Captain Jinks, Hero, Ernest Howard Crosby [free e books to read TXT] 📗

we took the news as it came along, and that was all that was expected of us; but if we tried that way of doing things now, we’d have to shut up shop in a week. When we need news nowadays we simply make it. I don’t mean that we invent news⁠—that doesn’t pay in the long run; people learn your game and you lose in the end. No, I mean that we create the events that make the news. We were running short of news last year, that’s the whole truth of it; and so we got up this war. It’s been a complete success. We’ve quadrupled our circulation, and it’s doubling every month. We’re well ahead of the other papers because it’s known as our war, and of course we are expected to know more about it than anybody else.”

“But I thought the war was to free the oppressed Cubapinos⁠—an outburst of popular sympathy with the downtrodden sufferers from Castalian misrule,” interposed Sam, flushing. “That’s the reason why I applied for a commission, and I am ready to pour out my last drop of blood for my country.”

“Of course you are, my dear captain; of course you are. And your ideas of the cause of the war, as a military man, are quite correct. Indeed, if you will read my editorial of yesterday you will see the same ideas developed at some length.”

He pressed an electric button on his desk, and a clerk entered.

“Get me a copy of yesterday’s paper.”

In a moment it was brought; the editor opened it, marked an article with a dash of his blue pencil, and handed it to Sam.

“There,” said he, “put that in your pocket and read it. I am sure that you will agree with every word of it. Your understanding of the situation does great credit to your insight. That is, if I may use the term, the esoteric side of the question. It is only on the external and material side that it is really a Daily Lyre’s war. There’s really no contradiction, none at all, as you see.”

“Oh! none at all,” said Sam, with a sigh of relief. “I never quite understood it before, and you make it all so clear!”

“Now you will be prepared by what I have said to comprehend that it’s just in this line of creating the news beforehand that we want to make use of you, and at the same time it will be the making of you, do you see?”

“Not quite,” said Sam. “How do you mean?”

“Why, we understand that you’re a most promising military man and that you intend to distinguish yourself. Suppose you do, what good will it do, if nobody ever hears of it? Doesn’t your idea of heroism include a certain degree of appreciation?”

“Yes.”

“Of publicity, I may say?”

Sam nodded assent.

“Or even in plain newspaper talk, of advertising?”

“I shouldn’t quite like to be advertised,” said Sam uneasily.

“That’s a rather blunt word, I confess; but when you do some fine exploit, you wouldn’t mind seeing it printed in full in the papers that the people at home read, would you?”

“No-o-o, not exactly; but then I should only want you to tell the truth about it.”

“Of course; I know that, but there are lots of ways of telling the truth. We might put it in at the bottom of an inside page and give only a stick to it, or we might let it have the whole first page here, with your portrait at the top and headlines like that”; and he showed him a title in letters six inches long. “You’d prefer that, wouldn’t you?”

“I’m afraid I would,” said Sam.

“Well, if you didn’t you’d be a blamed fool, that’s all I’ve got to say, and we wouldn’t care to bother about you.”

“I’m sure it’s very good of you to take me up,” said Sam. “Why do you select me instead of one of the great generals at the front?”

“Why, don’t you see? You wouldn’t make a practical newspaper man. The people are half tired of the names of the generals already. They want some new names. It’s our business to provide them. Then all the other newspapers are on the track of the generals. We must have a little hero of our own. When General Laughter or General Notice do anything, all the press of the country have got hold of them. They’ve got their photographs in every possible attitude and their biographies down to the last detail, and pictures of their birthplaces and of their families and ancestors, and all the rest of it. We simply can’t get ahead of them, and people are beginning to think that it’s not our war after all. When we begin to boom you, they’ll find out that we’ve got a mortgage on it yet. We’ll have the stuff all ready here to fire off, and no one else will have a word. It’ll be the greatest beat yet, unless Mr. Cleary is mistaken in you and you are not going to distinguish yourself.”

“I don’t think he is mistaken,” said Sam solemnly. “I do intend to distinguish myself if I get the chance.”

“And we’ll see that you have the chance. It’s a big game we’re playing, but we hold the cards and we don’t often lose. You’re not the only card, to be sure. We’ve got a lot of men at the front now representing us. Several of our correspondents have made a hit already, and some of them have made themselves more famous than the generals! Ha, ha! Our head editor is going out next month, and of course we’ll see to it that he does wonders. Hullo! there’s Jonas now. Why, this is a lucky meeting. Here, Jonas. You know Cleary. Mr. Jonas, Captain Jinks. I’ll be blessed if here isn’t the whole combination.”

Mr. Jonas, who had come into the room unannounced, and perched himself on the corner of a table, was a rather short man with a brown beard and eyeglasses, and