LOOKING BACK:A RETROSPECT, WITH SOME SURPRISING FIGURES AND A PRESENTATION TO THE EDITOR.ByJAMES MASON.Excuseme if I indulge in a personal reminiscence. It is in every way a pleasant incident to recall:—Between nineteen and twenty years ago, in the Dark Ages, when as yet there was noGirl’s Own Paper, I remember a quite accidental meeting at luncheon in a London restaurant with the present Editor. We had become well acquainted before that, in connection with a magazine of which he was sub-editor and to which I then played the part of contributor.THE AUTOGRAPH TEA-TABLE CLOTH.I found him full of a scheme he had in view, a paper which he anticipated would be a lasting success, for it was going to appeal toand cater for those sensible girls who are always in fashion and who hitherto had possessed no magazine which they could call their very own.From the restaurant we adjourned to the Editor’s chambers, and there he read to me the proof of the prospectus about to be issued, announcing the publication of the first number ofThe Girl’s Own Paper. At this distance of time I cannot recollect the terms of that document, but, as it is not every day that editors write prospectuses, we may take it for granted that it was a very moving discourse which no girl could read without wishing at the very least to see Number One.The confidence of the Editor in his project was infectious. Confident he was, and confident he deserved to be, for he had had considerable experience and, it was clear, knew well what he was about. From that day I believed in the fortunes ofThe Girl’s Own Paper. It is true that we might have paused to consider how it is impossible to tell beforehand what will hit the public taste, but to the enthusiasm of so long ago that fact was only a sort of bogey to frighten enterprising spirits from starting anything new.Beginning with that interview it is pleasant to follow the career ofThe Girl’s Own Paper, leading up to its present flourishing fortunes. As the day is judged by its dawn, so girls apparently made up their minds about the aims, quality, and character of their special organ from the very first number. When it came out, “You are a treasure!” was uttered in every tone of voice, and with every inflection of enthusiasm.The sunshine of that time has lasted up till now. From being a new serialThe Girl’s Own Paperhas become a well-established favourite, with an influence for good in the community to which an outsider to the editorial office like myself may with propriety call attention. It is a paper which has been always in the front in advocating what is best for girlhood; always up-to-date; always interesting; always, one can see, trying to be sensible, and—without forcing its recognition—never losing sight of the highest subject of all.A few figures relating to the publication will no doubt be found of interest, showing, as they do, what a considerable enterprise the Editor entered upon when he launched his first number on the sea of public favour.The thousand numbers now completed have endeavoured to bring their influence to bear by means of about ten thousand articles on subjects of all kinds interesting to girls. This is not counting fiction. When we come to fiction, we find thatThe Girl’s Own Paperhas aided in the innocent amusement of its readers by the publication up to the present time of close on a hundred serial stories, and five times as many short stories and stories completed within the limits of a monthly part.Suppose a girl, a model of perseverance, wanted to read through the whole thousand numbers aloud without skipping a word, she could not do it in much less than a year, reading for eight hours a day. She would have her reward at the end of that time, for she would have stored away in her head a collection of valuable matter which would make her a “none-such” for the rest of her life.The illustrations have been about as many in number as the articles—excluding fiction. If a girl wanted to go through them all, giving to each one only half a minute of her time, she would have a picture-show that would last over ten days, giving to it eight hours a day.If all the columns of matter were cut out and pasted in one long strip, the thousand numbers would stretch out as a narrow pathway over seven miles.The figures are more startling when we come from columns to lines. Take all the lines of printed matter in the thousand numbers and extend them in one long line. Then whoever wants to run and read at the same time will have to run over a hundred and forty-five miles before she gets from the first words of Number One which were “Zara, or, My Granddaughter’s Money”—that being the title of the first story—down to the last syllable of the present number. Such is the distance the editorial eye has had to travel over. It is about thirty miles further than from London to Bristol, nearly twice as far as from London to Southampton, about three times as far as from Edinburgh to Glasgow, and a little less than three times the distance from London to Brighton.Taking the whole circulation ofThe Girl’s Own Paperfrom the issue of the first number, we arrive at an imposing result. Suppose that instead of distributing the copies to subscribers, they had been hoarded up and made to form a tall pillar, one copy being laid flat on the top of another. And supposing a girl wished to read the topmost number—the present number, that is to say—without using a ladder, she would have to wait till she grew to be a hundred and seventy miles high.It would be a pillar towering into the air to an inconvenient height, so it might be cut into sections, each of about the height, say, of Mont Blanc, and there would be about fifty-six of these.If all the numbers which have been circulated since Number One were laid end to end, they would make a pathway