The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1911-06-06
CALLS RIDDER
PRE: NAVIGATOR
'euator McCumber Wrought Up
Over Statements Made by
New York Publisher.
INSULTING REMARK
FINALLY MODIFIED
Senate Finance Committee Con-
cIudes Its Hearing on
Reciprocity.

WASHINGTON, June o,-Publlc
hearings Of the Canadian reciprocity
bill was concluded by the senate finance
committee today. representatives. of the
American Newspaper Publishers asso'
citation and of the Assoclated Press be
ing the last to appear before the com
mittee
Secretary of State Knox, at the re,
quest of Senator Bailey. has been asked
to explain tomorrow whether the Root
amendment 10 the paper section OF the
bill. providing that 1t shall not be in
force until the president is satisfied
and issued a proclamation to the effect
that paper and wood pulp are being ad.
mitted free into all the provinces OF
Canada. ls in full accord with the agree
ment as understood by the commission
ers from both countries who prepared
the treaty. Wednesday the committee
will take up the bill in executive ses-
sion to discuss committee action.
Newspapers Are Fair.
Both Herman Ridder, until recently
president of the American Newspaper
Publishers association, and Melville
E Stone, general manager of the As
sociated Press. testified in answer to
queries from various senators that. IN
their opinion. no effort has been made
by the newspapers OF the country to
agreement. TO color their reports. OF to
suppress facts which were OF news val
ne. Bruce Haldeman. president of the
Publishers association. and Frank B.
Moves, president of the Associated
Press. also appeared.
The chief interests which the news.
papers of the country have In the mat
ter. MI Ridder told The committee, is
their desire TO free themselves from the
paper ma nufacturers trust, which, now,
he added, has the publishers at its
mercy. The readers of the country
would benefit by cheaper paper. as well
ms the publishers he said. because the
money saved on paper could be used
10 furnish Il larger and better news
service.
Some Philosophizing
The hearings wound up with n friend
u nhilosophi2ipg between Senators
Bailey. Smoot. La Toilette and Clark
On the one hand and Mr. Stone on the
other, as 10 whether ii would be better
for the public if the newspapers gave
them more Of the serious. solid and in
structive sort of news and less of the
sensational.
Mr.. Rldder. who occupied the greater
part of the day before the committee,
acknowledged that the Publishers as.
sociation had sent out bulletins and let
ters urging the passage of the reci
procity measure. .'But i would not
have favored the measure.' he said
eff ! had not thought it would be of
benefit to the country, as q whole. in.
dependent of my interest in it as a |
newspaper publisher
When Mr.. Ridder attacked the paper
trust, which, he said, limited the out
put. fixed the price and told publisher
where he must buy his paper. both Sen
ators McCmmber and Bailey, opponents
of the bill, SAID if there was such n
trust they wanted to see it prosecuted
by the government.
Mr.. Ridder insisted, in answer to
questions, that any amendment 10 the
bill would, in his opinion, endanger and
probably kill the measure. and that,
therefore. he was In favor of seeing
the bill passed exactly as it came from
the house.
Mr. Stones Testimony.
Mr., Stone testified that no instruc.
tlons had been sent out to Associated
Press correspondents as to Canadian
reciprocity, except that they had been
told to send any important matter con. |
nected with it because of the general
interest In the subject. He was aues.
toned IN detail as to the Associated
Press service by several senators. ALL
reports, he said, were supposed to be
absolutely fair 10 both sides, TO be
recital of facts on their news value
only.
MIR. Ridder had not proceeded far
when Senator McCumber of North Da
kota startled the committee By chal.
lengipg one of Mr., Ridder' s statements
as an "absolute falsehood f"
Senator McCumber's s action brought
quick protest from Sena tors Stone and
Bailey, who declared that witnesses
should not be insuited
Mr.. Ridder had made the statement
that the newspapers Of the country
and the publishers association had not
attempted to suppress facts or to color
stories sent from Washington on the
subject of reciprocity. Senator Nc.
Cumber interrupted with his charge of
falsehood
Several senators insisted that Mr..
McCumber's remarks should be strck
en- from the record
II anv witness annp.Tiuo before