Idaho semi-weekly world. [volume] (Idaho City, Idaho Territory) 1875-1908, 1889-08-27
STEALING A MESSAGE.
Sharn Practice and a Great Jour
nalistic Feat.
How Three Able and Enterprising jour
naiists Secured an Advance Copy,
aud How u Fourth stole 1t
From Them.


From Them.
One Of the Important events OF the
year to Newspaper Row" in Washing
ton is the annual appearance of the
Presidents Message. This is never fur
nishcd To the press to appear in print
until after its presentation to Congress.
Many times in years past the cor
respondents have exercised the utmost
ingenuity in theil efforts TO get it, by
hook or crook, SO ~ to print ii a day or
two in advance. Two or three times
they have succeeded. much To the an
Presidents who have fallen victims To
journalistic voracity. OF late years it
has been so scrupulously and systemat-
ically guarded that it very rarely gets
will at any time command a large price.
and this has more than once induced
treachery in the Government Printing
Office. In no other way is IT possible
/
Before Grants time the sharp news
paper men had succeeded now and then
in getting message before the dav of
its delivery, They tried their skill on
Grant, who was not 'upN on such mat
tiers, and successfully, too They out
! generated the General. His first mes
sage became the prey of the Row, and
people knew all about it before Con-
| grcss met. But they did not fool him
a second time. He said nothing about
| it, but the next year he guarded his
message so carefully that none of the
correspondents were able to get the
| slightes, trace of it. The night before
! the day of its delivery the President sent
messenger along the Row and invited
| a number of the leading correspondents
10 call at the White House the follow
ing morning, OF course they were all
there at the appointed time President
Grant entered the room with biz roll
of manuscript in his hand and a twinkle
in his eve. 1t was perfectly safe to
give out the message then, as there
was not time to make any possible use
of it till after its delivery
well, boys said the President.
you outtlanked me last year, but |
don't believe you will do it again.
Here's the message. You can all sit
down and copy it if you want to.
Nobody wanted it then. AS il was al
ready in the hands of the Associated
Press. and would be promptly furnished
to their respective papers. But they all
laughed and declared it an excellent
joke. All of Grants subsequent mes
sages were guarded with equal care,
and to the end of his Administration he
was as good As his word not one of
them had the edge taken of by prema-
tnre publication. But they played it on
Hayes
How the unsuspecting and guileless
Hayes was taken in by syndicate of
enterprisfng journalists was told to me
the other evening by one of the guilty
trio. These We're the representatives of
the New York Times, Chicago Times
and Cincinnati Enquirer. Ii was in
1877. The boys had been nosiny around
with more than usual zeal, irving to get
on the scent of the message For sew
erai days every body along the Row was
on the qui vive. There seemed to be
an indefnable idea that somebody would
get II ahead OF time, and each of the
correspondents hoped TO stick feather
IN his professional cap by proving him
self the smartest of the lot The mes
sage would be delivered on Monday, and
up to Saturday no one, rs far as known,
had made any headway. Half dozen
different combinations, each consisting
OF the representatives of three or four
widely separated journals. had been
hard at work all the week, jealousy
guarding each syndicate from the other.
what tidings, if any, had been obtained.
Journalistic rivalry was at white heat.
Those who did get a stolen copy of the
much-eoVeted document were success
tul by the merest accident. 1t appeared
that the New York Tribune man was
The only who really struck lead that
promised To pan out rich. He had care
ully nurSed the scheme, and was ON the
cry point of securing magnificent
scoop As such a feat is termed in
mrnallsuc phrase when the other fell
NN stumbled upon the scent and
ggSd the game Early SATURDAY.
l'ng the New York Times CORES
~ was sitting at his desk. in de-
ied moood, mtSltally bewailng the
are of all his efforts to steal the mes
e. A stranger entered, and in
&c that betrayed excitement inquired
that was the New York Tribune Of
That's all right said the Times
nan. Have you got it?''
1t had flashed across his mind when
The man entered that possibly he was on
some errand connected with the subject
That had for several DAYS been upper
most in his thoughts
Yes, have it right here" said the
stranger, rs he slapped his hand on the
breast pocket with the air of mau VINO
lad achieved great exploit.
"iiow much do YOU want for itp"
''What will YOU give2'
II II give You Il thousand dollars"
81 think can get more than that"
''What's your figure?" said the Times
Fifteen hundred
'trve YOU twelve hundred and tifty.n
Fifteen hundred, and moi dollar
less"
Up to this time not word had been
said AS To what the document was for
which such Il spanking price was de-
manded. 1t afterward TRANSFERRED that
the stranger. who had laid his plans to
steal copy of the message, had single
interview on the street the night before
with the Irihnqe correspondent. and he
had agreed tn give the latter the hrst