The Goldfield news and weekly tribune. [volume] (Goldfield, Nev.) 1911-1947, 1918-08-03
TAINTED WAR NEWSL"sTOCKs STRONG"

The country at large, and the west in particular,
have during the last ten days had several samples of tainted
war news that were so ~strikingly typical that the brand ought
to be instantly recognized whenever and wherever seen
throughout the remainder of the war.
First was the capture of scissors with $1,000 prisoners on
the 10Th. scissors is still. on the goth. in German hands, and
the total of prisoners taken in the twelve days of fighting by
all the allies since the counter-attack began is about 10000.
Next came the report on Thursday last that half a million
Germans, with the crown prince himself, were prisoners. This
report persisted, until the newspapers and news gathering
agencies, for reasons known only to those who never published
"a newspaper, were accused of holding back the information.
Il X X
Now, what was the source of these reports? Who was it
had the keys to this portentous inside nformation, with right
of way past the military censors of all the allied armies?
There are news agencies, like the Associated Press, Reuters
and the Havas, with trained correspondents, backed not merely
by millions or tens of millions, but by hundreds of millions,
who are there to get the news There are scores of other
trained correspondents representing individual newspapers or
syndicates of newspapers, all of them energetic and fired by the
enthusiasm of their professionalism are there to get the news.
And they are recognized and registered and their badges and
credentials carry them where other civilians are barred. These
reports did not come from them. If they had they would never
send another.
The world will probably never know the source of these
overwhelming news stories, but they do know the channel of
distribution. They are communicated to a waiting world
through the medium of the bulletin boards of stock brokers.
Every story, as flashed over the wires, ends with the same
words, "stocks strong"
Now, if American stock brokers are maintaining a news
agency cover there, I" the sooner General Pershing knows about
it the better. If Foch, or Pershing, or Haig is playing the
stock market the sooner the world knows about it the better.
These commanders have in their keeping the precious lives of
millions of the worlds best men and if they are using them to
play the stock market the world wants to know it, and it wants
the information dTn quick.
That is exactly the position in which the broker places
them when he intimates, with his wise look, that he has inside
information regarding the progress of a great battle. OF course
he hasn't it. OF course the brokers have no representative at
the front, and of course the military leaders are not playing
the stock market or favoring any broker. And of course the
reports of the reputable news agencies are not for sale to brok-
ers and the brokers haven't money enough to buy them, for the
minute the agency itself became tainted it would die.
X Il x
The men who are writing the news of this war are not
thinking of the stock market, and the words stocks strong
never occur in one of their dispatches. And if Foch, or Perish
ING. or Haigh found one of the other breed around headquarters
he would either be sent out into mo Mans Lane" where both
armies would have a chance at him, or he would be placed
with his back to a wall with ten rifles in front of him, all point
ing at one target.
Before the government at Washington makes any more
noise about profiteerng in other fields it should give the prop
er attention to the fellow who is trying to commerclahze the
war news through stock jobbing channels. And since the gov
eminent now has the wires the public will not understand any
failure or neglect.