a war that launched the United States on its career as a world power.
Times were too hard for the new paper to make much head way, and almost from the the first its failure seemed only a matter of time. Advertising was in small proportion to the bulk of the paper (13½ columns out of 48 in the first issue).
The salutatory was frank and businesslike:
This is the first of the Sun. It will be published every day in the year by the Sun Publishing Company. of many stockholders, the Sun Composed, as the company could hardly be otherwise than independent in politics. It will uphold the true business interests of the city, state, and tributary territory.
The Sun's business will to give the news how well do that will appear from day to day. . . After all, what one most desires home news, and the matter of local news, the Sun will be thorough and comprehensive.
. . . Its expressions will always be found fearless in the cause of good government, national, state, and municipal.
. . . The expensive details of the publication of paper of this size are reduced to minimum of cost by reason of its cooperative character. Every person, from the editorial force down to the newsboy who will deliver to the readers, enlisted in the cause and its success. . . With antagonism to none, and hearty good wishes to all, the Sun has been issue started.
Firms represented in the advertising columns of the first issue of the Sun were Hunt Hardware Co., Paragon Safety Oil Co., Lipman, Wolfe & Co., Famous Clothiers, Prager Bros., dry goods; Wait & Mann (Charles N. Wait, J. D. Mann), attorneys-at-law; Library association (membership cut from $9 a year to $5. 20,000 volumes . . . Stark street between Seventh and Park); Green Tank Oil Company; Golden West Baking Powder (Clossett & Devers); W. Gadsby, furniture (page ad); Carr & Goldsmith (money to loan); O. R. & N. (W. H. Hurlburt general passenger agent, E. McNeill receiver and general manager); Northern Pacific (A. D. Charlton assistant general passenger agent); Metropolitan Printing House (Robert Glen).
Hotel news consisted of 19 items filling half a column of space; the hotels mentioned are the St. Charles and the Perkins. Church news appeared under a four-column general label "God's Temples of Worship." Sermons are quoted, directly and indirectly, as delivered in First Baptist, Centenary Methodist, First Congregational, First Presbyterian, and Trinity Episcopalian.
