Part 12 (1/2)

”Are you sure you are telling the public about it in the right way?”

ventured Bok

The Scribner advertising had by this ti world, and this publisher was entirely ready to listen to a suggestion from his youthful caller

”I e published it,” said Bok ”I think I could o

It's all in the book”

”Hoould you advertise it?” asked the publisher

Bok promised the publisher he would let him know He carried with him a copy of the book, wrote some advertisements for it, prepared an attractive ”broadside” of extracts, to which the book easily lent itself, wrote some literary notes about it, and sent the whole collection to the publisher Every particle of ”copy” which Bok had prepared was used, the book began to sell, and within three months it was the most discussed book of the day

The book was Edward Bella Backward_

Meanwhile, Mr Beecher's weekly newspaper ”syndicate” letter was not only successful in itself, itpublishers, but it served to introduce Edward Bok's proposed agency to the newspapers under the most favorable conditions

With one stroke, the attention of newspaper editors had been attracted, and Edward concluded to take quick advantage of it He organized the Bok Syndicate Press, with offices in New York, and his brother, Williaer

Edward's attention was now turned, for the first ti habits He became interested in the fact that the American woman was not a newspaper reader He tried to find out the psychology of this, and finally reached the conclusion, on looking over the newspapers, that the absence of any distinctive material for women was a factor He talked the matter over with several proed that they would like nothing better than to interest women, and make them readers of their papers

But they were equally frank in confessing that they were ignorant both of omen wanted, and, even if they knew, of where such material was to be had Edward at once saw that here was an open field It was a productive field, since, as wo power, it would benefit the newspaper enor if it could offer a feht letter of New York gossip published in the _New York Star_, called ”Bab's Babble” Edward had read it, and saw the possibility of syndicating this item as a woman's letter from New York

He instinctively realized that woht out the author, ements with her and with former Governor Dorscheiroup of papers It was an instantaneous success, and a syndicate of ninety newspapers was quickly organized

Edward followed this up by engaging Ella Wheeler Wilcox, then at the height of her career, to write a weekly letter on women's topics This he syndicated in conjunction with the other letter, and the editors invariably grouped the two letters This, in turn, naturally led to the idea of supplying an entire page of matter of interest to women

The plan was proposed to a number of editors, who at once saw the possibilities in it and pro syndicator now laid under contribution all the famous women writers of the day; he chose the best of thebefore the syndicate was supplying a page of women's material The newspapers played up the innovation, and thus was introduced into the newspaper press of the United States the ”Woe”

The material supplied by the Bok Syndicate Press was of the best; the standard was kept high; the writers were selected fro the most popular authors of the day; and readability was the cardinal note The woe, the advertiser began to feel the presence of the new reader, and every newspaper that could not get the rights for the ”Bok Page,” as it cae” of its own Naturally, the le newspaper could afford what the syndicate, with the expense divided a a hundred newspapers, could pay Nor had the editors of these woes either a standard or a policy In desperation they engaged any person they could to ”get a lot of woman's stuff” It was stuff, and of the trashi+est kind So that alan its abuse and disintegration; the result we see in the es” in the newspaper of to-day

This is true even of the wo newspapers, and the reason is not difficult to find The average editor has, as a rule, no ti conditions of worossed by the news and editorial pages He usually delegates the Sunday ”specials” to soing women's probleent advice, or he places his ”woe” in the hands of so a woht to knohat interests her sex

But having given the subject little thought, he attachesit rather in the light of so that he ”ets it or refuses to give the editor of his woe even a reasonable allowance to spend on her es of worthless material There is, in fact, no part of the Sunday newspaper of to-day upon which so ood and now expensive white paper is wasted as upon the pages marked for the home, for women, and for children

Edward Bok now beca association, that if the A the newspapers, the A the nuence and wealth of the people, and the cheap prices at which books were sold He concluded to see whether he could not induce the newspapers to give larger and more pro to his constant contact with authors, he was in a peculiarly fortunate position to know their plans in advance of execution, and he was beginning to learn the ins and outs of the book-publishi+ng world

He canvassed the newspapers subscribing to his syndicate features, but found a disinclination to give space to literary news To the average editor, purely literary features held less of an appeal than did the features for women Fewer persons were interested in books, they declared; besides, the publishi+ng houses were not so liberal advertisers as the department stores The whole question rested on a commercial basis

Edward believed he could convince editors of the public interest in a newsy, readable New York literary letter, and he prevailed upon the editor of the _New York Star_ to allow hie Parsons Lathrop in that paper by a column of literary chat called ”Literary Leaves” For a number of weeks he continued to write this depart that he needed the experience for the acquirement of a readable style, and he wanted to be sure that he had opened a sufficient number of productive news channels to ensure a continuous flow of readable literary information

Occasionally he sent to an editor here and there what he thought was a particularly newsy letter just ”for his information, not for sale”

The editor of the _Philadelphia Times_ was the first to discover that his paper wanted the letter, and the _Boston Journal_ followed suit