(now Idaho City), Idaho. At Walla Walla he met Major Reese, of The Walla Walla Watchman, who had just bought out a rival newspaper. The sale gave Butler an idea: realizing that a great many people were gathering in the Boise Basin, nearly three hundred miles from any newspaper, and that a great political campaign was approaching, he conceived the idea of starting a newspaper there. Purchasing the extra outfit from Major Reese, he sold his packing business and sent for his family and also his brother, T. S. Butler, who became the editor of the new paper. The outfit sold to Butler was far from being complete. He found it necessary to make composing-sticks from the tin of an old tobacco box: he improvised an imposing-stone by using a large slab split from a pine log, which he dressed off on one side, mounted on a frame, and covered with sheet iron: he chiseled a chase out of old horseshoe iron. In spite of such handicaps, however, The Boise News was a fairly creditable production. It was continued by the Butler brothers for about thirteen months, and often sold for two dollars and fifty cents a copy.
In addition to getting out The Boise News, the plant printed a campaign paper for each of the political parties. On October 29, 1864, the paper was sold to Street & Bowman, who changed the name of the paper to The Idaho World. Before The Boise News was started, Portland papers were sold extensively in Idaho by rival express companies.
The second paper in Idaho was The Union, edited by John Charleton, first issued in Idaho City October 8, 1863.
The third paper was The Idaho Daily Statesman, established on July 26, 1864, by James S. Reynolds and his brothers, T. S. and S. W. Reynolds. It has been run continuously ever since under that title.
BEGINNINGS IN MONTANA
Journalism in Montana began in the cellar of a log cabin at Virginia City on August 27, 1864, when John Buchanan brought out The Montana Post. He had brought a press and material from St. Louis to Fort Benton, only to locate, however, at Virginia City. After two issues of The Post he sold the paper to D. W. Tilton and Benjamin R. Dittes. The latter having secured
