The Chickasha daily express. (Chickasha, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1899-current, 1916-04-18
OFFICE OF
CENSOR IS
nECrDTDEn
UEUUNlDLU
British Have All War Capitals Beat in
Manner Of Dishing Out News to
Correspondents; Operates
Like Clock Work
By Henry Wood.
Manager Rome Bureau of the United
Press.


! Press.
Note: During a recent dull war
season Wood did the vacation relief
tour among the other European offices
for the United Press. While in Lon
don he sat in for a week at the Off
cial press bureau. Following are his
observations of the way Great Britain
handles the newspaper correspond
ents, as compared with other belliger.
ent countries:
London, March 24.-Altho the Brit
ish censorship has been the most vi
tuperated Of all those in the war zone,
credit must be given Great Britain
for establishing the most systematic
organization for the publication Of
such news as is permitted. This is
my honest conviction after having
worked in close contact with the CEN
sorship in seven of the war capitals
Whatever may be said against the
judgment Of the English censors in
their suppression or deletion Of the
news, there can be no censure of the
operations OF the official press bu-
reau. This is thoroughly we'll
equipped and well-managed institu-
tion. Every possible facility has been
provided for the issuing of official
communiques and for the prompt cen
soring of all incoming and outgoing
press matter. So far as the giving
out of official news is concerned there
is no discrimination or unfairness.
Every correspondent accredited to the
press bureau has an equal opportuni-
ty with his rivals. And there are no
pipelines.
This development Of the purely me-
chanical side OF the censorship is
wholely lacking in the other belliger
ent countries, where the authorities
occupy themselves chiefly with the
deleting Of dispatches, leaving the col
lection OF official news largely to the
energy. ingenuity and resourcefulness
of the individual correspondent.
The British Press Bureau is housed |
in commodious building in White
hall, the upper floors of which are sa-
cred to the directors and the censorial
staff. Representative of the press as
sociations and newspapers, both for
eign and domestic, occupy a large,
semi-circular room on the ground |
floor, Of the kind usually designed for |
clinics or the operating rooms of med /
ical colleges. Around the semi-circle !
are "A telephone booths, one for each |
press association and newspaper rep |
resented. The telephones connect |
with their uptown offices, while in
addition to this facility the United
Press maintains a short telegraph |
wire running from a nearby room to
its main office in Temple Chambers.
Electric annunciators indicate when
ever there is a phone call for anyone,
or announce the receipt of an incom-
ing censored dispatch. Notice that
an official communication is about to
be given out is posted on black
board usually fifteen minutes or more
in advance Sometimes this notice In
dicates the character of the news and
the length of the communique. A mo-
ment before the clerk comes out from
an inner room to distribute the copies
a bell is rung. At this signal, if any
man is using his telephone he must
diseonnect and leave his booth. Tn
til all present have been supplied with
comics and the clerk shouts ready
none may enter a booth, leave the
room. or file a dispatch at the coun-
ter from which it is sent up to the
by pneumatic tube.
All dispatches are censored in the
order of receipt and forwarded by
other tubes TO the central telegraph
office or the cable offices, as requir-
ID. After a dispatch once goes to the
censor it is never again seen by the