Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1882-09-25
JAY GOULD.
HIS PLAN TO GOBBLE THE NEWS
Views of Metropolitan Journals - The
Western Associated Press said to be in
the PIot-Its Success Contingent on the
Surrender of tho New York "Sun."

NEW 1ORk1 S6pl6mO6E EO.-lne I9fleS
this morning copies on its editorial page the
editorial from the Herald sent South last
night In reference to the Associated Press.
In an editorial OF it's own on the same sub
ieet the Times writes as follows:
"We republlsh from the Herald Of to-day
a forcible and exhaustive statement Of the
present relations OF Jay Gould to the Asso-
ciated Press The warning therein conveyed
concerns the public rather more than It does
the metropolitan newspapers, or at least the
solvent newspapers of this city, which pub
lish the Associated Press kilograms. Hon
esty and solvencY in newspaper manage
ment are usually bound togethes in the re-
lstion of cause and effect, and no journal
with reputation 10 lose aud large pecu-
mary capital at stake could well afford to
publish any kind of news which bore the
visible impress of the influence of jay
Gould; but the public, whose scquaint-
ance with the internal MANAGEMENT OF q
newspaper does not usu.tllY extend beyond
the knowledge of the name Of its actual or
ostensible proprietor, can be most grossly
victimzsd, II the scheme outlined by the
Herald should be crowned with success, for
it must be remembered tAat II the central
news association of the country which M.
Gould aspires to control became a mere bu-
reau of the Western Union Telegraph
Company, over which his influence is un-
disputed, there would not only be 8 few
hundred newspapers ready to publish the
news with Gould's twist or color, but there
would remain hundreds of others to which
these in turn dispense the same news ia
more or less compressed form. Place
in control OF the news telegraphY OF
the country man who has become what
he is by the pIunder of stockholders, cor
ruption Of judges, bribery Of legislators and
the purchase OF politicians, aud nobody
need have much doubt IS to the result.
Every telegraph operator In the country
would, under GOuld's plan, become an
agent for the gathering of news, and the
Associated Press kilograms would become
an abstract of the daily intelligence collated
by the employees Of Jay Gould.
Neither explicit orders nor constant
supervision would, under such eystem, he
needed to keep from such news everything
likely to prove disagreeable 30 Gould, and
the most casual suggestion would insure the
transmission of anything needed to further
the interest or satisfy the revengss OF this
arch gambler. While confirming all the
facts stated in the Herald article, aud m St
heartily emphasizing the warning y con-
veys, we doubt whether the government
purchase Of the telegraph system might not
prove remedy nearly as bad as the disease.
In the absence of non-political system of
public service, 1t certainly would, and there
is some reason to believe that Gould would
be very glad to have the government take
poor bargains off his hands at his own val
uation. We prefer to deal with Gould as a
news censor on his merits, and believe that
bis plans only need to be exposed 20 be de-
feAted. When his control Of the Associated
Press is complete 1t will be time enough to
discuss the remedy.
Meanwhile the indications are that the
IL. 49,
of the San in this controversy Is somewhat
hasty. Its columns Of yesterday certainly
gave no evidence OF subservience to Gould;
In fact, the condemnation of Gould and his
works, which we quote from the San to .dav,
is not exceeded ,.n bitterness or point by
anythingv as appeared in the Herald
Such grOuCKS the able and far seeing edi-
tor of the may have given for the sup
position tb9A1e would be found acting with
the men AIN newspapers that he heartily
des s2ises, ere probably to be explained
on an entirely different hypothesis. In any
case, Jay Gculd's control of a majority OF
the seven newspapers comprising the cen-
i trail organization of the Associated Press
would be but the beginning Of the struggle
for newspaper independence. The public
need only be acquainted with the conditions
of such contest 10 render 0ould's failure
certain and disastrous"
The Journal Of Commerce this morning
devotes the first column in its editorial page
to an article on the same subject OF an even
more dignified tone than the one Just quot
ed from the Times, under the caption :,The
Associated Press " The journal Of Commerce
explains what the Associated Press is, It's
membership, its relation to the press of the
country who have no voice in It's manage
ment, and the policy which has always con-
trolled its workings. The Journal Of Com q
DteTcS then goes on to say:
''During the last year or TWO sensational
papers have published occasional para.
graphs stating that three members of the
New York association had oeen purchased
by a well known millionaire, Mr.. jay
Gould, and that he was negotiating for
fourth with the view of Obtaining a con-
trolling interest In this organization. The
Journal Of Commerce was most certainly
approached with a proffer of purchase,
and we understand that others of the re-
naming four were treated to like offers.
It would be unfair to suspect Mr.. Gould Of
any improper motive IN thus seeking to con-
troll the press Of the country He has many
vast enterprises on hand, and he may hon
/ estly believe that the press as now conducted
does not give him the aid and
attention he deserves. He may hold 1t TO
/ be the duty of those who do so much to
] guide public opinion to lend their powerful
influence to the furtheraDce of his schemes,
originated, as he doubtless believes, not for
his own aggr8ndiZement so much as for the
welfare Of our common country. But the
mass Of the people have been Jealous, how
ever unreasonable it may be, OF those
who seek to subsidize the press for any pur-
pose, and If Mr.. Gould could have pur
chased the majority Of the New York pa
pers we do not believe he would have real
| lied from it the help and comfort he de-
sired. At any rate, none Of the papers then
| approached were for sale at hat time on
any terms, and that scheme fell through.
/ More recently there sprang up difference
between the Western Union Telegraph
Company and the New York Association,
and Mr.. Gould and Gov, Morgan, in behalf
of the telegraph company, met
committee OF the press to negotiate
for 8 settlement. In that interview Mr.
Gould laid claim In behalf o. the Western
Union Company to the right to be interested
in the collection and sale as we'll as the
transmission OF news, and proposed joint
partnership between the New York press
aud the telegraph company for that purpose.
This having failed, new proposition was
brought forward to join the Western Asso-
ciated Press, the telegraph company and
the New York press in such q partn ership,
but It was evident to most, If not all, of the
members of the New York association that
any connection Of the telegraph COM
UduH Will bub Auu sale Oh
news would be disastrous to both parties.
1t is even now more than limited that when
any profit can be made out of such leakage,
no private dispatch containing important
intelligence is safe on the telegraph wires.
But suppose the telegraph company was
partner in the profit to be realized ou5 Of
furnishing news, and It was made part Of
the duty of every telegraphic operator
to send any interesting intelligence of any
kind that came under his notice at once IN
headquarters. Who believes that any pri-
vate dispatch embodying such news would
be held sacred, and the specials which each
large newspaper in the country now re-
ceiVes from its agents would also be tapped
for this purpose, OF II they were not
and the telegraph company acted
in a most noble and disintereste ed
manner In refus ne to profit by what others
might intrust to its wires, the natural dis
trust on the part of It's customers would he
sufficient to cut rf q great portion OF iss
business. Not less Improbable would it be
for newspapers. What would be the value
Of news when published II the readers
OF the paper knew that it had been
manipulated by great corporation, whose
managers had other interests of still more
importance which might be affected by the
tone OF q messsgeg II the opinions ex
pressed by newspapers supposed to be more
or less under Mr.. Gould's influence have not
the same weight they would have II the
editor were known to be Independent, how
much greater loss would the news dis
patches suffer which came out OF the hands
of such partnership
"The Western Associated Press, It Is now
charged, has made an alliance OF some sort
with Mr.. Gould, and as it is seen that a
partnership with the telegraph company
would hurt both sides, the new proposition
t. ~. -.