The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1912-03-30
TYPEWRITER MIR
GOES MERELY on
SEVEN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES.
HAVE THEIR HEADQUARTERS
IN WASHINGTON.
SEND OUT MUCH COPY
s.-----~----
ONLY A VERY SMALL PER CENT. OF
WHAT IS WRITTEN GETS TO
PUBLIC. DuT PRESS AGENT
KEEPS ON.
By VICTOR ELLIOTT.


WASHINGTON. March ss.--Ther'
are more press agents for presidential
candidates at work In washington to-
day than ever before In the history
OF the country. Even the candidate
hasn't time to read all the laudators
things written about him. and II the
newspaper published everything sup.
piled by the publicity bureaus
there would be little room for the
stock markets, editorials. adj ertise-
ments or the days run OF news.
The average Washington cores
pendent wades through q mass Of cir
cular mail, mimeograpn sheets. book
let and photographs every day before
he can roach his desk. several of
the publicity bureaus have messen-
gers who do nothing all day long but
carry copy from one newspaper once
to another.
Eevry night. as the Washington
correspondent sits In his ofticc won
dering how he will crowd column
of news into three hundred words the
door is hurriodiy pushed open. an on
ergetic young man walks in, snoses
rat envelope IN the hands Of the cor
respondent and then disappears.
News from Headquarters.
Opening the envelope with tremb-
ling fingers, the correspondent nnds
three of our typewriter pages start
ing off something like this:
The Big Bill headquarters tonight
issued the GLOWING statment.
CONFIDENTIAL message received to-
day from Frogpond, Idaho. state that
our candidate Is gaming ground lily.
A straw vote was taken yesterday on
stage coach running between that
place and Sleepy Greek. The poll
showed: for Bill Bill Is: for Teddy
the Terrible1; for Senator Bob l IT,
There Is absolutely no doubt that all
delegates sent from this neck OF the
woods will be for Big Bill first. last
and all the time"
Hardly had the messenger dlsap-
peared before another shows up. This
time the bearer of press agent tid-
dings waves a long sheet OF paper In
his hand. slaps II on the desk and s.
appears In the darkness. Picking up
the latest missive the correspondent
reads something like this:
1T was said at the headquarters of
the recall candidate tonight that II
the people of this country are per-
mtted to hold primaries there Is no
doubt whatever that our hero will
be overwhelmingly elected. As was
to be expected, the Big Bill head
quarters put out wholly misleading
report regarding the situation at
Foreground, Idaho. The straw vote
alleged to have been taken there Ii
a fake. pure and simple, because the
stage coach was packed with Federal
officeholders who had taken the coach
expressly for the purpose OF being
polled. The real sentiment Of the
people of Idaho is illustrated by the
san drummer who just happened to
be passing through the State:
Terrible Ted. 1925; Big Bill. 3;
scattering, g."
Harvest for Letter Writers.
And SO it goes. Polls, congratuia-
tory kilograms. interviews, campaign
speeches, denials, aftirmations long
winded reviews Of this candidate anu
that are ground out by the hundred.
Numerous press agents work night
and day; the typewriter letter" COM
panies are kept busy: girls who can
address envelopes rapidly and neatly
are in demand, and every presiden-
tial candidate bureau Is afraid to shut
its doors for an instant for fear a
rival organiza ton will put out a story
which ought 10 be promptly denied.
There Is more or less press agent
work connected with every presidcn-
tial campaign, but never before have
there been established 80 many cam,
paign headquarters Mt the national
capital. Within a stones throw of
each other seven publicity bureaus
arc working desperately to Offset the
effect OF the sledge hammer campaign
of their rivals.
President Taft has bureau; so has
Colonel Roosevelt and Senator La
Toilette. all aspfrants for the Repub-
lican. nomination. There Is a stenilar
free-for-all and wordy fight in tho
Democratic field. Speaker Champ
Clark, Representative Underwood.
Governor Judson Harmon, Governor
woodrow Wilson--each and all have
headquarters where campaign man
ayers and press agents are busily en-
gagged In moulding public sentiment
In favor OF u particular statesman.
OF course. much of this campaign
material Is never published except In
the party organs or In papers support
Ing some particular Idol A great deal
OF the laudatory lierature Is skinned
over by the Washington correspon-
dent or the editor. and promptly de-
posted In tho waste basket. or cut
down to meet the requirements OF
space or the peculiar political views
Of that particular paper. II q paper
10 strong for President Taft, for An.
stance. u must give preference to the
Taft stun. and 1t cannot print all the
dope" sent out BY tho friends OF
Colone! Roosevelt, Speaker Clark. Gov
ernor Wilson and few Others.
Press Agents Net De4her,d.
That. however. doesn't Bother the
press agents and. the publicity man
agt >. Each bureau has : string Of
papers who with print our stun" ana
they head the mailing list. And tho
mailing lists are growing larger every
day 40 the campaign becomes more
heated. and there constantly arsscs
another political '.canard" which must
be nailed to the mast.
Tho press agents are ON tho Job
every minute. and somebody IL going
10 be elected. II may be dark horse,
! man whose name isn't appearing in
any OF the literature sent out from