancing from civilization to
barbarism. To test the truth of this assertion, you have only to examine
almost any current newspaper. A man may labor honorably and usefully for
a generation without being mentioned; but if he does or says a foolish
thing, the reporters flock to him as do cats to a plate of cream. The
reason is obvious. Tragedy is more exciting than any other form of
literature; it contains thrills; it sells papers. However, aside from
the fact that the publication of details concerning human folly and
misfortune is often cruel and unjust to the sufferers, its influence
upon the public is debasing in the same way, if not in the same degree,
as public executions were debasing.

Newspaper writing should, therefore, deal with progress rather than with
retrogression. Most newspaper men admit that this is true, but declare
that the public will not buy the kind of papers which all s