CHAPTER VI

SPEECHES, INTERVIEWS, AND TRIALS

Various Forms of Utterances. As news stories of speeches, sermons, lectures, official reports, and interviews, as well as of testimony, decisions, and arguments in trials and investigations, are concerned largely with direct or indirect quotation of written or spoken expression, the writing of them involves several elements that do not enter into the composition of the typical news story. In the types of news thus far considered, such as fires, accidents, and crime, the story was a narrative of what had happened. Although the facts were gleaned largely from observation and interviews, usually no person’s ideas or opinions were quoted. News stories of addresses, reports, or similar documents, interviews and court trials, on the other hand, have only a small incidental narrative-descriptive element to present the circumstances under which the utterance was made. The large and important part of such stories consists of a reproduction in complete or condensed form of the original expression.

Verbatim Quotation. Direct verbatim quotations of all utterances are generally preferred for news stories, because they are exact reproductions of the originals. Whenever a copy of any of these forms of expression can be obtained, it is desirable for the reporter to get one either before or after the utterance is made, because of the accuracy of the quotation which a copy makes possible. Frequently copies of addresses, lectures, sermons, reports, decisions, and testimony can be had, and exactness of reproduction is thus secured. When a copy cannot be obtained, the reporter is dependent upon himself to get the equivalent of it by taking down as nearly as possible a verbatim reproduction of such parts of the utterance as he desires.

Methods of Reporting Speeches. The two problems in reporting these various forms of oral or written expression are, how to get the exact words of the speakers, and how to condense long utterances effectively.

The body of news stories of speeches can often be written while the speaker talks, in what is called a “running story,” particularly when it is necessary for the reporter to have his copy ready for publication soon after the speaker finishes. In such cases the reporter picks out and combines into a connected verbatim report the most important statements, summarizing briefly the less important ones. To do this he depends on long-hand writing so that what he writes can be used as copy without being transcribed. If time permits, he may take notes during the address, sermon, or trial, and write up his story later. Short-hand, although occasionally convenient, is not commonly used by newspaper reporters, and very few of them can write it.

The greatest skill is required to condense all of these forms of expression within a comparatively limited space. A speech, for example, that in complete form would fill three columns must often be cut down to half a column; and a report that would fill a page often cannot be given more than three quarters of a column. To select and combine separate parts into a unified, coherent reproduction that is only one-fifth or one-tenth of the original, is no easy task. Despite this great condensation the news story must be an accurate presentation of all the important material in the original. When a newspaper reporter or editor is satisfied to pick a few striking statements out of their context, and present them in a new combination, the result too often is that neither the spirit nor the substance of the original is accurately given; in fact, not infrequently the speakers’ ideas are completely, though often unintentionally, misrepresented.

“Playing Up” Misleading Statements. This distortion is often brought about by taking a striking sentence out of its context, in which it may be modified or explained, and by “playing it up” as a feature of the lead in a way that gives an entirely false or very misleading impression of the speaker and his utterance. The accuracy of the quotation under such circumstances does not justify the inaccuracy of the effect produced. Nor does the supposed news value of a striking but misleading quotation at the beginning of the lead justify the misrepresentation involved. Unless when taken from its context a quotation, direct or indirect, gives accurately not only the expression but the point of view and spirit of the original, it should not be used. Generally, by means of some connective or explanatory matter, such a quotation can be made to represent the original accurately. Great care should be taken not to give a wrong impression in the lead.

How to Begin the Lead. In news stories of speeches, lectures, and sermons, or of reports and similar documents, eight different forms for the beginning of the lead may be suggested: (1) a direct quotation of one sentence; (2) a direct quotation of one paragraph; (3) an indirect quotation of one statement; (4) an indirect quotation of several statements; (5) the keynote; (6) the title quoted; (7) the name of the speaker; and (8) the conditions under which the utterance was made. The reporter should choose the form best suited to the subject, the substance, and the occasion of the speech or report.

The single sentence quotation, as in the following form, should be used when the thought or expression which it contains is the most significant feature:

“The sentiment of the working class everywhere is for peace rather than for war,” declared Charles P. Neill, United States commissioner of labor, in speaking on “The Interest of the Wage Earner in the Present Status of the Peace Movement,” before the Lake Mohonk Conference of International Arbitration.

The paragraph of direct quotation is necessary when the most important point of the speech is not expressed in a single sentence but requires several connected sentences, or when the single sentence is sufficiently long to fill a whole paragraph, thus:

(1)

“The treatment for bad politics is exactly the modern treatment for tuberculosis—it is exposure to the open air. One of the reasons why politics took on a new complexion in the city in which the civic center movement originated was that the people who could go into the schoolhouse knew what was going on in that city and insisted upon talking about it; and the minute they began talking about it, many things became impossible, for there are scores of things in politics that will stop the moment they are talked about where men will listen.”