long enough to go round the world at the Equator with a bit over. If one could only contrive to carry it over the sea, girls might in this way ramble round and round the globe treading on their own paper all the way.The publication of the thousandth number of a magazine which can refer to such statistics as these is certainly an event worth taking note of. Making, as it does, a red-letter day in the history of the paper, it was resolved, on the kind and thoughtful suggestion of Mrs. Emma Brewer—whom all our readers know—to signalise it by presenting the Editor with the autograph cloth shown in the illustration. This wonderful tea-cloth was presented to him at Christmas, together with a letter containing the following cheering words:“We hoped to have made this little gift quite complete; there are however still some names wanting, not for lack of inclination to write them, but of time to collect them.“Imperfect as it is, it is eloquent in its expression of affection and good-will. As such will you accept it and be cheered by it? It is not only a tribute to you as a born editor, but as a good sterling friend. We do not think any other Editor in England will have a like gift to-day.”It is a recognition on the part of a hundred contributors—literary, musical, and artistic—who have served under his flag, of the ability, friendliness, and discretion which have been all along displayed in his dealings with his staff. No one can go back, as I do, to the very beginning ofThe Girl’s Own Paperwithout seeing how much it owes of its best features to his presiding care. Under his capable management and under that of a long line of successors, to whom he will be able to transmit the best maxims of editorial success, there seems no reason whyThe Girl’s Own Papershould not go on flourishing till the printers have to add a fifth figure to the number on the front page—and that will be a hundred and seventy-three years and four weeks from the present date!
LOOKING BACK:A RETROSPECT, WITH SOME SURPRISING FIGURES AND A PRESENTATION TO THE EDITOR.ByJAMES MASON.Excuseme if I indulge in a personal reminiscence. It is in every way a pleasant incident to recall:—Between nineteen and twenty years ago, in the Dark Ages, when as yet there was noGirl’s Own Paper, I remember a quite accidental meeting at luncheon in a London restaurant with the present Editor. We had become well acquainted before that, in connection with a magazine of which he was sub-editor and to which I then played the part of contributor.THE AUTOGRAPH TEA-TABLE CLOTH.I found him full of a scheme he had in view, a paper which he anticipated would be a lasting success, for it was going to appeal toand cater for those sensible girls who are always in fashion and who hitherto had possessed no magazine which they could call their very own.From the restaurant we adjourned to the Editor’s chambers, and there he read to me the proof of the prospectus about to be issued, announcing the publication of the first number ofThe Girl’s Own Paper. At this distance of time I cannot recollect the terms of that document, but, as it is not every day that editors write prospectuses, we may take it for granted that it was a very moving discourse which no girl could read without wishing at the very least to see Number One.The confidence of the Editor in his project was infectious. Confident he was, and confident he deserved to be, for he had had considerable experience and, it was clear, knew well what he was about. From that day I believed in the fortunes ofThe Girl’s Own Paper. It is true that we might have paused to consider how it is impossible to tell beforehand what will hit the public taste, but to the enthusiasm of so long ago that fact was only a sort of bogey to frighten enterprising spirits from starting anything new.Beginning with that interview it is pleasant to follow the career ofThe Girl’s Own Paper, leading up to its present flourishing fortunes. As the day is judged by its dawn, so girls apparently made up their minds about the aims, quality, and character of their special organ from the very first number. When it came out, “You are a treasure!” was uttered in every tone of voice, and with every inflection of enthusiasm.The sunshine of that time has lasted up till now. From being a new serialThe Girl’s Own Paperhas become a well-established favourite, with an influence for good in the community to which an outsider to the editorial office like myself may with propriety call attention. It is a paper which has been always in the front in advocating what is best for girlhood; always up-to-date; always interesting; always, one can see, trying to be sensible, and—without forcing its recognition—never losing sight of the highest subject of all.A few figures relating to the publication will no doubt be found of interest, showing, as they do, what a considerable enterprise the Editor entered upon when he launched his first number on the sea of public favour.The thousand numbers now completed have endeavoured to bring their influence to bear by means of about ten thousand articles on subjects of all kinds interesting to girls. This is not counting fiction. When we come to fiction, we find thatThe Girl’s Own Paperhas aided in the innocent amusement of its readers by the publication up to the present time of close on a hundred serial stories, and five times as many short stories and stories completed within the limits of a monthly part.Suppose a girl, a model of perseverance, wanted to read through the whole thousand numbers aloud without skipping a word, she could not do it in much less than a year, reading for eight hours a day. She would have her reward at the end of that time, for she would have stored away in her head a collection of valuable matter which would make her a “none-such” for the rest of her