The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1905-06-25
WHEN THE POPE DIED.
The Ruses Adopted to Obtain and
Spread the News.

3sa oPl eau Lie 41NCWo. ateis
From Melville E. Stones THE Associated
Press, " in the July Century,
The illness and death Of the late Pope
constituted another event which called
for news gathering ability of a high or
der. Preparations had been made long
in advance. Conferences were held with
the Italian officials and with the authors
ties at the Vatican, all looking to the es-
Establishment of relations of such intir1la CIV
as 10 guarantee us the news. We had
been notified by the Italian Minister of
Ielegraphs that, because Of the strained
relauons existing between his government
and the papal court he should forbid the
Transmission OF any kilograms announce
ing the Pope's death Nor two hours
after the fatal moment, in order that
Cardinal Rampola might first notify the
papal representatives in foreign coun-
tries. This was done as n gracious act
OF courtesy to the church.
To meet the emergency, we arranged a
code message to be sent by all ca BILE
lines. which should be addressed, not to
the Associated Press. but to the general
manager In person, and should read :
Number of missing bond, -. (Signed)
Monteflore" This bore on its face no
reference to the death OF the PontiT
and would be transmitted. The blank was
to be filled with the hour and moment
OF the Pope's death, reversed. That Is,
II he died at 1858. the message would read :
milestone. New York. Number of missing
bond, 352. (Signcd) Montefiore. The OBJ
ject of reversing the figures. was. of
course. to prevent guess that 1t was
a deception in order to convey the news.
IF the hour had been properly written.
they might have suspected the purport
of the message.
When. finally. the Pope died, althosgh
his bed was completely surrounded by
burning candles, an attendant hurried from
the room into an anteroom and called for
a candle to pass before the lips of the
dying man, to determine whether he still
brcathed This was the signal for an
other atatchc, who stepped to the tele-
phone and announced to our correspond
dead Unfortunately. the hour of his
death was four minutes past four. so
that whichever way 1t was written
whether directly or the reverse, It was
404
Nevertheless, the figures were inserted
in the bland in the bulletin which had
been prepared. 1t was filed with the tele-
graph company, and 1t came through to
New York in exactly nine minutes from
the moment OF death. IT was relayed at
Havrc, and again at the terminal OF the
French Gable Company in New York,
whence 1t came to our office on n short
sire. The receiving operator there snout-
ed the news to the entire operatlng-room
on every key on every circuit out OF New
York flashed the announcement that the
Pope had died at four minutes past four;
so that the fact was known In San Fran
cisco within eleven minutes after Its oc-
currance.
The Reuter-, Havas and Wolf agents
located In our Office In New York re-
transmitted the announcement to Lon
don, Paris and Berlin. giving those cities
the first news of the event. A COM
parson OF the report OF the London
',Timcs" with that OF any morning paper
In the United States on the day following
The death Of the Pope would show that.
port was vastly superior. The London
''Times" had a column and a half: the
New York 'Tlmes'' had page of. the
graphic story OF the scenes In and about
the Vatican, The New York Times
story was ours. This was 30 notable
an event that 1t occasioned comment
| throughout tho world.