So said Gov. Woodrow Wilson of New Jersey in speaking on “The Social Center: A Medium of Common Understanding” at the opening of the first national conference of civic and social center development last night.

(2)

“Whatever method of control over water-power resources may be deemed most equitable and expedient, it is imperative that a definite policy by both the federal government and the states be speedily adopted, first because of the obvious desirability of utilizing all commercially available water power, and second because of the possibility of public water powers’ passing absolutely into private control.”

With these significant words Herbert Knox Smith, commissioner of corporations, closes a report to the President of the United States on “Water Power Development in the United States.”

The indirect quotation is of advantage when it is not possible or convenient to give a direct quotation, and when it is desirable to give the most important point at the beginning of the lead; for example:

That the tariff problem cannot be successfully solved until Congress has adequate data upon which to base its conclusions, was the statement of Senator Albert J. Beveridge of Indiana in the senate this afternoon in advocating a tariff commission.

“The tariff is fixed by facts; how to get at all these facts is the first question in the whole tariff problem,” said Senator Beveridge. “Common sense and experience, [etc].”

The main points in a report or speech may be effectively summarized in several indirect quotations at the beginning of the story, but the separate clauses must not be too long or complicated in structure. The following examples show how these indirect quotations can be used:

(1)

That the present one cent a pound postage rate on newspapers and magazines should be doubled; that the actual cost of handling such second class matter is 5½ cents a pound; and that the proposal to charge a higher rate on the advertising sections of magazines is not feasible, is the substance of the report of the commission on second class mail matter submitted to Congress by President Taft today.

(2)

That the initiative is the most effective means of giving the people absolute control over their government; that the initiative and referendum do not overthrow representative government but fulfill it; and that truly representative government must represent not misrepresent the people, was the declaration of William J. Bryan in an address before the Ohio Constitutional Convention today.

The keynote beginning gives the dominant idea that runs through the whole utterance, thus:

(1)

The establishment of an expert tariff commission by Congress as the best solution of the tariff problem was urged by Senator Albert J. Beveridge in a speech in the senate this afternoon.

(2)

How every country in Europe has suffered from the increase in the cost of living is shown in a report submitted by President Taft in a special message to Congress last night.

When the subject is stated in a particularly novel or interesting form it may be the best feature of the story and should accordingly be in the lead. For example:

“Why Working Children Need Voting Mothers” was discussed by Mrs. Florence F. Kelley in an address on equal suffrage before a large audience in the Assembly Chamber last night.

The prominence of the speaker or author of the report frequently justifies the placing of his name at the beginning, thus:

(1)

Postmaster General Frank Hitchcock advocates government ownership of the telegraph lines of the country in a report made to Congress today.

(2)

Ambassador James Bryce explained the method of drawing up bills to be presented for adoption by the British parliament, in addressing the members of the congressional committee at the hearing on the bill providing for the congressional legislative library.

Unusual or significant conditions under which the address was delivered, or the report made, may become the “feature” and may be played up, as in these stories:

(1)

Despite the pouring rain, nearly 5,000 people heard Senator La Follette discuss the issues of the campaign at the Auditorium last night.

(2)

By their demonstrations of approval and frequent expressions of enthusiasm the members of the legislature gave evidence of their endorsement of the policies of President Taft when he addressed them in the State House this afternoon.

The Body of the Story. Whatever form of lead is used for speeches, reports, or interviews, the body of the story generally consists of paragraphs of direct verbatim quotations, combined often with summarizing paragraphs. As the interest lies not only in what a man says but also in the way he says it, verbatim quotations are usually preferred to indirect ones. It is frequently necessary to condense speeches and reports so much that large portions must either be omitted or be briefly summarized. It is desirable, as far as possible, to avoid combining in the same paragraphs both direct and indirect quotations, or both direct quotations and summarizing statements.

In paragraphs of direct quotation it is often necessary to insert explanatory phrases, such as, “said Mr. White,” “declared the speaker,” “the report continues,” “explained Mr. White in conclusion,” “the report concludes,” etc., but such phrases should be buried in an unemphatic position in the first sentence of the paragraph. Paragraphs of direct quotation should not begin with such unemphatic phrases as, “Mr. Blank continued by saying, etc.,” “The speaker then said,” “The report continues.” It is likewise ineffective to begin with phrases like, “I believe,” “I feel sure,” “I think,” “I know.” The newspaper reader will take for granted that what the speaker says is what he “thinks,” “believes,” “knows,” or “is sure of,” and the reporter, therefore, may omit these needless phrases entirely or may put them in a less prominent place. Instead of beginning a paragraph with,

“I believe that the income tax is the fairest of all taxes,” said Senator Borah.

it is preferable to omit entirely the phrase “I believe,” or else to put the quotation in the following form:

“The income tax, I believe, is the fairest of all taxes,” said Senator Borah.

