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HISTORY OF OREGON NEWSPAPERS
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ber 24, 1906. Price one cent, Mr. Dillon's wife, Clarissa Church Dillon, recalls, in a letter to this writer. As her husband says, she had a good deal to do with the publication of that not overstaffed newspaper of 1906. It was a two-page paper at the beginning, five columns wide on a sheet 12½×x18 inches. The masthead gave the fol lowing data: "The East Side News, published every evening except Sunday. One cent a copy, 6 cents a week, 25 cents a month or $3 a year, delivered by carrier. No free copies. Office of publication, 408 East Clay street." There was no hint of who the editor, publisher, or owner might be. Mrs. Dillon recalls that not even her family was sup posed to know where she had gone with her husband when they left Seattle. She did a lot of different jobs on the paper, but the only official job she held was bookkeeper at $3 a week. As bookkeeper at $3 a week she was more or less upset to have to record an expense ac count of $300 turned in by a business executive of the parent organization who spent several days at the Portland Hotel while he re searched on how the little paper could cut expenses. He discovered expenses could be cut thirty cents (correct) a week. Thus in 20 years it would be possible to save the cost of his trip.

A line on what the News was offering in that first issue to give it a flying start with its Portland readers may be obtained from the following headlines: "Much Work Under Way on East Side," "Boy's Fatal Injury Kills Grandmother," "Philadelphia is Flea-bitten," "Ten Killed in Atlanta Race Riots," "Mother Jails Her Daughter," "Murderer's Victim Chopped to Pieces," "County Valuation Greatly Increased," "Fresno Wins Last Game." There was also a sentimental bit of fiction, "Why He Came Back." "I just said to T. J.," said Mrs. Dillon, "Where did you pick up that little sentimental story?" "Pick up! I didn't have anything to pick. I prob ably wrote it," was the busy editor's reply. A copy of the second issue of the paper hangs (as this was written) in the office of the business manager of the News-Telegram. So far as known, no one in Portland has a copy of the first issue.

Dana Sleeth, mentioned by Mr. Dillon, after several years at the helm, was succeeded by L. J. Ritchie in 1917. Then came E. W. Jorgenson, who in 1918 went to Spokane to head the Spokane Press of the Scripps-Howard chain. Jorgenson's successor was Fred L. Boalt, who remained more than eleven years, succeeded in 1929 by Ralph J. Benjamin. Editor at the time of the consolidation with the Portland Telegram May 5, 1931, was Fielding H. Lemmon, and the present editor, Tom E. Shea, has been on the staff for close to 19 years, having worked, as the Scripps-paper youngsters have to do, in all branches of the editorial department.

T. J. Dillon, the first editor, after returning to the Seattle Star, went over to the Post-Intelligencer and served for several years as managing editor and associate editor. Returning to Minneapolis,