New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1917-07-29
News of Troops
Landing Discloses
Censorship Hitch
Washington Requests Sc
crecy After Dispatches
Are Passed Abroad
TBy The Associated Pressl

Washington, July 28.-At 9:4O o'clock
this morning, five hours after its re-
ceipt, The Associated Press received
from the Committee on Public Informa-
ton a request to "kill" the dispatch
from an European port announcing the
safe arrival of another contingent of
American troops.
The Associated Press saw no reason
for deleting the dispatch, inasmuch as
it disclosed no military information Of
a character to betray the location or
description of the troops, and, further
more, because the dispatch had been
passed through the official censorship
in Europe.
The chief censor Of the War Depart
ment told a representative of The AS
sociated Press he was surprised that
the dispatch had been passed by the
censor abroad, because he supposed an
understanding had been reached with
the Allied governments as TO what
character of news respecting American
military forces was TO be transmitted
freely to the United States. The As
! ISOLATED Press, too, understood that
such an arrangement had been made.
Furthermore, The Associated Press
has before it no request from any re-
sponsible official to submit news OF
such a character, passed by the censor,
to officials in Washington before being
distributed to its members. On the
other hand, the Secretary of War on
July 5, in statement TO editors, per-
l 20
directly to addresses without reference
to Washington, with the stipulation
! that certain classes of information
must not be contained in them. No
/ such prohibited information is con-
tanned in the dispatch to-day.
Since July no request has been
made to The Associated Press to with
! hold or submit dispatches from abroad
| prior to publication.
! On July 3 the Secretary of War, by
! official order, arbitrarily took posses
! sion of all cable dispatches to news
/ papers and press associations relating
/ to American troops abroad, and on
] July and dispatches from France
/ addressed to The Associated Press IN
/ New York were diverted to the War
[ Department, without notice, and later
delivered to the Washington bureau
with, on one occasion, request for
deletion, which was complied with.
On July Secretary Baker, in New
York, said to The Associated Press:
THE present arrangement is only a
temporary one and will be maintained
only so long as is necessary to per-
feet a smooth working plan to handle
this matter without imperilling the
lives of American citizens"
On July 5, in an official statement,
Secretary Baker announced:
THE emergency having passed, the
War Department states that press
cables from France are again per-
mitted to go directly to addresses with
out reference to Washington. These
precautions, however, must continue to
be observed"
Then followed an outline of military
information which must not be dis
closed. To-day's dispatch in no way
conflicts with that order:
The Associated Press had no further
communication from the government
on the subject until to-day.
II was generally supposed in Wash,
ington, and the belief has been shared
by many officials, including the army
censor, and presumably the Secretary
of War. that an arrangement had been
perfected with the censors abroad. To-
days events are the first indication
that such is not the case.
The Washington bureau did not know
and does not now know whether the
troops referred to landed in England
or in France. The Associated Press
always has stood ready to cooperate
with the government in observing any
Q IN bn mott NJ
!. The Committee on Public Informa-
tion to-day asked that all dispatches
relating to troop movements be re-
ferred to it for wise, but declined TO
say whether a representative could be
reached throughout the night to pass
upon inquiries.