In paragraphs of indirect quotations or of summaries, it is as necessary to use explanatory phrases as in those of direct quotations, and this explanatory matter should be put in unemphatic positions. The form of the phrases should be varied as much as possible so that the repetition will not be evident. Among the active verbs that may be used in explanatory matter are: “say,” “point out,” “show,” “declare,” “explain,” “insist,” “ask,” “advocate,” “demand,” “continue,” “conclude.” Passive forms include: “considered,” “discussed,” “given,” “described,” “demonstrated.” It must always be made plain by these and other means that all matter not quoted directly gives the substance of the speech or report.

When the body of the story consists of a series of direct quotations, these paragraphs are introduced by such phrases as: “He said in part,” “He spoke in part as follows,” “The report in brief follows,” “His address in full is as follows,” or “The complete report follows.” Such introductory statements end with a colon, and usually stand alone as a separate paragraph. In a continuous quotation extending through several paragraphs, quotation marks are placed at the beginning of each paragraph but at the end of only the last paragraph of the quotation. Quotations within quotations are set off by single quotation marks, and quotations within quotations within quotations by double marks.

It is not always necessary to arrange the matter in the body of the story so that it will follow the exact order in which it was given in the original. When the lead presents the most important statement, the following paragraphs frequently explain or amplify this statement, and then other parts of the speech follow, although in the original they may have preceded. In rearranging the order of quotations, care should be taken to establish close connection between them and to avoid misrepresenting the thought or spirit of the original. How a long speech is given in brief form partly by direct quotation, partly by indirect quotation, and partly by summarizing statements, is shown in the following example:

Washington, Jan. 2.—Taking up the gage of battle offered by Senator Bailey in his denunciation of direct government measures, Senator Ashurst, of Arizona, the state whose progressiveness delayed her entry into statehood, today made eloquent defense of the initiative, the referendum, and the recall. That the people in the states now using the initiative and referendum, have taken a more active interest in voting upon measures brought before them at the polls than have the members of the United States senate in adopting or rejecting laws, was Ashurst’s reply.

“There is not one record,” he declared, “of an instance where a law has been rejected or accepted under the initiative and referendum by less than 40 per cent of the entire number of voters within a state, yet in the senate itself, composed of 96 members, each paid $7,500 per year to remain there and vote upon measures, generally only 55 to 60 per cent of the total membership vote upon a bill, and frequently a bill is passed or defeated by 29 or 30 per cent of the entire membership.”

The bill to construct a railroad in Alaska, the senator pointed out, passed the senate by a vote of only 32 per cent of the entire membership; on the army appropriation bill in the 62nd Congress only 36 per cent of the membership voted.

“Thus, while it is true that under the initiative and referendum only[Pg 136] about 70 to 80 per cent of the voters of a state go to the polls, at times it is very difficult for the Senate to keep a quorum, notwithstanding that the senators are paid handsome salaries for that very purpose.

“During the trial of the Archbald impeachment case frequently there were only 15 to 20 senators present, though two distinguished republicans and an equal number of distinguished democratic senators to my knowledge have pleaded with senators to remain and listen to the testimony.”

Ashurst then went into an extended legal argument, quoting “fathers of the country,” and the federal supreme court to prove that no special form of government was defined as “republican” in the constitution. He declared that congress was the only court that could declare a given form of government “unrepublican” and that by its action in admitting to membership senators and representatives from states that have adopted the system of direct legislation, congress itself has recognized this form of government to be republican under the terms of the constitution.

Finally the senator defended the right of the people to express themselves directly without regard to precedent, and declared that “in such free expression alone lay the safety of human society, for whose service governments were maintained.”

How to Combine a Series of Speeches. In reporting meetings it is frequently desirable to give indirect or direct quotations from the remarks of the speakers. When several speakers are quoted, the speaker’s name is put at or near the beginning of the paragraph in which he is quoted, so that in a rapid reading of the report, the eye catches at once the change from the words of one speaker to those of another. The following report of a convention illustrates the method of handling a series of quotations, as well as the manner of giving fairly both sides in a debate:

DENVER, Aug. 26.—Benzoate of soda is not harmful when used to preserve food.

This is the declaration of the convention of the association of State and National Food and Dairy departments, which today indorsed the findings of the Remsen referee board, which had given the preservative a clean bill of health.

The vote, which was 57 to 42, was taken after a hot debate.

The federal government was accused of licensing the sale of “medicated food fit only for the sewer.” Dr. Charles A. L. Reed of Cincinnati, in attacking the Remsen board of scientific experts, which urged the government to allow the use of benzoate of soda as a food preservative, made the charge.

“That recommendation to the department of agriculture benefited only two classes of people,” asserted Dr. Reed, “the manufacturers of benzoate of soda and the manufacturers of food of such a character that it could not be sold without being preserved by the addition of a chemical. The government is now licensing food for consumption which has to be medicated and which otherwise would be fit only for the sewer.

