The San Francisco call., 1901-11-27
THE SUPPRESSION OF NEWS.

"A
| II published in The Call of yesterday gave re-
4 port of statements made in that city by three
members of the Yukon Department of Public Works
concerning the conspiracy to capture Dawson, of
which the first information given to the world by
The Call Mr.. Maynard, who acted principal
spokesman for the Yukon party, stated: I'VE expect
to proceed to Ottawa at and will have consul
tation with the high Government authorities about
conditions in the territory. This trouble may
an international phase because so many members of
the secret military order are Americans and we can
not try them for treason.
The dispatch stated that the Yukon officials had
stopped at Chicago for the purpose of consulting
with certain capitalists of that city who have large in
terests in Yukon Territory. The White Pass and
Yukon Railway is largely owned by American capital
and its main office is in Chicago. The owners of the
road, along with many other American capitalists,
are of greatly interested in the conditions Of
the country and the reported conspiracy is matter
of almost as much concern to them as to the Cana
dams themselves.
That important item of current news, affect
ing large financial as we'll political interests was
sent by the Associated Press, the greatest
gathering agency in the world to all papers entitled
to its service 1t therefore received by
ing contemporaries as we'll by The Call, and yet
neither of them published it. Despite the fact that
the report was furnished by the Associated Press that
it gave ample authority for its statements and that
carried upon its face evidence of its value as part of
the news OF the day, it deliberately suppressed
Just what reasons induced our contemporaries to
ignore such statements made by Canadian officials
concerning the conspiracy must be left to conjecture
1t is likely they will attempt to explain The fact
that The Call had been first to publish the story may
however, have had something to do with their desire
r1.,hc
seem that in their judgment it is better to suppress
the news than to admit that another has been first to
OBTAIN IT.
1t will be remembered that a similar practice of
suppression of news was practiced by the Examiner
with respect to wireless elegraphy after the great feat
of The Call in making Of it to report the arrival
of the transport bringing home the California Vol
unteers from Manila, and the success with which The
Call and the New York Herald used it in reporting
the international yacht race For time the Exam
iner ridiculed the idea that wireless teegraphy is a
possibility. When experiment after experiment at
last confirmed the new system of telegraphy beyond
any question: then the Examiner ignored the whole
thing. For long time it would not publish Associ-
aed Press dispatches giving reports of the results of
governmental experiments with it. At last however
the yellow journal had to admit wireless te1egraphy
and publish information concerning progress in its
use.
Something of the same kind will happen in this
case When The Call first published the great story
of the conspiracy OF our contemporaries ignored
it. while the other ridcued it. Now they find them
selves compelled to enter upon policy of suppressing
the news in order to avoid confirming the story
Perhaps the alternative is not disagreeable to fake
journal, but to legitimate newspaper editor the
adoption Of policy which entails the suppression Of
important must be very annoying