The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1895-10-22
AxormNm TGIUD ExposEp

sou bull tho objective po'AI Was changed
Under tue Mckinley law the purpose
vas to show tina, the saeel was ininn-
ous TO the public in general aud TO
lAborera in particular. Alter the pass.
ago OF the new isrtH bill tue object Was
to show tina, everybody was benefited;
that property spurtsi out on every
side in the form Ut new industries aud
increasing wages.
Tur.uRnt oil this policy, tue Evening
Post published two parallel columns oil
instances putpoTiing 70 chow that lac
tories we're closed and wages reduced in
1890 by the passage Of the Mckinley
Law, and that wages were advanced aud
new mills established in 1895 by the
passage OF the German. Wilson law
The New York Press interviewed the
concerns mentioned 10 this let, ana
found that the So-caIlei statistics were
mASs Of iabricatlonL Where there
was Il grain OF truth TO the statement
1t was 90 exaggerated az to practically
amount to lying. Although these So
called facts presented by the Post were
copied far and wide. not single one. as
lar as va know, relracted tue ialsehood
after it had been completely exposed,
On the contrary, they dropped this
particular topic only 10 begin the same
kind OF work under a new head. This
time II was the extent and amount OF
increasing wages uudes aud though
the influence Of the new tarih bill, aud
the same kind OF dishonest economics
was again employed.
In anaiyzing one OF these lists OF in.
cfeasing wages it was shown that the
proceII Of Justification in this case was
CHIEFLY by a method OF counting the
same concern several times over in
different forms, so as TO magnify the
number to many times what IL really
was.
l. will DO seen that this method OF
repeating the came facts in different
ways, so as to give the impression that
they are all new cases, IL simply an in
geniuus war oil iRFeniiag economic
data. This method has been so persist
entity pursued that /; has become sys'
TEN OF dishones! newspaper economics
The pernicious influence OF this is not
limited to the particular cases cited. bu.
il serves as basis for q new series OF
Misrepresentation
The peculiar viciousness OF tho sys'
ten IL to aid in the systematic faisitica.
ton OF tho facts without locating the
responsibility for the dishonesty. Thus,
for eXamu,o, following, and uudonbted'
~ largely duo to the above, new set
OF iAlIenoods has been issued regarding
tho WOODEN industry.
A short time ago the WOOL aud Cot.
ton Reporter made the announcement
that POI uaw textile factories bad been
established in tile first half oil 1895
This seemed such 4 sayory morGol that
It was Immediately clutchei At Some
OF the journals, con,picuouilY tho Phil
adeiphia Record, made the announce
mcnI that 2jl new wooden mills had
been established in 1898, citing tue Bos'
ton trade paper as 10 authority.
Doubling tue accuracy OF this state
ment, wtotc 10 the Wool and Cotton
Reporter, asking ON what data it based
its statement, and offered 10 pay ior any
information that would lead " tue Yer.
iicatinn oi this Io'rallci fact. The eii.
tor replied, practically admitting that
lao had no authentic source oil iniorma'
,ioa on the subject. but that ne had
made un his tables from statements
from correspondents and \ careful read
iag OF exchanges.
The daily papers, Of course, contained
tho various muiIiplicauons OF the Same
facts az exposed The editor dbl not
oven Intimate IN his reply 10 me that
tho POI new establishments were not all
WOODEN mtiiG
lhe Philadelphia Record Tor week,
played upon this ~ a wonderful
phenomenon and e1Hclg'iVe proof Of
tho buunen creating influence oil tho
new tariff.
The Pros challenged tho statement
oil the Wool md Cotton Reporter tho
Philadelphia Record and others. and
demanded that they teit where tho tae'
tories were OF else stop repeating the
statement.
wrote = Personal letter to William
". singetiy. oltor Of the Philadelphia
Record. a.king iuat hts paper have the
fairness either 10 verify the statement
Or retfaci 1t. Whoreupon, under date OF
September II, reuolyfd q letter from
linn, admitting that tie Record hat
been In Gtfur. anu that Out OF tho .Ol
su.calcd new enterprises only ~ were
wooden mills
Ithui lprtsl from .hs Record, Eyon.
ing Post aud other pspors ihe modIlleA'
ton OF tho number VI new woolon
mill, from gJl toss. DonUting tho val.
idiiy Dl this whole procedure, ] puriuol
the inyOsligalUn on tho subject aIill
tufthnF 1 watL nyNF kN0 putlrR lIsl OF