Page:History of Oregon Newspapers.pdf/315

306 sent to Astoria to assume the editorship. He is now entering his twenty-first year on the job—during which time the paper has grown tremendously, promoted civic development, and survived all its competition.

Astoria's biggest story was the fire disaster of December 8, 1922, which laid waste the business section of town with millions of dollars loss and incidentally wiped out the newspaper plants of both the Asorian and the Budget. Both papers mingled firefighting and relief with the publication of extras in other plants. The Finnish paper Toveri and the Seaside Signal plants were used until the Astorian and the Budget could replace and repair their destroyed and damaged equipment. Portland papers sent down full staffs to cover the disaster. The Telegram sent David W. Hazen, Lawrence Davies, Gardiner P. Bissell, and Earl W. Murphy. The Oregonian's contingent consisted of James D. Olson, Floyd W. Maxwell, and Jay Allen; for the Journal, Phil Parrish and George S. O'Neal; News, Tom E. Shea.

Only one issue of an Astoria paper was missed as a result of the disaster, but it took the finest courage and cooperation to keep the continuity. The Astorian was defeated on the day of the fire because the power went off just as the paper was going on the press. The day after the fire the Astorian declared in an editorial:

"Astoria will not stand in stunned dismay, pondering on a past disaster. . . . Let every citizen unite with the common purpose to advance, to grow again; let none lag; let none be dismayed. . . . "Let's go.""

This slogan was rattled from typewriters set up on packing-boxes in temporary editorial quarters (80). Rescued linotypes echoed the command. Every man of the Astorian and Budget staffs was on the job every minute. The Budget's loss was particularly heavy; not only was its plant, including three linotypes, a Ludlow typograph, and three job presses, damaged beyond repair, but also its new building, of which only the walls were left standing. The Astorian saved two of its linotypes, though losing the historic machine that had intro duced line-casting composition in Oregon. Typical of what the whole Astoria newspaper gang was doing, the Astorian staff worked 44 hours without sleep from the time disaster struck. Within four days the papers were printing their regular-sized editions, and before the end of the month had new machinery replacing the old destroyed.

It was the judgment of newspapermen that the Astoria fire-sufferers acted in keeping with the best traditions of journalism in emergency.

After the death of Mr. Dellinger (1930) the Astorian was merged with the Astoria Budget, its younger afternoon competitor, and the combined paper, the Astorian-Budget, is edited by Merle