The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1922-06-14

in Ohio still speak with - decided
chucklc. 1t seems that the cashier of
Il bank in suburban city had been
cutting quite swath in racing and
shady society circles. The rumor be-
came current that he was short in his
accounts, and on certain Saturday
night one of the large dailies in the
big. town received strong "tip" from
one of the cashiers "flamcs" that he
had left town-also q large hole in
the banks exchequer. The newspap-
er tried to secure corroboration of the
story from the bank officials, but, of
co1rsc, they denied it. A reporter
then was sent to the home of the ac-
cused mans brother for verification
of the rumor. The brother flatly
branded the yarn as fake. The re-
porter insisted that his paper had the
facts and would publish them. The
brother countered with the threat
that if the story was published the
newspaper would have OH it's hands
the largest libel suit ever filed in that
section. After further verbal spar
Of libel, while the last words of the
paper, having the "goods," would run
the story just the same. However,
after the reporter returned to his Of
flee and talked matters over with his
chief, it was decided that there were
not enough facts to justify the risk,
so the story was temporarily shelved.
In the meantime the brother of the
cahsicr, taking seriously the threat
Of the reporter chat his paper would
run the story, bethought himself of
friend on rival sheet who would be
seriously embarrassed if this story
"brokc" on his route and he failed to
get it. So he summoned his friend,
gave hi mall the details Of the defal-
cation, which amounted to nearly
100000, threw in all the racing and
white-light effccts-in fact, furnished
all the materials fore one of the big
gcst sensations this particular section
had ever seen. The next morning
Sunday-thc newspaper which had the
original tip OH the looting of the bank
came out without line about the af-
fair, while the paper that had had no
inkling of it until the threat of the
rival reporter caused the brother of
the cashier to act, had the details of
the dcfalcation spread all over it's
front page.
Another queer angle Of "scoop"
developed in a certain city where the
of a newspaper and anoth
cr citizen advanced $250,000 to save
one of the city's most cherished insti
tutions. The newspaper proprietor
failed to notify his editor Of the mat
ter, and the first the chief knew of it
was when the editor Of rival even
ing paper telephoncd him, just before
an edition, that he had not
had time to make a real spread on the
item, and that, if the other editor was
they would both hold the
story for the second edition, to do it
justice. The editor of the paper own
ed by the philanthropist pretended to
make concession by holding off, then
sent his best men scurrying around to
t he proprietor to get the details of
the gift in time for the next edition.
in time, thus saving himself and the
the kcencst humiliation. 1t
is reported, however, that some years
later this same proprietor allowed his
own paper to be "scooped" in real
estate deal involving several million
dollars and in which he was the prime
mover.
Within the last 20 years there have
been three scoops" of an international
character presented to thle American
people, none of which brought credit
to the newspaper = Dlishing them.
One Of them was the hcralding of the
death of President Mckinley. Fol
lowing the attack upon him by the
assassin Czolgoz at the Pan American
Exposition at Buffalo, Mckinley how
creu between life and death, while an
anxious world prayed and waited for
the Divine verdict. Then one evening
the newspapers served by certain
press association suddenly burst forth
with extra editions, announcing the
death Of the martyrcd President, with
all the touching and sorrowful details
OF the last summons. For Il brief
period the whole country was rent by
grief over the report. And then came
the extra editions of the newspapers
of the rival press association with the
story that Mckinley still was alive,