"Had anything in yet?" Kittredge inquired casually, late in the afternoon.
"I wrote a column and a half yesterday and I found two lines among the
City Jottings," replied Howard, reddening but laughing.
"The first story I wrote was cut to three lines but they got a libel suit
on it."
II.
THE CITY EDITOR RECONSIDERS.
At the end of six weeks, the City Editor called Howard up to the desk and
asked him to seat himself. He talked in a low tone so that the Assistant
City Editor, reading the newspapers at a nearby desk, could not hear.
"We like you, Mr. Howard." Mr. Bowring spoke slowly and with a carefulness
in selecting words that indicated embarrassment. "And we have been
impressed by your earnestness. But we greatly fear that you are not fitted
for this profession. You write well enough, but you do not seem to get the
newspaper--the news--idea. So we feel that in justice to you and to
ourselves we ought to let you know where you stand. If you wish, we shall
be glad to have you remain with us two weeks longer. Meanwhile you can be
looking about you. I am certain that you will succeed somewhere, in some
line, sooner or later. But I think that the newspaper profession is a waste
of your time."
Howard had expected this.
Pages:
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27