Not being connected with the Press, but actively engaged in the practice of the law, I can not say to what extent the Press is supported by the Afro-American. That it should receive, at his hands, all the support necessary to insure its success, should not for a moment be questioned. If the proper support is withheld, the cause may rest with both the members of the Press and the people. The editor should strive to make his paper the equal of any of its kind, giving his readers as much, both in quantity and quality, as any other paper of a similar size and character. The negro has passed the point in life when mere printed matter satisfies his reader's appetite; he wants food for thought.
He should have current news of the day. The scissors can not always supply the place of brains in the editorial chair, and while we may not, and do not, expect the associate press news to be contained in all of our journals, we do expect such news as will inform us upon all the important issues of the day, and such editorials as will educate the readers upon questions of public import. Less society news, and more general information, would impart a healthier tone to most of our race journals. In fact, business, and not sentiment, is what the masses want.
When our race journals present the best medium of reaching the masses of our people, the business men of a community will not be slow to avail themselves of their use. Sentiment and prejudice can not weigh against business principles and business interests, and the more business our journals represent, the more readers they will reach. We can not expect support and patronage for an inferior journal because it happens to come from our race; nor can the reading public expect an inferior article at superior prices and with indifferent support. The annual conventions held by the Afro-American members of the Press, are doing a great work in extending its usefulness.
