Note 8 — Footnotes

We have seen in Part VI (Arena, June, 1896) how rates were raised on papers that criticised the Western Union’s president or advocated a postal telegraph too vigorously, how papers were ordered not to criticise news reports under penalty of loss of news facilities, etc. It is interesting to note that even the largest and most influential papers do not always escape persecution. In his speech in the House, Mar. 1, 1884, the Hon. John A. Anderson, of Kansas, tells us that “the Chicago Inter-Ocean had the lease of a private wire from Washington to Chicago, and published Washington news every day. A few weeks since, Senator Hill spoke for the postal telegraph. The Inter-Ocean published the speech verbatim. That evening word was sent to the Inter-Ocean that the lease was terminated. The manager of the Inter-Ocean said afterwards that their relations with the Western Union were still friendly, but he had to be, of course, in order to keep the general despatches.” Return to text