Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1891-12-10

A very apt and interesting illustration
was made Sunday morning by DIR.
Cook at the Second Baptist Church.
The pastor was engaged at the moment
In meeting the general arguments of
skeptics when denying the veracity of
the New Testament story of Christ's
existence here on the basis that the diff
ferent apostolic accounts vary in their
details.
"On Friday evening"" DIR. Cook con-
tinued, "when the first news of the
maniac bomb-thrower's assault on Rus
sell Sage came over the wires to Will
mington and was published here, gem
tleman remarked. to me: why this
story is. all contradictory! You can't
believe II at ALL
snow that is exactly the kind Of logic
applied by skeptics- in their Judgment
Of the Bible. Because the stories differ
IN certain details they demand an entire
refusal of the whole history. Such a
course is in itself illogical, for, as in the
case Of the gentleman who criticised the
FIRST accounts published here of the
Russell Sage incident, il would be con-
sistent to deny that any such an acct
dent happened. Any person on mo-
ment's reflection will see that the news
of the assault is given from several diff
ferent sources. Each reporter gave his
individual story as he learned it. In
fact the news came here automatically
as 1t was told at first. Is there anything
remarkable in the fact of four different
witnesses disagreeing in detailsP But
all those reporters who described the
catastrophe in New York agreed in the
main historical facts that attended the
incident. For that reason the story in
the main should be accepted. Strange
to say, what may be taken as the hest
evidence of the truth Of story is the
divergence of agreement among the wit.
nesses In some of the minor details. II
stamps each ones testimony with the
authenticity of independence and tine
absence of collision. That is a feature
of the four apostolic versions of the life
of Christ"
A representative of EVERY EVENING
had an experience somewhat identical
10 that of DIR. Cooks on Friday after
noon when the first news Of the terrible
attack on Russell Sage was published.
The reporter was accosted uptown by
a pair of lawyers. One of them held
copy of this paper between his fingers.
"What do you meant" he explained
brusquely "by publishing such story
Why these details are contradictory. We
don't know what to believe about it,"
This of course was another instance
of the bad logic commonly met with
and as exposed by DIR. Cook Yesterday.
Both lawyers had all possible evidence
available at the moment of all the main
facts In the history of the fearful Incl
dent. But because there was dis
crepancy in the reporters stories of one,
two, or three clerks being killed it
afforded no logic for refusing the facts
of the attack on Russell Sage; that he
survived; of the $1,200,000 feature; of
the maniac's terrible death; Of the fear
full crash caused by theexploding bomb;
and other facts. All these facts, since
verified, should not have been published
by EVERY EVENING on Friday last, if
such ideas as governed the lawyer and
DIR. Cooks friend We're to rule in the
business of news getting and publishing.
The Wilmington public would then
have had to wait over 20 hours for the
first authentic and the main features of
the fearful New York catastrophe-a
condition which no modern community
would tolerate.
FROM NEW YORK IN 10 MINUTES.
Now the facts in the case are these
The first telegraphic intimation of the |
incident was licked off the wires by
EVERY EVENINGS operator as follows:
1910 O'clock.
Associated Press Dispatch by Special Wires,
New YoRK, Dec. 5-i2.40 p. m.-An ex-
plosinn occurred at No. H. Broadway, at
1880 o'clock. Russell Sage and Washing
ton y. Conner have just been carried from
the building.
In other words the first news of the
incident was received at this office |
within 10 minutes of its occurrence in
New York. Then followed of course in
a string of stories, all the different YER
sions and accounts of the catastrophe MS |
they poured in with all their varied |
and dissimilarity. These |
We're all given to the public |
Immediately with all the new de-
veloplnents and changes as brought in
by the reporters. II. may readily be
comprehended how, in the midst Of the
din and confusion of a sudden catas-
trophe of such nature that reports
would differ in detail. But the main
story in all its grim features was there,
without needing further yerifitation.
1t regard to the idea of obtaining, at
first flush, exact authorization of de-
tails no more grimly humorous illustra-
ton of its difficulty, in fact impossi-
bility, is afforded than in the fact that
Chief Inspector Byrnes, "a hours after
the explosion, took the decapitated head
of the maniac bomb-thrower to Russell
Sage's house in order that that gentle
man might identify his assailant. In
the region of information there was
Chief Detective Byrnes with all his
myriad sources of gaining facts right
on the spot and did not know, or un-
doubleday was not sure, that he had got
the perpetrator of the deed.
The modern system of meeting the
demand of the public for
the earliest news is to furnish immedi-
ately whatever main facts and other de-
tails that are in hand, and not to wait
for "a hours for completer verification.
The Milford "News'' Sold.
II, L. Hynson, editor and proprietor
n I