LETTER LIX. NEWSPAPERS IN MARSEILLES AND ITALY. PARIS, October. I have had a number of notes about Italian newspapers of which hitherto there has been no opportunity of making use equal to that of now appending them to my remarks on the newspapers of France. In my Italian tour, six months ago, I visited the leading printing offices, and in many cases I brought with me a copy of the current issue, with the editor or publisher's name thereon endorsed. Before entering Italy I made the acquaintance of the editor of the Sémaphore at Marseilles, and from my notes I find that "he is a nice fellow and speaks English." This accomplishment, as already noticed, seldom exists in Paris; but the great seaport of the Mediterranean requires a polyglot editor, no doubt. I remember he was quite read up in all professional matters as a printer, which is seldom the case with editors, much to their loss. The Semaphore consists, like most of the Paris journals, of four pages, the size of the Times, and has evidently a careful selection of shipping news, and, wonderful to relate, no tale! The Journal de Marseille, the editor of which I did not find at home, is also a first-class looking paper, according to a Friday's edition on fine civil gentleman. French notions, and issues paper. The manager is a Genoa has a good supply of newspapers, and the editorial offices are upstairs, in huge marble buildings, which once must have been the homes of the famed sea opponents of the Venetians. Il Movimento, in its nineteenth year, is a tiny sheet of eight pages. Its editor is a polite Italian, with a good deal of enterprise. His paper of the 4th had "Telegrammi particolari" from Rome dated the previous day, and from New York three days before. The Gazzetta di Genova is in its 75th year, small and rather poorly printed. Its manager I found to be well informed on all printing matters. La Voce Publica is in its eleventh year, uses very large type, and very small paper. The copy I received contained one English paragraph. It was about "le unioni industrial," or "trades' unions" (printed in English), in "contee di Warwick, di Oxford, ed in altre contee vicine." In Florence I saw the editor of La Nazione, a paper in its fourteenth year, the size of the the French papers, well printed, and well edited, judging from its numerous editorials. I found the editor in lordly quarters, and much enjoyed his conversation. Everywhere type-composing machines are being inquired about. He who first conquers the difficulties will secure fame and fortune. At Leghorn, the Gazzetta Livornese I found had an excellent gentleman for an editor. The paper is young, but contained news from home only one day old-quite a mercy. Disraeli had met the Conservatives at Manchester, and " "difende la Camera dei Lordi"-defended the House of Lords. NEWSPAPERS IN ROME, VENICE, &c. 377 The Bank of England-La Banca d' Inghelterra-had raised its rate of discount, and the Times had received a letter from Filadelfia, about the Geneva Conference. At Naples I delayed too long to see any editors.' At Rome I had a very pleasing interview with the editor of L'Opinione, L'Opinione, the leading journal, issued every afternoon, and largely filled with tales, as was the case with La Capitale, or Gazzetta di Roma. Both, however, have been born during the last three years, the Pope having a veto on all newspapers before that time. The Roman Times, an English paper, has an English editor, whose acquaintance I made. I believe he is the son of Charles Mackay, the poet. His paper is quite a mercy to the English. At Venice I only called on one editor, and he was at dinner, and wished me to call on the morrow. Alas, for his loss! I had had to sail up three sewers, and back again through at least other three until we found where his office was. Then my friends had to sit in the gondola for a time until I walked up a dirty street and found him; meantime they were exposed to-I won't say reach such an office? Still the Gazzetta di Venezia is a fair specimen of an Italian paper. It had the most news from England of any paper we had seen, including John Bright's letter to Cyrus Field. what. Can late news ever At Milan I found the head paper, La Perseveranza, a daily morning journal, the property of a senator then at Rome. His son is an excellent English speaker, although but young, and I naturally thought he had been long in England. Judge my surprise when he told me he had never been there, yet was familiar with Milton, and Scott, and other British authors. He is worthy of being connected with La Perseveranza. Would that many of our young men would follow his example! What a fluency in foreign tongues could be gained in the time devoted by many young men to smoking and sauntering! And what a noble reward! I met a young Englishman at Genoa, once a schoolmaster at Sheffield. He learned Italian, and was sent out to represent a large mercantile house. La Perseveranza is a highly respectable looking paper, with really late telegrams, and the face of its intelligent young manager beamed all over when in parting I told him of the glorious future which I thought was in store for Italy. "I am glad," he said, "to hear you speak so of my country." My next and final visit to our craft in Italy, for at Turin I had no time, was to the Pictorial Journal of Milan. I found a pleasing company of editors, &c., and a large and well-stocked office. In a few minutes I was presented with-what do you think? A copy of their journal containing my portrait and composer, reprinted from the Graphic on a reduced scale. Need I say, I blushed all over, and yet ventured to remark that ma femme did not consider the Graphic portrait as handsome as the original? Could I do less than thank them, however, and go through all their works and show them practically in their engine-room how to wash their "formes" by steam? In concluding I cannot but remark the entire absence of personalities in newspapers here and in Italy. There are no sneering letters, "no answers to mythical correspondents," no insertions to wound friends or foes. Much of this, no doubt, is owing to the practice in France of signing all articles with a real name. What a shutting up to nasty insinuations at home if this were the case! Each editor |