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'THE FORWARD PARTY: THE PALL MALL GAZETTE, 1865-1889 by ALLEN ROBERT ERNEST ANDREWS B.A., University of British Columbia, 1963 A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS in the Department of History We accept this thesis as conforming to the required standard. THE'UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA June, 1Q68 In presenting this thesis in partial fulfilment of the requirements for an advanced degree at the University of British Columbia, I agree that the Library shall make it freely available for reference and Study. I further agree that permission for extensive copying of this thesis for scholarly purposes may be granted by the Head of my Department or by h.ils representatives. It is understood that copying or publication of this thesis for financial gain shall not be allowed without my written permission. Department of History The University of British Columbia Vancouver 8, Canada Date June 17, 1968. "... today's journalism is tomorrow's history." - William Manchester TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter Page PREFACE viii I. THE PALL MALL GAZETTE; 1865-1880 1 Origins of the P.M.G 1 The paper's early days 5" The "Amateur Casual" 10 Greenwood's later paper . 11 Politics 16 Public acceptance of the P.M.G. ...... 22 George Smith steps down as owner 2U Conclusion 25 II. NEW MANAGEMENT 26 III. JOHN MORLEY'S PALL MALL h$ General tone • U5> Politics 51 Conclusion 66 IV. WILLIAM STEAD: INFLUENCES THAT SHAPED HIM . 69 iii. V. THE "NEW JOURNALISM" 86 VI. POLITICS . 96 Introduction 96 Political program 97 Policy in early years 99 Campaigns: 188U-188^ and political repercussion -:-l°2 The Pall Mall opposes Gladstone's first Home Rule Bill. 1°9 The Irish coverage of the Pall Mall Gazette 113 The P.M.G. and collectivism 116 Defence of Socialists' rights of free speech 120 Colonial and external policy. 123 Conclusion. « VII. "SOCIAL POLITICS" 132 General social emphasis . ..... 132 The Pall Mall's implicit program of social regeneration . 135 Education . .; 135 The land question 136 Emigration. • 138 Urban problems 138 The condition of labor lUil The woman problem lU6 The "New Unionism" lU8 Miscellaneous social problems 150 iv. The P.M.G. acts as a venue for the "wise ones" 15>1 Conclusion <•<>.. • 153 VIII. CONCLUSION 155 BIBLIOGRAPHY l63 ABSTRACT A number of books deal with the subject of the Pall Mall Gazette, but none attempts to study in a scholarly way the journalistic, commercial and pol• itical evolution of this evening newspaper and review. Neither does the paper receive consideration In most of the official biographies and more common pol• itical works that deal with its age, even though the P.M.G. often exerted an influence second only to that of The Times. In addition, the P.M.G. during its first twenty-four years provided a notable and continuous experiment in journal• ism. This study examines the Pall Mall through its first three editorships that extended from 1865 to 1889. Chapter I examines the journal under Frederick Greenwood, editor from the journal's founding until 1880. During this time the paper assumed a consciously impartial character which later gradually changed to a conservative coloration, though Greenwood never became a strict party man. Chapters II and III study the journal in the Radical garb it assumed during the editorship of John Morley, between 1880 and 1883. Chapters IV to VII are de• voted to the Liberal-Radical "New Journalism" of William Thomas Stead, and Chap• ter VIII concludes. With the exception of Greenwood's editorship, for which material has been compiled from numerous memoirs and secondary works, the study draws its materials mainly from the daily record of the newspaper itself. Par• ticular care has beenttaken to identify both permanent staff as well as contri• butors during the successive editorships and to relate them to the character of the paper. This activity has met with a good degree of success despite the fact vi. that the paper's official files are'.lacking. The relation of the journal to other newspapers as well as to party thought are points that receive special attention, especially for the later editorships. The main emphasis remains on politics, but a general attempt is made in addition to relate the entire char• acter of the journal to such a focus. Thus the ever-present literary ingredient is examined at some length. Finally, where monographic studies exist of given "crusades" undertaken during Stead's famous editorship, little attempt is made to retrace well-trodden ground. The present study makes a number of points about the various editorships of the paper. The pioneering work of Greenwood to establish the journalistic vehicle upon which Stead in turn built his "New