Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1914-11-28
CALL DLOOMFIEL
MAN NEWS THIEF
Police Hold Telegraph Operator
as Seller of Associated
Press Dispatches.

Charged with revealing the con-
tents of a telegraph message sent out
bv The Associated Press, H. L. Lin
der. of 300 Franklin street, Bloom
field. an operator employed by the
Postal Telegraph Company, was ar
rested in New York yesterday. he
was arraigned before Magistrate
House and held in $4,000 bail for
hearing December l.
Iinder was stationed in the Office
o. the Globe and Commercial Adj
vertiser. and his method OF pilfering
messages it Is charged, was to trans
nit Associated Press dispatches to
the New York News Bureau, of %
Beaver street. New York. The Ne"
York News Bureau. in turn, it is
charged. distributed the story TO the
papers it served.
A statement sent out last night by
The Associated Press sets forth that
for a long time If had been evident
that dispatches had been systemad-
cally stolen and redistributed by a
number of smaller agencies to their
clients.
A careful watch was set upon the
business and suspicion pointed to
certain men employed in the GLOBE
Offices. Accordingly a decoy message
vas prepared to trap the wire-tap-
pers. The dispatch reported the loss
of the Fliba. a Russian battleship, in
the Gulf of Finland. after striking a
mine.
The wires at the office of TIE
Associated Press were SO arranged
that the message went to the GLOBE
alone. As expected, the news at
once appeared on the ticker and soon
after was printed in the papers
served by news agencies in other
parts Of the country,
When this had been done a notice
10 "kilT' was sent into the "Globe.
office before the item had appeared
in any Of the Globes editions.
This was done that the false news
might not reach the papers readers
There is no Russian battlesh1p
"Fliba." The word was cryptic and
invented in order that there should
be no question of identification of the
TELEGRAM. BY a manipulation of code
letters the word "Fliba" becomes
Globe
To strengthen the meshes OF the
net being woven about the culprit
self as an investment banker, Mr.
r. ID. Smith," in offices at 366 Broad
way. The office was fitted up care
fully and one of the New York News
Bureau tickers installed.
Associated Press employees were de-
tailed TO watch and time the appear
ance of the various dispatches, and,
according to their reports, the mes
sages of the Associated Press were
constantly repeated within five or
ten minutes after being sent out.
This covered period OF several
weeks.
John kirkland Clarke, attorney for
Melville e. Stone, general manager
Of the Associated Press, in request
ing that substantial bail be required
said that ne believed that others
were connected with the thefts Of
news dispatches. Ell stated that
Linder had made a confession, but
that he had not revealed the names
Of others concerned.
Following the arrest Of Under,
1.-THE Evening Sun" one of the
papers which printed the spurious
message with a four-column cut OF
the phantom ship, published a state
ment in a late edition to the effect
that the story had been furnished
the paper by the Central News, also
at rs Beaber street.
J. B. Shale. president Of the Cen
trail News. denied last night that the
Central News had served THE Eve
ming Sun" yesterday.
William c. Reick, president OF the
Sun Publishing Company, said that
the fight was between The Associated
Press and the Central News, and
ha 11aI fttff 1aYs rpy1a m M a
make on the subject.
Under resides with his wife in
fine house at Franklin and Orange
streets. He and two brothers are tele-
ztaph operators. He could not be seen
today It was said at his home that
he and his wife bad gone to Now York
on shopping trip.