The Pensacola journal., 1914-12-20
PAPERS CANNOT
PUBLISH STORY
LOSS OF THE BATTLESHlP AUDA-
CIoUs HAS NOT YET BEEN
PRINTED IN THE ENGLISH PA
PERS.
By ASSOCIATED PRESS.

4
London, Dec. 1s.-The British press
censorate has not yet permitted the
British newspapers to make any men
ton Of the loss of the battleship Au-
dacious. The facts that the Audacious
| was put out Of commission by a mine
| or by a German submarine, off the
| northern coast of Ireland on October
| 27, and that the White Star steamer
| Olympic took off her crew are well
| known in all English newspaper Of
| fees, however, and are a matter of
| common report among the public
The policy Of the admiralty in de-
clinfng to have any statement made
| in England is dictated by the view that
| in the absence OF official confirmation
the Germans may think that the report
| is another canard which has gained
general credence like the widely spread
and firmly believed story of the pas
| sage of a Russian army through Great
Britain to France. American news
papers containing the story have been
sold or the newsstands OF the London
hotels, and offered on Fleet street by
the Eewsboys. This has made the Lon
don papers chafe under what some
of them consider the unnecessary rig
crS Of their censorship. The Daily
News and Lea6Br, one of the strongest
party organs of the present govern
ment published a pointed protest re-
Gently. A censorship is a wholly new
experience for English newspapers.
They have quickly adjusted themselves
to the possibilities Of defying it in
the spirit while observing it in the let
ter. The Daily News and Leader did
not mention the Audacious. but it
said, and evryone understood it's mean
ing:
"Runors of an event OF very great
Importance to the British public have
been circulating for a very long time
past now In this country. Very full
accounts OF the event in question have
now been published In the Swedish
the Dutch. the American and finally
the German papers. There is scarcely
an important public in the world, that
is To say, which has not now received
. full report OF the alleged occurrence
except that one which is most directly
affected by It.
''The truth or falsehood Of the re-
ports is a matter on which Judgment
may, and indeed for the moment must,
be suspended. It Is ineligible that
the authorities may have good reasons
for delaying the publication Of news,
favorable or otherwise, until a time
when in their judgment it's publication
will be most effective or least prejudi-
cial to the public interests. The sin
cere study and understanding of ma
tiona1 psychology may be Of impor-
tant assistance in a, struggle such as
that we are now waging. But this is
surely a psychological blunder of the
first order to conceal from the British
public news, which good or bad, is
the common property OF their neigh
bors"
The Times dwells editorial1y upon
the same matter, saying:
''Our office Is Uttered with German
newspapers containing news we are
forbidden to publish. We have also
many American newspapers contain
ing the same news. which was further
sent broadcast in the German wireless
messages. The present position, there
fore, Is that the whole world is ac-
quainted with news this country is
not permitted to know, and the ridicu-
lous feature of the situation is that
very large numbers of individuals in |
these islands know it quite well.'