life.The illustrations have been about as many in number as the articles—excluding fiction. If a girl wanted to go through them all, giving to each one only half a minute of her time, she would have a picture-show that would last over ten days, giving to it eight hours a day.If all the columns of matter were cut out and pasted in one long strip, the thousand numbers would stretch out as a narrow pathway over seven miles.The figures are more startling when we come from columns to lines. Take all the lines of printed matter in the thousand numbers and extend them in one long line. Then whoever wants to run and read at the same time will have to run over a hundred and forty-five miles before she gets from the first words of Number One which were “Zara, or, My Granddaughter’s Money”—that being the title of the first story—down to the last syllable of the present number. Such is the distance the editorial eye has had to travel over. It is about thirty miles further than from London to Bristol, nearly twice as far as from London to Southampton, about three times as far as from Edinburgh to Glasgow, and a little less than three times the distance from London to Brighton.Taking the whole circulation ofThe Girl’s Own Paperfrom the issue of the first number, we arrive at an imposing result. Suppose that instead of distributing the copies to subscribers, they had been hoarded up and made to form a tall pillar, one copy being laid flat on the top of another. And supposing a girl wished to read the topmost number—the present number, that is to say—without using a ladder, she would have to wait till she grew to be a hundred and seventy miles high.It would be a pillar towering into the air to an inconvenient height, so it might be cut into sections, each of about the height, say, of Mont Blanc, and there would be about fifty-six of these.If all the numbers which have been circulated since Number One were laid end to end, they would make a pathway long enough to go round the world at the Equator with a bit over. If one could only contrive to carry it over the sea, girls might in this way ramble round and round the globe treading on their own paper all the way.The publication of the thousandth number of a magazine which can refer to such statistics as these is certainly an event worth taking note of. Making, as it does, a red-letter day in the history of the paper, it was resolved, on the kind and thoughtful suggestion of Mrs. Emma Brewer—whom all our readers know—to signalise it by presenting the Editor with the autograph cloth shown in the illustration. This wonderful tea-cloth was presented to him at Christmas, together with a letter containing the following cheering words:“We hoped to have made this little gift quite complete; there are however still some names wanting, not for lack of inclination to write them, but of time to collect them.“Imperfect as it is, it is eloquent in its expression of affection and good-will. As such will you accept it and be cheered by it? It is not only a tribute to you as a born editor, but as a good sterling friend. We do not think any other Editor in England will have a like gift to-day.”It is a recognition on the part of a hundred contributors—literary, musical, and artistic—who have served under his flag, of the ability, friendliness, and discretion which have been all along displayed in his dealings with his staff. No one can go back, as I do, to the very beginning ofThe Girl’s Own Paperwithout seeing how much it owes of its best features to his presiding care. Under his capable management and under that of a long line of successors, to whom he will be able to transmit the best maxims of editorial success, there seems no reason whyThe Girl’s Own Papershould not go on flourishing till the printers have to add a fifth figure to the number on the front page—and that will be a hundred and seventy-three years and four weeks from the present date!
A RETROSPECT, WITH SOME SURPRISING FIGURES AND A PRESENTATION TO THE EDITOR.
ByJAMES MASON.
Excuseme if I indulge in a personal reminiscence. It is in every way a pleasant incident to recall:—
Between nineteen and twenty years ago, in the Dark Ages, when as yet there was noGirl’s Own Paper, I remember a quite accidental meeting at luncheon in a London restaurant with the present Editor. We had become well acquainted before that, in connection with a magazine of which he was sub-editor and to which I then played the part of contributor.
THE AUTOGRAPH TEA-TABLE CLOTH.
THE AUTOGRAPH TEA-TABLE CLOTH.
THE AUTOGRAPH TEA-TABLE CLOTH.
I found him full of a scheme he had in view, a paper which he anticipated would be a lasting success, for it was going to appeal toand cater for those sensible girls who are always in fashion and who hitherto had possessed no magazine which they could call their very own.
From the restaurant we adjourned to the Editor’s chambers, and there he read to me the proof of the prospectus about to be issued, announcing the publication of the first number ofThe Girl’s Own Paper. At this distance of time I cannot recollect the terms of that document, but, as it is not every day that editors write prospectuses, we may take it for granted that it was a very moving discourse which no girl could read without wishing at the very least to see Number One.
The confidence of the Editor in his project was infectious. Confident he was, and confident he deserved to be, for he had had considerable experience and, it was clear, knew well what he was about. From that day I believed in the fortunes ofThe Girl’s Own Paper. It is true that we might have paused to consider how it is impossible to tell beforehand what will hit the public taste, but to the enthusiasm of so long ago that fact was only a sort of bogey to frighten enterprising spirits from starting anything new.
