Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-02-16

| Associated Press, which was originally
| an insurgent organization, was about
to terminate. The Western group re-
fused to 60 on under the existing
| arrangement So the New York ASso-
| ciated Press was absorbed by the United
Press. There was q period OF attempted
compromise and then the Western
| friends of Mr.. Stone formed the Asso-
ciated Press, incorporated in Illinois.
| Mr.: Stone was asked to become general
manager.
Fights Private News Control.
The United Press was controlled by
three men, only one Of whom was a
| journalist. Writing of this situation
friends felt it unsafe to leave so i'm
portant a business under privately
owned, money-making control"
1.-THE business of news gathering and
purveying," he wrote, "had fallen into
private and mercenary hands. Its con-
troll by three men was quite as menac-
| ing as that of the governmental auto
Gratis OF the ages agone. There could
be no really free press in these circum-
stances. A press to be free must be one
which should gather the news for
ITSELF"
Again Mr.. Stone turned his back on
riches and public honors. He gave up
the active management Of lucrative
banking business to become the admin
istrative head Of an organization weak
both in point of membership and
finances, and with fight on its hands.
The reward that Mr.. Stone coveted
was a consciousness of duty performed
He had profound sense of RESPONSE
bility to do his share toward making
! this world better world and he turned
his extraordinary talents and bound
less energy to Journalism because he
believed that it offered the greatest
opportunity for service. In the invita-
ton of the executive committee he
Vlsual1zed a usefulness that challenged
the best that was in him. That is
why he Joined forces with the founders
of the Associated Press.
Contracts for Foreign News.
The fight was on and the new general
manager struck quickly and hard, The
day after his election he started for
London, where he made contract with
Reuters News Agency and its allied
agencies in other countries Of Europe.
for the exclusive rights of their news
in the United States. Soon the larger
newspapers Of the East began to desert
the United Press. One by one they
applied for membership in the rival Or
ganizat!on. Four years later. on April
! 8, 1897. the United Press applied to the
courts for a receivership. Most of the
United Press papers Joined the Asso-
ciated Press. Others united in an as
ISOLATION which grew into the Pub
fishers Press Qater the United Press
Associations that supplied q service
for afternoon papers.
| In 1898 the Associated Press of Il
linoiS, triumphant in the news field, was
wounded mortally in the courts. It had
tired to discipline the Chicago Inter-
Ocean member, for a violation of the
bylaws by suspending its service to the
paper, with the result that 1t became
involved in litigation, and finally the
Supreme Court Of Illinois ruled that be-
cause OF certain provisions of its charter
the news organization was bound to
furnish its news to any newspaper that
| applied for 1t. This was fatal to the
cooperative plan Of self-governing as
ISOLATION. Reorganization was neces-
sary. In September, 1900, the Associ-
ated Press of Illinois went out of ex-
istence, and with its passing the AS
ISOLATED Press of today, Incorporated
under the laws Of the State of New
York, and with revised form of char
ter, was born. That is how the head
quarters came to be moved from Chi
cago to New York.
Counted Many Friends.
Among the by-products Of Mr.. Stones
work were the respect of other men and
lasting friendships. To those who knew
him well it seemed that no other man
could have had SO many friends. They
were found among the high and the
lowly. Royalty delighted in his society,
and no one was so obscure that he
could not meet Mr.. Stone If he had an
errand that to him seemed important
1t mattered not in what capacity any
one worked with him, that they were
associated in a great and common cause
was sufficient to assure his frank az
lection.
Foreign News Triumph.
Before the days of the Associated
Press and even after the alliance OF
that organization with foreign agencies
| European news largely came to this
country through London. 1t was gath
cred by British agents and Americans
saw the Old World through British
| spectacles. Mr.. Stone determined to
have the news of Europe reported for
Americans by disinterested Americans
and brought direct to this country from
the various capitals. Foreign govern
ments welcomed this arrangement, be-
lieving it would have beneficial effect
upon their international relations. As
a consequence when Mr.. Stone went
abroad to establish offices Of the Asso-
ciated Press in London, Paris, Berlin,
Rome and elsewhere he was able to
gain from the different governments
concessions never granted to their own
! press. Free access to governmental de-
1 partments and adequate Geographic
cases freedom from censorship followed
as a matter of course.
His great foreign triumph came later
when during the Russo-JapaneSe War
he persuaded Emperor Nicholas to re-
move the censorship from Russian press
dispatches.
1t was such achievements as this,
epochal in the history of Journalism,
that led some of Mr.. Stones many ad-
mirers to declare him to be the great
est newspaper genius of his age. It
also attracted to him host Of SELF
seekers whose missions ran from re-
quests for ordinary selfish publicity to
the ambassadorship at the Court of st.
James. Self-seekerS were turned away
disappointed. Then, too. there were
those who were most anxious, for rea-
sons of their own, to do something for
Mr.. Stone. There was not much that
could be done for him by such.
Advice Sought in Peace Farley.
The prestige in Europe gained by Mr..
Stone in his travels for The Associated
Press made it possible for him to play
an important part at a critical period
in the peace parley of Russia and japan
at Portsmouth. N H. AS related by him
years later. the Japanese, knowing his
close acquaintance with the Russian
delegates, sought his views when 1t
seemed that the negotiations would be
abruptly ended because of Japan's de-