The Daily News. THURSDAY, MAY 17, 1900. AN INTERESTING EXPERIMENT.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XXXXII, Issue 98, 17 May 1900, Page 2

The Daily News. THURSDAY, MAY 17, 1900. AN INTERESTING EXPERIMENT.

Charles M. Sheldon, whose name has become familiar to millions of people through his books "What Would Jesus Do?" " His Brother's Keeper," " The Crucifixion of Philip Strong," and others of similar style and tone, has lately made a remarkable experiment in newspaper journalism. Mr. Sheldon for one week controlled the reading and advertising matter of a large daily paper, the Topeka Capital (published at Topeka, Kansas, U.S.A.), which had been placed at his service for the purpose of affording him an opportunity of running a paper on the lines laid down in his book " What Would Jesus Do?" —lines confessedly ideal, and in the opinion of most newspaper men quite unworkable. Naturally, the experiment was watched very closely by the American newspapers, and the result was criticised unsparingly. The paper | enjoyed a good sale during the currency of the experiment, and no fault was found with it on that score ; but the rigid censorship exercised over advertisements brought down the wrath of an army of advertisers, and came in for very severe comment in the columns of newspapers throughout the States. It was, however, generally conceded that one week could by no means afford a fair opportunity of testing Mr. Sheldon's idea, and probably had he known a little more about journalism he would not have attempted to carry out an experiment under such conditions and circumstances as would render it altogether inconclusive, if they did not make it an utter failure. The critics of the experiment were quite justified in attributing any increase in circulation to public curiosity in connection with the new order of things, and in pointing out that so soon as the novelty wore off there would be numbers who would cease to take the paper, and that the circulation for one special week would be no criterion as to the amount of support likely to be accorded by the paperpurchasing public. On the other haod, those in sympathy with Mr. Sheldon's ideas can just as strongly urge that a week was too short a time in which to test the question as to how numerous were the people who would become . subscribeis because the paper was run : on lines such as they could endorse. ' Again, the experiment went far enough 1 to upset the current advertising con- ' tracts, but there was no time to aseer- i tain to what extent this would be com- i pensated for by a new list of advertisers, who approved of Mr. Sheldon's < ! principles as applied to the advertising •' | columns of the paper. The whole ex- 1 | periment was hedged about with such a multitude of unusual conditions that 1 absolutely nothing could be proved | from it, either one way or the other. Those who believe that it is possible to ! run a daily newspaper on some such ■ j,.nes as tho.se projected by Mr. .Sheldon 1 are not likely to bo discouraged by - itason of anything that resulted or did ] : -->t result during t.h<« progress of his ] experiment. It is no' at ail unlikely} tnat a " Sheldon " paper will be started L in one of the States, and given a fair It

test as to what measure of success or support it would meet with. When this is done it will be time enough to say whether 0. M. Sheldon's lines are altogether or in great measure practicable or impracticable.