Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1894-08-09
the top round of the ladder in his pro

fession.
Some years ago one of the older mem
bers of the senate sat in my office one
evening telling the salient points of an
executive session which occurred that
day, when young correspondent, who
had been in Washington but a few
months, entered the Office, and, seeing
the senator, said in a boastful way:
without any thanks to you, senator,
learned all about the executive ses-
sion, including the part you took in it,
with a synopsis of your speech"
Il am glad you obtained the informa-
tion," said the senator, ''but I never
divulge the secrets of executive ses-
sions myself. Who told you about it?"
Senator Stewart, of Nevada, told
me-" said the young man, in a lofty
and self-satisfied manner
After brief conversation the young
man departed, and the senator turned
to me, saying: THAT is the last piece
of information that young man will
ever get concerning executive sessions.
l shall tell Senator Stewart tomorrow
that the young man is unreliable, and
that he not only gloated over having
secured the facts, but that he gave the
name of the senator from whom he had
obtained the information. I will not
only tell Senator Stewart, but at the
next executive session of the senate I
will state that this young man, giving
his name, is unreliable, and therefore
he will secure no news hereafter at the
senate end of the capitol. If he had
had sense enough to protect the sena-
tor, by refusing to give his name, he
might some day have gotten into my
confidence"
Two weeks later the young man was
recalled by the paper which he repre-
sented, and has never since been in
Washington city as a newspaper CORE
spondent. This true story illustrates
somewhat forcibly the situation on
some subjects.
During the preparation of the Nc
Kinley bill in 1890, every newspaper
man in Washington endeavored to Sc
cure copy of the first proof sheets Of
the proposed bill, bat the members Of
the committee were under pledge of
secrecy that no information concerning
the bill should be given out until it
was reported to the house. The day
was finally set for the chairman of the
committee on ways and means, Maj.
Mckinley, to deliver the report to the
house and make a speech on the sub
iect of the tariff. On the afternoon
preceding, ore of the members of that
important committee met a newspaper
man who was his particular friend, in
one of the corridors of the capitol, and
said: ''After supper tonight intend
to go to my room and take a smoke and
also a nap for about an hour. always
leave my overcoat on the rack in the
hall by the front door. BY the way, if
you are in my neighborhood tonight
drop in and see my wife. 1 have no
doubt she will be glad to entertain you
for a little while; and you have not
called upon us for some time"
The correspondent, knowing the din
ner hour of the distinguished repre-
sentative, called at his house between
seven and eight o'clock, was received
by his wife, and ushered into the par
lor. After talking for few moments,
the madam excused herself, saying that
one of the members of the family was
not very well and she would see if it
was not about the proper time to ad-
minister some medicine. Before that
imaginary patient received that mag
mary dose of medicine, and before the
madam returned to the room, the cor
respondent had distracted the proof
sheet copy of the Mckinley bill from
the inside pocket of the overcoat which
was hanging upon the rack in the hall.
The full text of the Mckinley bill was
sent by wire that night and printed
the following morning; and nobody
until this day has ascertained how it
came to be published. Each member
of the committee had but one copy of
the proof sheet of that bill. At the
meeting of the committee on the fol-
lowing morning each member produced
his copy of the bill; so that every MEM
Der of the committee felt himself alb
solved from the suspicion of having
given the information which had been
printed. This unanimity of showing of
the copies of their bill was made pos
sible only by the prompt return of the
proof-sheet by the newspaper man
after it had been used in his own office
by his telegraph operator, whose wire
connected directly with the home Office.
And yet great many people in this
country continue to wonder how it is
that such important news matters are
discovered in the national capital.
SMITH D. Fry.