The brand of journalism Taylor used and improved upon began in 1883 by Eugene Field with his "Sharps and Flats" column in the Chicago Daily News, , and later in 1895 by "Tribune" writer Henry "Butch" White. Taylor's satirical verse was a bit more polished than Field’s plain style, and Taylor covered a greater variety of topics. He arranged his column as a mélange of whimsical paragraphs, amusing excerpts from rural papers, and light verse interspersed with submissions from outside contributors; indeed, it was considered an honor to be selected for the "Line". Many of the selected contributions came from some of the best-known writers of the time who submitted their work using only their initials or pseudonyms such as "Pan" (Keith Preston of The "Chicago Daily News") or "Riquarius" (Richard Atwater of The "Chicago Evening Post") for example. Submissions came in the form of verse, funny clippings from other newspapers, or absurd observations by "gadders" (tourists) during their travels. Taylor received anywhere from eighty to a hundred letters a day, most addressed simply to "B.L.T." or "A Line o' Type or Two" at the "Tribune", and he managed to read every one. He also took meticulous care of the column's editing and layout, correcting all typographical and grammatical errors as well as orchestrating the flow of elements: the upper half of the column contained whimsical philosophy in the form of essay and light verse, followed by pure humorous pieces in the lower half poking fun at the "so-called human race". His goal was to "send reader away smiling". Taylor's editorial opinion and style often conflicted with the "Tribune"'s editorial policy, but because of columns' popularity and unique originality, editorial difference was always pardoned; in fact, this editorial disparity was one of the reasons that made the column so appealing.