Journalism," as well as the former's work to establish a strong tradition of independent journalism, are points that receive special emphasis. The study also stresses the "watershed" effect of Morley's short innings. His prestige and recruitment of staff aided the paper's recovery following its change of political banner, and girded it with inherent strengths upon which Stead both drew and built. Under Morley the P.M.G. became recognized as the ablest supporter of Liberalism among the press. It also directly abetted the rise of the Radical leader, Joseph Chamberlain. The most impressive editorship remained that of Stead's, during which the paper succeeded in its efforts to revive the power of the press and attempted to es• tablish its editor's aspiration of "Government by Journalism." In this way, the paper both preceded as well as guided investigation and legislation on many occasions to right outstanding social abuses. Concurrently, Stead's Pall Mall served as a means of educating the upper classes in many of the philosophies and movements that characterized the 'eighties, and that included Socialism in its various manifestations, the women's movement and the work of manifold secu- vii. lar arid religious organizations. The paper also attempted to exert a seminal influence upon Liberal thought, particularly in relation to imperialism and in• ternationalism, and to a lesser extent, the question of Ireland. The P.M.G. actively promoted programs in these fields in a number of instances. At all times the paper served as both bell-weather and friendly centre to the Liberal party. It was made all the more effective since it was the only newspaper of Liberal sentiment in the Metropolis that led active crusades. Its spirit direct• ly reflected the moral ideals of its mentor, and was conspicuously broad, liber• al and humanitarian. While Stead's P.M.G. lasted, it was a remarkable example of much that was vital and admirable in late-Victorian Liberalism. Despite such a colorful and influential history, the P.M.G. remained for the period of this study an uneconomic undertaking. This factor provided the motivation from which derived the paper's multitude of distinctive advances in journalistic technique. PREFACE George Murray Smith, the founder of the Sail Mall Gazette, once expres• sed the opinion that during the 1880's his journal exerted an influence as a 1 newspaper of opinion on occasion second only to that exerted by The Times. His judgement cannot be piputed entirely to the bias of OTnership as he had given up control of the paper in 1880. Yet, the "P.M.G.," as its staff and friends called it, has yet to receive from scholars attention commensurate with the exalted position it enjoyed as a maker and reporter of opinion. The first lengthy study of the Pall Mall occupies a not inconsiderable portion of the first volume of Frederic Mbyte's The Life of W.T. Stead (1925). More recently, J.W. Robertson Scott, a former member of ^hh P.M.G. editorial staff, and retired editor of the Countryman, devoted the years just before* bis death to bringing forth his two works on the newspaper, TKe Storyaof the Pall Mall Gazette (1950) and The Life and Death of a Newspaper (1952). Thesefworks exhaust this rich field neither individually norfcollectively. Whyte's treat• ment of the P.M.G., though extensive, deals mainly with Stead and pursues the limited aim of relating the paper to the "New Journalism" of the 'eighties. Of necessity, he devotes much attention to the more provoking of the paper's varied crusades, especially those of "Gordon," the""Truth about the Navy.','"and the "Maiden Tribute," to each of which he devotes a separate chapter. He also enumerates Stead's "planks" in the P.M.G.'s platform, but does not trace them j. 1 J.W. Robertson Scott, The Story of the Pall Mall Gazette, p. li|0. ix. in detail. Rpbertson Scott stated in the early .pages of his first book bhat, the Pall Mall that his treatment was deliberately not a "study" but rather a 2 narrative, and both books treat the journal even more peripherally than does Whyte. The earlier work deals chiefly with the lives and times of the paper's first editor, Frederick Greenwood, as well as its founder, George Murray Smith, fhe later book takes up the story already begun and considers the lives and works p£fthe paper's great editors from 1880 until its expiration in 1923. It treats the personalities and some of the achievements of John Morley, W.T. Stead, E.T. Cook, Harry Cust, J.L. Garvin and three other editors. The work which follows is a deliberate attempt to write a "study" of the Pall Mall's first: twenty-four years. In addition to its being highly influen• tial, the Pall Mall was a continuous experiment during this time.

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