New-York tribune., 1905-03-26
REPORTING BY TELEPHONE
Meas More Quickly Transmitted
than bg Telegraph.

IF anything happens. Jump to the nearest tele-
phone" That maxim. II book of rules for news
paper reporters is ever complied will be Rule l.
The newspaper man to-day wonders how his paper
got along before the telephone came into general
use.
On some of the New-Ybrk evening papers there
are reporters Of the regular staff who do not see
the office for weeks. or even months. at tiine'
Their salaries sent to them by messengers Ihey
receive their assignments by telephone. and after
getting their stories they telephone the facts to the
Office. If the story is particular rush aIkair
the reporter dictates into the receiver TO the man
in the Office who raps Il off on Typewriter. ouch
a reporters telephone tolls may mount as nlgh as
forty or fifty calls day. Some or the papers
have q rule that every reporter must ca4i up 'iie
office once every half hour. whether there ID oiS
news to be given not Thus city editor may 10y
constantly In touch with fifteen or twenty men on
assisnments" and is able to take man lt0iii
comparatively unimportant assignment a
him ION the jump to the scene OF Dig s'0'
The telephone is furthermore Invaluable IN q
r,a,ar of7ca N obtaining long distance news In
hurry II often beats the telegraph, as II olo IN
many cases last November. when the long ois'Aiioe
lines of the Bell system were used Tor senu4ns -
of the Presidential election over the country
ayers of the companies made elaporate e
ments to transmit the news quickly both 10 In ai,e
noners ena other telephone users New-York CITY
was tne receiving headquarters with chicago
Middle West station Then headquarters were man.
tanned in each state. Messages from rurai ols'f's
were sent to these State centres, ana they "eie
later sent to New-York. From New-York tney "ere
scattered over the country, consuming ABOUT seven
minutes in transmission AS the Bell lines reacn
nearly thirty thousand communities In the Ohl'eo
States this telephone election service Drought l,i
rnediate news from places which otheI "ise W." 80 !,
not bavs been heard from until the next oay' anu
10 - +ha, II rave to editors the comforting
g,,,-o,ca that in close districts II would not ue
necessary to wait for weary hours untl 'he uaoA A
towns were heard from, and, bes1oes th01'' - F
the village weeklies posted as well as 'he me-
politan dailies. .,,s,o, IN
+ avsnaner office is at its greatest the telephone
90 often called upon to annhilate distance for
Instance railroad smash-up on one OF the ple ~
that connect New-York with the west pre"AS
loose" half an hour before an edition Is oue W 80
TO press The tip will probably come TO the oHico
from the Jersey City man." who telephones IN
that he hears of a wreck at Suuantum Juncuon'
on the c. and x. Several persons hurt Inc CITY
editor has one Of his assistants call up the raiIoa
conpanys offices in Jersey city for conrmSyoH on
the report and then hunts up Souantun, JuLJe1Ut t
in the railway guide. It is a little crossing 6noue
fifty miles from New-York. 1t is not IN the teie-
elo. long distance! calls the city edit9r % TAX
ing the telephone receiver from the hands OF %. d
nervous reporter; "Give me the nearest central 10
Perhaps Central" herself can give informatIon OF
Wrs st "a any Tae she Sm % one Of
i+eIieence near the scene-possihy In the railroad
station itself-and in very short interval tne
newspaper has a story comprehensive enough 70
''rnake the edition" and the paper goes 10 press
on time. .,,- a. = .rd
den emergency a. a starving man looks Tor orean
A reDorter will almost "break and enter" 70 get at
a teeuhone If the matter ts hot enough. NOT many
months ago reporter of New-Sork evening
paper was sent out in the early morning TO cover
local railway accident. When he got on the
ground he saw at a glance that the story was
big one: several cars were smashed up and num-
her Of bodies were removed from the wreckage
The other papers ahead Of him and each nad
several men alreadv the ground. He looked
hastily for the familiar sign Of the blue bell he
visited In rapid succession one teephone IN q care
one in mllners shop and one in drug store
All were in use. with other men standing IN llne
before HIM In the drUe store he learned that a
woman who occun'ed third floor apartnent ahovs
had a private telephone. He dashed upstairs ana
rang the doorbeu until a frightened maid ap-
II want to use your telephone he announced.
pushing mast her. -
Through a curtain he caught SIGHT Of the familiar
wooden hox in another room and dashed In un-
cerernoniously Two elderiv ladies in a big ma
hoearv he'd greeted his anpear rance with shrieks
OF ''Taurglars Nurder Police!"
"CaInn yourselves ladies'" he said. taking the
receiver ''Pm not-Helo. give ne 1000 James
I'm not a hurglar. IT'S all right There's been an
accident outside and Hello. give me the city
desk pleasei-T merelv want 20 telephone to a
newspaper Sorry to disturb you. but-Hello, this
IS Smith. This is a big story" etc.