The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1918-08-03

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GUS Or impractical order from Dr. Kumeiy
there was no question where our duty lay.
DR. Rumely was the nominal head of the
organization, the bylaws providing that
the vice president should be the execu-
tive. We were both officers and directors
Of the company, however. and on the
looks large stock interest was held,
! OF in Or. Rumely's name. but in that Ut
Walter I.yo;..
We did not know " alter Lyon-I nm
Rumely's rooms at the Manhattan-and
we did not know whether he represented
himself or somebody else.
| No Bed OF Roses.
For a long time had q strong ally
in Mr.. S. Walter Kaufman. the lawyer
who represented the controlling interest
in the Evening Mai. Mr.. Kaufman
always referred to this interest as my
clients" naturally, never asked him
who they were His clients. however.
were apparently interested at first in put
ing the Evening Mai, on a paying basis,
and for a year or so. until he went to
Germany in 1916, he not only backed up
every reasonable position taken in opposi-
ton to DR.. Rumely's desires but appar-
emily was in a position to enforce his de-
cisions upon Doctor Rumely. After his
return from Germany his power in this
respect seemed to have been curtailcd:
certainly he exercised far less control over
the internal affairs Of the Evening Mail
than he had formerly welded.
1t may be gathered from the foregoing
that life on the Evening Mail was not
exactly bed of roses. 1t was not. And
in the editorial end Of the paper--asins
the term in its broad sense of including
news, features" and all other reading
matter-the problem was further com oli-
Gated by 4 very definite responsibility,
first to America and American. principles
and, second. to the readers of the news
paper. With DR.. Rumely's consent had
pledged the paper to the support of the
President in his foreign policies.
| DR.. Rumely had assured Mr.. Mcclure
and me that the paper was to be neutral.
and we had joined the enterprise on that
representation. We very quickly discov-
cred that neutrality" was a word sus-
ceptible of more than one Interpretation.
It would be unneutral. for instance. 10
accept the conclusions of the Bryce report
on German atrocities. but it was perfectly
neutral 10 denouncc Great Britain for
that nations interference" with Ameri
can commerce!
Activities on Editorial Page.
cannot say that 1 was surprised to
discover that DR.. Rumely's conception of
neutrality was made Al Germany. His
disclosure to me of his German view
point had been SO complete that had
expected nothing else: l was surprised
only at his apparent lack of fineness in
his efforts TO Germanize the Evening
Mail To Mr.. Mcclure, however. III.
situation as it quickly developed came rs
surprise and shock. His regard r,r
DR.. Rumely was affectionate. almost
paternal 1t yrievcd him to the heart TO
sec dozen letters to the editor justifyin:
the sinking of the Lusitania, for example,
printed on the same page with one of his
own decidedly un-German editorial apti-
cles. For very early-withiI. few days
after control of the paper passed-Dr.
Rumely asserted his personal control Of
the editorial page and began to dictat.
not only The subjects and tenor Of edi-
toria.' articles but the character Of other
natter appearing on the page.
Mr. Mcclure protested to the Doctor
.gain and again. and I was not silent.
More than once Mr.. Mcclure threatened
to take his name down from, the head Of
the editorial page.
One of the surest mems of keeping the
paper on the straight course. / believed,
was to MAI il as far as rossible with men
whose Amsricanism could not be ques-
toned: men, too, when I could get them,
who would take a vigorous stand in opp
sition to any effort to pervert their view
point There were many such, soon
found, alreal y on the staff of the Mail
Staff as Whole Good Men,
1t was not large staff. but except for
a few pensioners" such As every news
paper that has been long under one man.
ageEent acc lmulates, it was a good staff
II capable craftsmen III the arts and
trades that enter into the manufacture
II modern newspaper. 4 few who did
aot tit TITO the scheme Of things were LET
out, with regret
Naturally. it was not always easy TO get
good newspaper men to work on a paper
that was publicly under suspicion of pro.
Germansm. 1t would have defeated the
very purpose l was trying to serve TO "a.
veal 1t. 1 was of course under suspicion
among those who did not know me. h.v.
ing come into the organization with Dr..
iumely. 1t soon became apparent that
men whom I brought into the organize.
Ion were suspected by DIR. Rumely of be.
ING unfriendly to him.
Not all OF these suspicious, / have sines
learned. were we'll founded. Blu, nobody
who saw the procession OF unnnistakabiv
Teutonic journalists and near-journaIIsts
that marched in and out Of DR.. Runely's
private office daily could have had any
doubt that every pro-German newspaper
man on this side of the Atlantic had GOT
the tip that the Mail had passed into Ger.
man hands.
By the end of 1875 six months after .he
Mail had charged hands. Mr.. Mcclure haA
given up the fight and was on his wav IA
Europe with Henry Ford and the peace
party in tie Oscar H.. and Dr. RuneIv
had arranged a nice little chute, carefuIiv
creased. down which he proposed to sIids