New-York tribune., 1918-06-28
Amityville Editor Distrusts
Request for Names of
Townsmen
He Says He Fears
Sending Of Newspaper
Hearst Letter Elicits En-
phatic Reply From
G.. F. Delanc

AMITYVILLE, L. l., June 27.-Will-
lam Randolph Hearst's "New York
American" is seeking to obtain from
newspapers hereabout to which it re-
Gently sent advertisements the names
Of. Long Island boys now in military
service. No explanation OF the purpose
of the request accompanied a letter
from "The American" which was re-
ceived by Charles F. De!ano, editor of
Delano views it with distrust He did
not accept the Hearst advertisements.
In letter to "The New York Ameri-
can" Mr.. Deiano declines cmphatically
tn send the names Of Amityville
soldiers, sailors and marines to Mr..
Hearst, expresses his thorough distrust
OF the Hearst newspapers and declares
that to accede to the request might
render him lie BILE to the same gratitude
which the Cologne "Volkszcitung" ex-
pressed for the pro-German efforts Of
triticises such papers as accepted the
Hearst advertisements.
The Amityville editors letter in
answer to the request lor soldiers
names follows in part:
Your letter of June %, asking me to
forward you complete list of the
names and addresses of .ner who have
been called from .Amityvllle into the
government service, has been received.
II refuse to do so.
"And l express the hope that you
shall not be able to obtain the names
of these poys if your purpose is to
papers or any other speciously demoral-
izing material. The Hearst organiza-
tion is on trial before the bar of public
opinion, charged with disloyalty Of a
character and to a degree which, by
Llaying upon the prejudices of un-
American influences, is partly responsi-
BILE for the destruction Of the boys
whom America is sending abroad.
"The effect of the Hearst propaganda
can be no more effectively stated than
the Cologne 'Volkszeitung' old on April
8, 1918, to wit:
In the daily press the numerous
Hearst papers in New York, Philadel-
phia, Boston. Chicago, San Francisco
and other cities were auxiliaries for
US of valued influence. Readers of
1.-The New York American" or "The
Evening Journal" were not wholly i'm
mune, indeed, to the poison of the
British cable, but Hearst carried with
him an effective antitoxin. In the
first place, he has his own cable SER
vice. and was therefore rather inde-
pendent, although he made now and
then regrettable concessions to sensa-
tion. Nevertheless, how far Hearst's
inte ernational News Service pot upon
the nerves of the London atrocty man
ufacturers is shown by the cable en-
barge which London finally placed
upon the Hearst service, thereby cut
ting his European life nerve.
"'More valuable, however, than the
news were the editorials of The Hearst
newspapers. They were unexcelled
models of popular style and arrestins
composition, they made the most com
plicated legal question attractive to
the simplest minds.
"'Hearst last year took the sting out
OF one of the worst pests of the Amer
lean press when he had his editor in
chief of "The Evening Journal
Arthur Brisbane-with his salary OF
$4,000, the highest paid newspape,
man of America and probably Of the
world-to buy "The Washington Times
and conduct it in line with his othe,
papers
Hearst has been permitted license
which no other country on the face
Of the globe would have tolerated. HI
has abused it shamelessly Do 70,
expect me to cooperate with him il
giving aid to the murderous work o1
the most repellent tribe that histor,
has known?
II feel that if I should do anything
20 aid the Hearst propaganda should
merit similar encomium from a pa
triotlc German newspaper and if
merited the commendation I shoul,
stand convicted in my own self-re
spect Of aiding in the killing of M,
fellow citizens. Very truly.