Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1891-11-01
AROUND IN GOTHAM.
cocKeRILl's REVIEW or PEOPLE
AND THINGS IN THE BIG CITY.
Nsws-Gathering ciations-Hoey's Re
cord Observation-Disclosures Society
Women ana English Husbands
Correspondents Of tho Richmond Dispasch.I

women ana EnRtAn uusoonob
Correspondence Of tho Richmond Dispatch.l
New YoRK, October 3l.-The announce
ment that the New York Sun and Tribune
had withdrawn from the Associated Press
and had started new news-gathering as
sociation created some surprise last week.
For the past ten years the Associated
Press has been gradually losing its value
to the rich newspapers Of this city. The
cheapness OF telegraphing. the facility
With which leased wires could be obtained
from the Western Union. all tended to in
duce the large dailies to depend upon their
own special correspondents rather than to
agents Of an association. For seve-
raj years Mr.. Latfan,. business mana.
ger Of tho Sun, has been selling and
exchanging news. and it appears that ne
has now developed fancy for building up
q rival to the Associated Press. When the
United Press. under Mr.. Phillips, began to
supply fresh and voluminous news TO the
newspapers outside the Associated Press 1t
secured q large following IN the South and
West. Phillips became so formidable that
the Associated Press people formed sort
OF alliance with him, the understanding
being that he should stop his propaganda.
In return for his halting he was given the
news In exchange from certain sections.
IL is understood now that he Will transfer
his system to tho Laffan Bureau. which
will hereafter be known IS the National
Press Association.
The Associated Press, so profitable to
the seven original creators, IL partner
ship which grew out of the meagre facili-
ties furnished by the telegraph lines OF the
country in early days. Prior to 1910 the
newspapers of this city displayed great
enterprise in gathering news by means OF
pony expresses, carrier-pigeons. and CHAR
tered boats. The Herald III 1912 main
tanned two expresses between this city and
Boston tor the collection OF news brought
TO that port by Cunard steamers. In 1916.
during the excitement growing out OF the
Oregon boundary line, the combined rivals
OF the Herald spent $4,000 on pilot
boat from Halifax aud special Bos-
ton express to score O great news beat
When tho Mexican war began the only
telegraph line in the country extended be-
tween Washington city and Wilmington,
Del. 1t was subsequently carried to Jersey
CITY. The struggle was IN reaching the
farther end of that wire with the pony ex-
press from the Rio Grande. The Herald
and Sun were in o combination. 1t was
soon found that the single wire could not
carry the various messages OF the rival
New York newspapers, and they were
limited to fifteen minutes service eacn IN
succession. This resulted in many frag-
| msntsry and disiointed dispatches. Ont
OF the necessity grew the newspaper
combination known as the New lork
Associated Press. In 1913 the Journal Of
Commerce, Courier and Enquirer, sun, HerDd,
Tribune and Express came together ana
oCraa1 20 "a thu of gathering
news to be used in common. When the
| Times was started III 1851 1t entered the
partnership. As the telegraph lines were
extended western, New England, ana
| southern associations were formed. these
| all became clients OF the New York organi-
cation, which eventually obtained its news
| from and made surplus by selling news
| 10 the other associations. The New York
| Association. becoming stronger, spent
large sums of money In news-coliecl-
| Ing. The sum of $50 900 was spent Tor q
| steamer, which was rechristened the News
| Bow and which was commissioned TO col
| lect news from incoming vessels Oh SANDY
| Hook. subsequently the yacht wan
| derer was engaged to cruise of Hall
| fax and intercept vessels Tor news from
| Europe. In several instances telegraph
| lines were built and Others chartered. Inc
man who did most to develop and build W
| the Associated Press was ID. Nj; traig, a
| man of great executive ability and untlrina
energy. He had been an independent new
| gatherer around New York, selling MS
news TO any newspaper that would buy
| He employed large numbers OF carrier
| pigeons and was frequently aHe
| TO score beats on the alert newspapers OF
that time. After he took hold OF the AS
socjated Press the area of news-gatherins
| extended. and as the wires or the tele'
| praph companies netted the country the
organization became great and powerful
| monopoly. The civil war gave 1t great
impetus and demonstrated It's value. FOL
| the past ten years. as have said, itS use
| fuluess has been questioned by many
rnonev.making newspapers, aud more than
| once il has been rumored that the HsTda
| was preparing to set up an independent
news-seryice. The present tendency to DIS
| Indignation may result IN GRIPPING the New
| YORK Associated Press. but there Will still DC
| left a powerful organization. Inc divi-
| dends which the seven partners have been
drawing for years will be reduced, put ~
| will not be possible to drive the Associated
| Press out of business If 1t display ordinary
| enterprise, promptness, ana Skin III col
| lectinr the news. That Charles A. Dana
! and Whitelaw Reid, not long ago bitter
| rivals. should now be furnishing the back
| hone 10 a new news association seems some
J what strange. Should Mr. Bennett, of the
| Ha-dH. who reached New York this week,
| ioin with them, a. predicted. the now con-
Germ will start well
SUCCESSION OF EVENTS.
| The srddenness with which sensations OF
| ali sorts drop out of sight in this city can Of
| accounted for only III tho fact That we
! almost always have a sensation on hand
| that must be attended to and then got nd
| OF 90 that we can be in readiness tor an.
other | forget what wiped out the PARK
| Place disaster, but that horror OF O few
| hours only IS to-day "a good as forgotten
IL came with crash and vanished IL
| a flash. 1t seems scarcely fortnight since
tbe whole town was talking of Deacon
| Whites failure to pay. not his debts, but HI.
| bets. For some days the town talked OF
| nothing else. Now when the deacon has
"settledn or otherwise arranged" and
| il we'll on his way TO another fortune, no
has sunk into oblivion. 1t is as If we
/! never hid heard of him. One event OF
| seeming or actual importance y soon
| succeeded by another OF apparently tor
| the moment more Importance, ana IS
pushed out, obliterated. At tho end OF
| the year when We come 10 review oui
twelve months history IL IS ~ once
| amazing and amusing to see how all the
| minor matters. momentarly so linpor-
tant, have dropped out and are nowhere.
| Only two or three events of the whole loi
| of wonderful happenings still STICK up
| and even these, as We look back at them,
1 do not seem so very remarkable.
| TOO PREVIOUS.
The foregoing reflections and they ore
literal reflections from what the poet, OF
some other fellow, calls the mirror o.
| passing events "--are vivid IN showing
how Deacon White was followed by MIR
| John Hoey as q newspaper aud town-talk
topic, In my last letter, written when the
"Hoey matter" was first blazed out as 3
/" stunning sensation" l intuitlyely fel
! that / was taking exactly the right tone
with regard TO the affair and the man. The
man know, as thousands know him: 10 b'
honorable In all his dealings. IL Is evil
dent enough. now, that most OF the news
papers, not only here but all through the
country. were quite "too previous
in their expression Of opinion thai
something dreadful had happened. Not
the least funny phase OF the matter wa
that those who knew the least about IL nae
the most to say about it but this, though
amusing. is not unusual. To most Oh
servers what was glaringly obvious did not
seem at all important-viz., that Mr.. SAND
ford wanted MIR. Hoey's place as president
of the Adams Express Company. and mat
tiers were so managed-cut and dried, so Il