The Review and Herald by James White

Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · Dec 6, 1870

The Review and Herald.

By James White

OURS should be the best religious paper in the world. Whether the period of its mission be short or long, it should be the best. If its positions be correct, the period of its mission is brief, its work is of vast importance, and language cannot express the importance of its being, in every respect, as good a paper as it can be made.

It is too small to receive a proper amount of reading matter in a size of type convenient to be read. Our present sheet and type are too small. An enlargement of these will add both to the appearance and usefulness of the REVIEW AND HERALD.

And what is most needed is improvement in the reading matter of our paper. Whatever other improvements may be made, if the reading matter lack clearness, point, spirit, freedom, power, all effort to improve our paper is lost. The editor must live in freedom, and work in God. Every line should contain either a rich thought, a sentence of stirring exhortation or experience, or an item of news. What kills the very life of some religious papers, is whole paragraphs, if not columns, which contain neither richness of thought, experience, exhortation, nor news. The readers soon lose their interest. Our paper can be, and must be, of that lively interest that all our people, old and young, can enjoy reading it from beginning to end, with that earnestness that the novel reader devours literary trash.

And in order that the REVIEW AND HERALD may interest all, instruct and profit all, it must contain variety. All our preachers, and all our brethren and sisters who can use the pen, should feel that they have a duty to add to its interest. It needs the argumentative productions of Eld. Andrews, Waggoner, Cottrell, Canright, Butler, and others, some of them condensed. All our preachers should report as often as once in two weeks.

But these reports should be condensed. All matters of mere local interest must be kept out of our paper. It should be our aim to have every line of our paper of interest to all our readers. We have no language at our command that will express our views and feelings upon this subject.

When the editor was taken sick in the early part of the fall, we had several camp-meetings upon our hands. We were then depressed with toil, care, and anxiety, for the cause. Yet, in the strength of God, we rose above these things; and while passing from State to State, in labors, cares, business for our Office, and travels abundant, we did what we could to fill the editor's place in our paper. On our return, we continued our efforts when we should have had rest, and a chance to recover from our extreme labors. But Bro. Gage being sick, the entire labor of editing, and closing up business neglected in our absence, fell upon us. With this load we struggled, till a severe cold, and painful affection of the lungs, brought us down, and our labors closed with last week, when the editor returned.

We have hoped to make the changes of size of sheet and type with the commencement of the next volume, and other changes as fast as possible. But some circumstances are discouraging. If God gives us health and strength, hope and courage in the work, we shall leave no means untried to improve the condition and usefulness of our paper. JAMES WHITE.