Beginning with that interview it is pleasant to follow the career ofThe Girl’s Own Paper, leading up to its present flourishing fortunes. As the day is judged by its dawn, so girls apparently made up their minds about the aims, quality, and character of their special organ from the very first number. When it came out, “You are a treasure!” was uttered in every tone of voice, and with every inflection of enthusiasm.
The sunshine of that time has lasted up till now. From being a new serialThe Girl’s Own Paperhas become a well-established favourite, with an influence for good in the community to which an outsider to the editorial office like myself may with propriety call attention. It is a paper which has been always in the front in advocating what is best for girlhood; always up-to-date; always interesting; always, one can see, trying to be sensible, and—without forcing its recognition—never losing sight of the highest subject of all.
A few figures relating to the publication will no doubt be found of interest, showing, as they do, what a considerable enterprise the Editor entered upon when he launched his first number on the sea of public favour.
The thousand numbers now completed have endeavoured to bring their influence to bear by means of about ten thousand articles on subjects of all kinds interesting to girls. This is not counting fiction. When we come to fiction, we find thatThe Girl’s Own Paperhas aided in the innocent amusement of its readers by the publication up to the present time of close on a hundred serial stories, and five times as many short stories and stories completed within the limits of a monthly part.
Suppose a girl, a model of perseverance, wanted to read through the whole thousand numbers aloud without skipping a word, she could not do it in much less than a year, reading for eight hours a day. She would have her reward at the end of that time, for she would have stored away in her head a collection of valuable matter which would make her a “none-such” for the rest of her life.
The illustrations have been about as many in number as the articles—excluding fiction. If a girl wanted to go through them all, giving to each one only half a minute of her time, she would have a picture-show that would last over ten days, giving to it eight hours a day.
If all the columns of matter were cut out and pasted in one long strip, the thousand numbers would stretch out as a narrow pathway over seven miles.
The figures are more startling when we come from columns to lines. Take all the lines of printed matter in the thousand numbers and extend them in one long line. Then whoever wants to run and read at the same time will have to run over a hundred and forty-five miles before she gets from the first words of Number One which were “Zara, or, My Granddaughter’s Money”—that being the title of the first story—down to the last syllable of the present number. Such is the distance the editorial eye has had to travel over. It is about thirty miles further than from London to Bristol, nearly twice as far as from London to Southampton, about three times as far as from Edinburgh to Glasgow, and a little less than three times the distance from London to Brighton.
Taking the whole circulation ofThe Girl’s Own Paperfrom the issue of the first number, we arrive at an imposing result. Suppose that instead of distributing the copies to subscribers, they had been hoarded up and made to form a tall pillar, one copy being laid flat on the top of another. And supposing a girl wished to read the topmost number—the present number, that is to say—without using a ladder, she would have to wait till she grew to be a hundred and seventy miles high.
It would be a pillar towering into the air to an inconvenient height, so it might be cut into sections, each of about the height, say, of Mont Blanc, and there would be about fifty-six of these.
If all the numbers which have been circulated since Number One were laid end to end, they would make a pathway long enough to go round the world at the Equator with a bit over. If one could only contrive to carry it over the sea, girls might in this way ramble round and round the globe treading on their own paper all the way.
The publication of the thousandth number of a magazine which can refer to such statistics as these is certainly an event worth taking note of. Making, as it does, a red-letter day in the history of the paper, it was resolved, on the kind and thoughtful suggestion of Mrs. Emma Brewer—whom all our readers know—to signalise it by presenting the Editor with the autograph cloth shown in the illustration. This wonderful tea-cloth was presented to him at Christmas, together with a letter containing the following cheering words:
“We hoped to have made this little gift quite complete; there are however still some names wanting, not for lack of inclination to write them, but of time to collect them.
“Imperfect as it is, it is eloquent in its expression of affection and good-will. As such will you accept it and be cheered by it? It is not only a tribute to you as a born editor, but as a good sterling friend. We do not think any other Editor in England will have a like gift to-day.”
It is a recognition on the part of a hundred contributors—literary, musical, and artistic—who have served under his flag, of the ability, friendliness, and discretion which have been all along displayed in his dealings with his staff. No one can go back, as I do, to the very beginning ofThe Girl’s Own Paperwithout seeing how much it owes of its best features to his presiding care. Under his capable management and under that of a long line of successors, to whom he will be able to transmit the best maxims of editorial success, there seems no reason whyThe Girl’s Own Papershould not go on flourishing till the printers have to add a fifth figure to the number on the front page—and that will be a hundred and seventy-three years and four weeks from the present date!