Evening journal., 1913-11-18
NEW NEWS OF YESTERDAY
General Webb'S Fast Pony
Service
-
BY Holland.
By Holland.


The last years Of ,he life Of Ben
Halliday were spent in Washington.
He lived in one Of the row Of houses
the tenants Of which on either side
OF him were Colonel Robert G. Inger-
soil and Senator John Sherman.
/ spent an evening with the veteran
Of tranecontinental service between
the Missouri river and the Pacific
coast before the days Of railroads in
his library in his Washington home
IN the early winter of 1881.
There was nothing IN his demcanor
TO lead any one who did not know
what his career had been to surmise
that he was a man of inheNiblo Will
and of absolute courage, both physi-
cal and moral. OF that he had passed
years in developing passenger and
mail transportation between the Mis-
souri, river and the Pacific coast, fire.
.quently with his life IN his hands. His
voice was quiet and he spoke almost
in an undertone. Even when refer
ring TO what he felt was in justice
due to him on the part of Congress
be spoke without any suggestion Of
animosity or resentment
The talk drifted TO the early days
when he was the monarch of trans
portation across the plains to the
Pacific lie said:
II don't suppose that it us COM
monty known that the first idea Of
the pony express across the plains
was due to a very great achievement
10y General James Watson Webb.
General Webb was for many years
both the proprietor and editor of the
Courier and Enquirer of New York
city. have been told that this
newspaper property was bought by
the men who started the New York
World and was the basis Of that pub
Ncation was in the Far West at
The tome this happened, SO ! only
know this by hearsay.
But | do know what General
Webb accomplished in the way Of
newspaper enterprise some years be-
fore the telegraph and the railroad
made IL necessary for him to carry
| on one of the most expensive anC
/ audacious OF newspaper exploits iI
those early days.
News FROM Washington was look
! important than that which came from
any other locality-even more import
ant than European news. But il usu
ally required the best part of thrc'
/ DAYS to get letters or dispatches from
Washington to New York There wai
intense rivalry between General Webl
and the publishers Of the penny pa
pers of that time and the general
OF ~
news was decided to establish a new
service, which perhaps only one o
them would dare TO intimate, on as
count OF the expense
General Webb caused a very carefp
| estimate TO be made, first of She tim
which would be required for brins
/ ing news dispatches by pony expires
from Washington to New York aa
Whero the relays could be established
Next he had a careful estimate q
what, service of that kind would cos
| He found that he could put a reliabl
fast pony on his service which woul
be able to bring TO his Office news dis
patches forwarded from Washingto
not more than twenty-four houi
earlier
''That part of the program please
him, but ! have been told ne wa
somewhat staggered when he was n
formed that the service would COZ
him about eight thousand dollars
month on the average. However,
thought the venture justified the e.
pense. and he therefore instituted Il
fast pony express between Washing
ton and New York.
1T was a success in every way.
gave General Webb's newspaper
great deal Of prestige, and while pro
ably the direct returns IN the coun
ing-room did not meet the eXpens
yet the indirect RETURNS in the WI
of influences of business were We
large.
"Of course. the railroad aud tel
graph building put an end to this Sc
vice. But it was the recollection
what General Webb had accomplish
in the way of fast pony service viii
; justified the establishment of a som
what similar service between the MI
souri, river and the Pacific coast"
Copyright, 1913. Mcclure Newspar
Syndicate