It was known for publishing sketches and short stories, including early works by Raymond Chandler, Anthony Hope, D. H. Lawrence, Katherine Mansfield, Margaret Chute and Saki, and travel writing by Rupert Brooke.
[1] Launched with the help of Liberal publisher George Newnes, the paper was started by E. T. Cook on 31 January 1893,[2] employing the core of the old political staff from The Pall Mall Gazette including Hulda Friederichs.
[4] When launched, it was printed on green paper (which it retained throughout its time as an evening publication), intended to make it easier to read by homegoing workers under artificial light on a train or omnibus.
[5] The veteran editor Frederick Greenwood regarded The Westminster Gazette under Spender as "the best-edited paper in London,"[6] and it became essential reading for politicians on both sides of the political aisle.
When Newnes sold the paper in 1908 to a consortium of Liberal businessmen and politicians led by Alfred Mond, however, Spender found his cherished independence under pressure.