"Can't you give us a few paragraphs of real High School news?
Something about the state of athletics there?"
"Why, yes, of course," the young sophomore nodded.
Returning to the desk where he had been sitting, Dick ran off a few paragraphs on the outlook of the coming High School baseball season.
"Did you write that High School baseball stuff in this morning's paper, Dick?" asked Tom Reade, the next day.
"Yes."
"You said that the indications are that Ripley will be the crack pitcher this season, and that he is plainly going to be far ahead of all the other box candidates."
"That's correct, isn't it?" challenged Dick.
"It looks so, of course," Tom admitted. "But why did you give
Ripley such a boost? He's no friend of yours, or ours."
"Newspapers are published for the purpose of giving information," Dick explained. "If a newspaper's writers all wrote just to please themselves and their friends, how many people do you suppose would buy the daily papers? Fred Ripley is the most prominent box candidate we have. He towers away over the rest of us. That was why I so stated it in 'The Blade.'"
"And I guess that's the only right way to do things when you're writing for the papers," agreed Darrin.