New-York tribune., 1901-05-05
THEY SEND BUSINESS MEMS
WASHINGTON'S CORPS OF SPECIAL. COP
RESPONDENTS FOR INDUSTRIAL
CONCERNS
CONCERNS.

Washington. May 3.-Everybody who reads
the papers is familiar with existence of the
corps of Washington special correspondents for
! whose benefit the Press Gallery has been set
apart and in which it is fond deIuson that the
correspondents sit throughout each daily session
of the national legislature prepared TO catch the
fine flights of fancy of the gentleman from
Alaska and flash them to all parts of the land
But il is not well kno that there is
equally enterprisng corps of special correspond
ents at Washington keeping track of the dOings
Of Congress and the departments, who send
away quite much news by wire and by mail
the representatives of the great newspapers.
yet of whose writing a line finds its
way into print otherwise comes before the
public Furthermore. the work IS better paid
than that of the news correspondents; il pays
better from beginning to end. and the successful
correspondent of this sort naturally develops
into the special attorney before Congressional
that capacity his pay is based upon all the traffic
will bear. These unpublished correspondents are
the representatives of the large business asso-
Citations and of individual manufacturing estab-
lishaents
The system is one. and not many have
yet taken up the work. yet it calls for only a
slight specialization Of the qualities which make
the successful Washington news correspondent.
Formerly the great business houses and interests
waited until adverse legislation had been passed
and then put their case into the hands of some
professional lobbyist TO get the harm undone,
in year or the course of several years or not
at all. the case might be. Now they engage
business correspondents TO give them the earliest
advice of any proposed adverse legislation, in
order that they may apply the far cheaper and
more satisfactory ounce of prevention
The dean of this corps of Washington business
correspondents drifted into the work by the
sheerest accident. Years ago ne came TO Wash
ington to- represent a small Western daily with
which he had long been associated and which
had the privilege of the Press Gallery. AT first
he did as many other correspondents nave done
he acted secretary to the Congressman from
his district and in time added a few papers to
his list which would take partial and proper
tiOnateEy cheap service. In time he found out
as sooner later every does that while
Washington is of the cheapest places in
Anne rica 10 live IN, enc can live here only on a
large income. which is 4 paradox hut true. The
net result of each years activity was 10 add
q few more figures 10 his reserve fund of debt.
Then the owner Of his paper became interested
in some manufacturing business. Like So much
of American Industry il could be doomed or
ruined by certain legislation in Congress Ac-
cordingly. the owner commissioned the Wash
ington correspondent of his newspaper to send
him confidential advicss of any hostile legislation
and how best 10 meet it, The correspondent was
able 10 get track Of projected hostile legislation
even before it was introduced and by sending
a prompt report of what in the wind he
made it easy to take action TO prevent the thing
from coming before Congress at all The result
scr far as the correspondent was concerned was
the receipt OF a that it would take a great
many columns of news TO equal