Masters Of Copywriting - Various

I Am the Printing Press

I am the printing press, born of the mother earth. My heart is of steel, my limbs are of iron, and my fingers are of brass. I sing the songs of the world, the oratorios of history, the symphonies of all time. I am the voice of today, the herald of to-morrow. I weave into the warp of the past the woof of the future. I tell the stories of peace and war alike.

I make the human heart beat with passion or tenderness. I stir the pulse of nations. I make brave men do braver deeds. I inspire the midnight toiler, weary at his loom, to lift his head again and gaze, with fearlessness, into the vast beyond, seeking the consolation of a hope eternal.

When I speak, a myriad people listen to my voice. The Saxon, the Latin, the Celt, the Hun, the Slav, the Hindu, all comprehend me. I am the tireless clarion of the news. I cry your joys and sorrows every hour. I fill the dullard’s mind with thoughts uplifting. I am light, knowledge, power. I epitomize the conquests of mind over matter. I am the record of all things mankind has achieved. My offspring comes to you in the candle’s glow, amid the dim lamps of poverty, the splendor of riches; at sunrise, at high noon, and in the waning evening.

I am the laughter and tears of the world, and I shall never die until all things return to the immutable dust. I am the printing press.
ROBERT H. DAVIS.

Preface

THE list of authors of the present course includes men and women who incontestably are or have been in the front rank of their profession; whose work is or has been very conspicuously successful; whose record of service in advertising is long, notable or distinguished and whose claim to be included is self-evident in their contributions. By good fortune, there are included the writings on copy of several outstanding men of acknowledged genius in advertising, who are now dead.

One of these, George L. Dyer, has left almost no other written record of his point of view, except in the splendidly successful advertising of his clients. The selection, therefore, the editor believes, is notably representative of American masters of advertising copy.
It is advisable to note here that the authors of the chapters have been permitted to paragraph or sub-head their material in their own way, without attempt at making style uniform. This, the editor believes, is a courtesy inherent in the subject and the plan.
The matter of reproduction of examples of advertisements has, by common consent, been omitted, for the simple reason that, like hats, advertisements go out of style in appearance, and this book is meant to focus attention not on external form, but on the principles of copy.

It may be anticipated that in future editions of this book other contributors will be included, for the problems of advertising are now greater than ever. The editor cherishes the hope that the readers will agree with him that the book is not only practically helpful in the study of copy, but is also historically important, as it collects and conserves the writings of the men who have made history in advertising writing.

THE EDITOR.

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