Another seasoned scribe of the “old school” who is yet, after fifty years of active newspaper work, able to give the “new school” young reporters many valuable pointers, as to the best kind of punch (sparkling but not wet) to put into their night write-ups, is the spry and jolly Civil War veteran, Sergeant Ralph Hawkins.
Charles Stewart, as a scribe of the first order, has put more than two score years in this field in gathering news for some of the leading white and Colored papers of the country. His abilities as a good mixer, keen observer, good reasoner and an expert shorthand writer enabled him years ago by using his clever disguises to get the inside secret and puzzling facts to make numerous big newspaper write-ups on important and vital events that had not been unearthed, after repeated trials, by, some of the country’s most expert white newspaper reporters.
The late Richard W. Thompson was a man of wide newspaper experience and knowledge. He was at different times on the editorial staffs of the Washington Colored American and the Indianapolis World. He was the founder of a newspaper bureau in Washington, D.C. from where he sent out his famous letters to Colored papers throughout the country. He was without doubt one of the hardest workers Colored journalism has ever had. On more than one occasion the writer has seen Mr. Thompson take down notes all day and sit up that entire night getting out press releases for the next day.
In the deanship of newspaper work with T. T. Fortune is A. J. Murphy, editor of his nationally known Afro-American published in Baltimore, Md. Newspaper men who come in contact with Mr. Murphy are greatly encouraged and benefited as the results of his unusual journalistic abilities and experience extending over scores of years.
Ralph W. Tyler, World War newspaper writer and now on the editorial staff of the Cleveland Advocate, and L. T. Thompson World War Historian, are among the foremost newspaper men in the Race today. To them, on account of their bravery to face all kinds of perils and unselfish expending of tireless efforts to get true facts first-hand, goes much of the honor or the gathering and compiling of the data pertaining to the accurate history of the American Colored soldiers and sailors in the World War.
Cleveland G. Allen, one of the best known of the younger newspaper men of the race, is making journalism his profession. Aside from being the only Negro reporter in 1911 at the Ecumenical Conference at Toronto, Canada, and acting as traveling newspaperman with the late Bishop Alexander Walters, he was for many years one of Dr. Booker T. Washington’s Northern publicity men. It was mainly through his efforts that the name of a Negro, Frederick Douglass, was first brought before the Hall of Fame, and through his newspaper work an investigation was conducted against the discriminations of Colored sailors in the U. S. Navy. He has written a great deal for daily newspapers of New York and the entire country on the Negro question and at one time conducted a National News Bureau for the Negro Press. Having studied in Union High School, Greenville, S. C.; in the New York Evening High School three years where he won oratorical honors; two years of journalism in New York University; studying at the Angelus Academy of Music where he won a scholarship; and at present taking up special work at Columbia University: Mr. Allen, on account of the above preparations and experiences, is well fitted to hold his present positions as a member on the editorial staff of “Home News” a large white newspaper in New York, and as an appointed lecturer on Negro Music for the Board of Education in New York City. He has a brother, Henry Allen, who is also a prominent newspaperman at Stamford, Conn.
Among America’s foremost Colored women newspaper writers of today is Frances Berry Coston of Indianapolis, Ind. Her chief work is in feature articles and stories. Having graduated from Berea College; from the Chicago University post-graduate course in literature and languages; from the Pulitzer School of Journalism at Columbia University and from the celebrated Harvard Starred Course in English, (given primarily for authors and journalists) Mrs. Coston is well prepared and fully capable to hold her present position. She is Literary Correspondent for the Indianapolis News, one of the largest and most influential white dailies, not only in the West, but throughout the country. Because of her unusual efficiency and versatile abilities as a writer, she is permitted by the editorial staff to turn out articles on any subject or along any literary line she may desire. Mrs. Coston is given all the work she can do on the literary page of this paper, and in connection with the Book Review Department of the News, she is allowed to make her own selections from the literary editor’s desk.
While still in his teens during the early nineties, Jas. A. Jackson of Bellefonte, Pa., started his newspaper career with the Daily News, a white newspaper published in his home town. Since that time he has developed to such a high standard until today he stands among the most widely known feature short story Colored and white writers of today. His stories have frequently appeared on the magazine pages of the Sunday editions of the New York Sun and the New York Herald. On account of his very wide travels throughout the United States and abroad, he has become acquainted with many of the most prominent newspapermen on both sides of the ocean. With several of these writers and authors he has joined in writing articles for some of America’s most popular magazines as well as noted newspapers published in European countries. In 1912 he wrote a lengthy article, “The Negro At Large” and in 1918 he wrote “The Underlying Cause of Race Riots.” These masterpieces of journalism were greatly quoted by many newspapers and magazines, after the articles had first appeared in the New York Globe. Mr. Jackson’s latest literary step was made when he recently accepted a membership on the editorial staff of “The Billboard”, as Dramatic Reviewer. This is an amusement weekly (white) publication that was founded in New York many years ago and today has a circulation of over two hundred thousand copies a week.
The two daily newspapers run by Colored people in the United States are W. T. Andrews’ Baltimore Herald that is published in Baltimore, Md., and Arthur Craig’s The Daily Star which is published in New York City where it has a daily circulation of over forty thousand copies.
Among the Colored newspapers in the United States, Robt. S. Abbott’s Chicago Defender (World’s Greatest Weekly) is recognized as having the largest circulation. This newspaper recently moved into its own two hundred fifty thousand dollar, three-story, modern building that contains a print shop, four linotype machines, and four-deck Goss straight-line press.