The citizen-Republican. (Scotland, Bon Homme County, S.D.) 1???-19??, 1917-05-24
XIV.

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the storm had broken in the news,
paper world, presagins the hurrl.
cane of sensation, blame, acclama-
ton, criticism and question that
would sweep the country that eve
ning and the following day. lie
tried to start his story, but could
not. Telephone calls came to him
one after the other. The news had
swept through the newspaper and
political part of the city as it by
magic. Correspondents We're al
ready sending their papers bulle-
tins announcing that they were
about to put on the wire the big
story" Men talked eagerly about
ii in the hotel lobbies, at the capt.
toll, in the office buildings, on the
street corners. Waller, sitting in
his office, had a mental picture of
the excitement, the perturbation
among the prohibitionists, the eN-
ultation of the whisky people, the
doubts of some OF the Smith sup
porters, the quick rallving to his
side of his most earnest followers.
And he knew that nearly every
person was asking another:
What will people think Of ite
What will people say"
He thought, a little grimly. that
few people have any opinions Of
their own, that most of them mere-
ly reflect the thoughts OF others.
that nearly all are too much like
sheep. The great thing was TO give
the sensation the right twist, the
proper slant. TO make them say,
HE all right, instead Of, He's
all wrong.
The telephone calls multiplied
and piled up. TO all of them he
answered that at 4 o'clock he
would have his story ready. When
the representatives of the aftel
noon papers said they could not
wait, he answered that he was
sorry bnt that they wenId have TO
satisfy themselves with what ev-
erybody was saying about the ILL
cident. In his ownmind. lie knew
that the verdict would come from
the morning papers, from the fins
ished and complete stories, not
from the sketchy and necessarily
fragmentary articles slapped OH
the wire by men who had not time
enough to reread their copy IN
search Of mistakes. Finally, he
locked his door, took the receiver
off the hook, and sat down at his
typewriter to get ont the story
which, he hoped, would turn the
tide in favor Of the agitator.
AT the end Of an hour and a
half, q few minutes before 4
o'clock, he arose from the ma
chine, stretched his tired arms and
shoulders, and began to put to-
gether the pages OF a story which
would cover two columns and a
half. He had made six carbon
copies of it. 1t was a good story.
He felt that. 1T had III it some
Of Smith s fire and eloquence-and
q great deal Of Smith anguish.
Afterward, when other members
Of his profession had time to com
rlent, they said it was a great
piece Of dramatic writing.
He called an Office BOY, gave
him one OF the copies, and In
strllcted him TO take it to d public
stenographer i office and have 100
copies rnn off at once. He kent the
other copies he had made and
called UP the Press club and the
offices Of several correspondents
Now, he thought let them
GOMEZ ia ready for them
They did come. III Is minutes
the room was crowded with little
groups Of men, their heads benz
over the various copies, heads
which, as the reading progressed
were shaping up the opening para.
graphs and the strrn1cturs offths
stories they would get ont, storie,
Whlch IL few hours, would AZ
more than any other one thing Il
ldeterminc whether John Srnitl
wasgto survive Or IA down in ohio
qny I'd blame. Cholliewollie Hal
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