The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-06-21


Mercury have formed permanent alliance,
is the most efficient news-gatherirg asso-
citation in the world For all the purposes
OF collecting and distributing reports of
events that affect the affairs and interest
the minds of the masses of this country
its equipment and facilities are complete
and co-extensive with the intellectual, in
dustrial and mechanical progress of the
age. The United Press is the legitimate
successor of the original association that
was organized more than sixty years ago
by the daily newspapers in the city of
New York, under the name of the General
News Association, and which afterward
developed into what has been known as
the Associated Press. After its formation,
other associations were organized in differ
ent sections of the country, ell of which
allied themselves with the parent institu-
ton. The news collected by these local
associations was concentrated in the main
Office in New York, where it was sent, to-
gether with all other Geographic news, to
the city. newspapers, and the agents of
those other organizations edited the copy
for transmission to their respective local
tiles, north, south. east and west.
For ten years prior to December. 1892,
the United Press was an independent in
stitution created by the necessities of the
times. By its modern methods and its
uniform policy of studying the needs of
newspapers and adapting itself to their
requirements it grew to be powerful rival
OF the original association, until at length
the New York Herald, Sun, Tribune,
Times. World, Journal of Commerce and
Mail and Express recognized the condi-
ton that confronted them. and in obedi-
ence to the law of the survival of the fittest
the original Associated Press transferred
its assets, contracts, news arrangements
and GOOD will to its competitor, and since
that time the combined facilities OF both
concerns have been operated under the
name of the United Press.
Among the local organizations having
business relations first with the New York
Associated Press and then with the COM
bined concern was the Western Associated
Press. organized under the laws of Michi-
gan, which operated solely in the Western
States. Within the past two years this
w stern organization went practically out
OF business, and certain of its mem bers
formed new association in Chicago and
assumed the name of the Associated Press.
This Z hlcago organization therefore, has
no relation whatever to the one identified
Tor more than half a century in the public
mind as the Associated Press. It's man
ayers opened an office in New York and
began q war upon the National association
the United PresS-with the purpose at
first concealed and afterward avowed, of
breaking up the several subsidiary asso-
Citations that were working tremendously
among themselves and OF attempting to
make ali the daily newspapers of The coun-
try subservient and tributary to itself.
The acknowledged leaders of journalism
in the United States determined to protect
themselves and their clients against this
bold attempt to demoralize the integrity of
the sources of intelligence, daily put be-
fore the people by newspapers, at what
ever cost; and at the earliest available
opportunity the San Francisco CALL and
the San Jose Daily Mercury, in justice to
themselves and to their readers, resolved
to cut loose from the Chicago Association
and to lend the weight of their influence
TO the movement for securing a better
news service for the Pacific Coast.
AT the request of mem bers of the Pacific
Associated Press, Colonel Finley Ander-
son of the executive department of the
United Press came to California with au-
thority to negotiate with Pacific Coast
newspapers for the news service of his as
ISOLATION with the result that the CALL
and the Mercury start in this morning as
the leaders OF the new movement in this
section of the country.
Charles a. Dana, editor of the New York
Sun, who is president of the United Press,
in one Of his recent lectures on '"The Art
of Newspaper-malling,' said: 'The bust
ness of collecting news, which has always
been regarded as of prime Importance. is a
necessity; and it is very costly to collect
and to bring TO any point for printing to-
morrow morning the news OF the whole
world, from England, from Germany, from
Russia, from France, from Africa, from
South America, from or 10 the Pacific so
that it may be presented to the reader who
takes up the paper tom orrow, and he may
have panorama of all the events of the
preceding day. What a wonder, what a
marvel it is that here for a few cents YOU
may buy history of the entire globe Of
the day before! 1t is something that is
miraculous, really, when you consider it.
All brought here by electricity. by means
OF the telegraph! So that the man who
has knowledge enough to read can tell
what was done in France yesterday, or in
Turkey, or in Persia. That is a won
derful thing. But the very necessity
of bringing all this matter together, and
the immense expense attendant upon if.
have led to the formation of associations
among newspapers and to the organization
of agencies. won't undertake to saw now
how much the expense is. because do not
remember it with absolute certainty but
it is an enormous sum, say perhaps $4,000
to $4,000 a day. And the system
which is most perfectly organized is
the establishment known as the United
Press. 1t supplies the news of the whole
world, so that the individual editor sitting
at his desk has only to look after the news
of his own locality. When he has got that
he gets from the United Press the news of
all the rest of the world and, putting them
together, his report of the days history of
the globe is complete. That is an institu-
ton which has revolutionized the opera
NE