“The referee board experimented with healthy young men, but all of these young men were stuffed with great quantities of food while taking the samples of benzoate of soda and the results observed in them would not apply to the average consumer.”

Dr. Reed’s remarks followed speeches by members of the referee board, including one by Dr. Ira Remsen, its chairman.

[Pg 138]A special committee appointed by the association to investigate the referee board, reported adversely upon its findings.

Dr. Russell H. Chittenden of New Haven, Conn., a member of the referee board, said that three-tenths of a gram of benzoate of soda was administered daily to each of six young men subjects during two months. In the one month each man received per day during the first week six-tenths of a gram, the second week one gram, the third week two grams and the fourth week four grams.

“From our experiments, only one logical conclusion seems possible,” said Dr. Chittenden. “Benzoate in small and large doses up to four grams per day is without deleterious effects upon the human system.”

Dr. Remsen, in discussing the report of the referee board, said in part:

“Since the appointment of the board by President Roosevelt my dealings have been directly with Secretary Wilson. The board understands we have nothing to do with the administration of the pure food law. Our function is to answer such questions as the secretary may put. In regard to benzoate of soda the board was asked to determine two points:

“1. Whether benzoate of soda in such quantities as are likely to be used is or is not injurious to health.

“2. Whether the quality or strength of a food to which benzoate of soda has been added is thereby reduced, lowered, or injuriously affected.

“You know the conclusions to which the board has been led by its work. We agreed upon the form of the report and the knowledge I had gained during the investigation of the subject was of such a character that I felt justified in signing the report.”

Dr. Remsen said he had nothing to do with the actual experimenting with benzoate of soda.

[Pg 139]The position taken by Commissioner J. Q. Emery of Wisconsin and his followers, who are vigorously attacking the use of benzoate of soda is: “If there is any doubt as to the harmfulness of chemicals in food the public should have the benefit of the doubt.”

The Form of the Interview. The interview, as a statement made to one man, the reporter, instead of to a number of persons, as in the case of a speech, may have practically the same kind of beginning as the address or report. Owing to the interest in the man interviewed, his name frequently begins the story, but as what he says is likewise of value, some form of beginning that gives his opinions can also be used advantageously. Although in an interview all of the information is obtained from the person interviewed in response to the reporter’s questions, it is not necessary or generally desirable to include these questions in the written story of the interview. Readers are interested in the statements of the person interviewed, not in the reporter’s questions or actions. When a man refuses to give any information by declaring in response to questions that he has nothing to say, it may be desirable as a matter of news to give the reporter’s questions and the man’s non-committal answers. Generally, however, neither the reporter nor his questions and remarks are given a place in the story of an interview. The following examples illustrate the application to interviews of some of the forms suggested for speeches and reports:

(1)

“Two-cent letter postage between the United States and England is a business proposition which should have been put into effect twenty years ago,” was the comment of John Wanamaker, former postmaster general, on the adoption of the reduced rate.

[Pg 140]“I urged this reform in 1890 when I was postmaster general,” said Mr. Wanamaker. “Now I hope that the over-sea postage will be followed by national one-cent postage.

“Within three years the income from over-sea postage under the two-cent charge for stamps will be as great as under the five-cent charge. In fact, two years ago I made the offer to the government in conjunction with several other gentlemen to guarantee that there would be no deficit under the two-cent foreign postage.

“If railroad rates for the carrying of mails were lessened to equality with commercial rates, the two-cent rate might be cut to one-cent without loss to the government.”

(2)

The claim that the equal suffrage bill might be repealed at the coming special session of the legislature because the Political Equality League has not filed expense statements under the new corrupt practice law, is sheer nonsense, according to Miss Mary K. Block, secretary of the league.

“Since equal suffrage was not mentioned in the call for the special session of the legislature, it cannot be considered,” said Miss Block. “The story is the work of those opposed to ‘votes for women’ because they know how strong the sentiment for woman suffrage is in this state.”

Combining Several Interviews. When a number of interviews are included in one story, the lead usually presents the consensus of opinions given, and explains or summarizes the results. The separate interviews may be combined in one of several ways. Not infrequently the name of the person expressing the opinion is put at the beginning of the paragraph and is followed by the quotation. In other cases the quotation for each person is put first in the paragraph, and the explanatory matter follows at the end of the first sentence. The following examples illustrate both forms:

(1)

With almost complete unanimity public officials and other prominent men today disapproved of the plan of the Carnegie Foundation to give ex-presidents of the nation an annual pension of $25,000. That the acceptance of such a gratuity was beneath the dignity of one who had held the highest office in the land, was the general objection to the plan. A few public men lauded the pension scheme as giving an opportunity for the nation to profit by the experience and knowledge of those who had served the people.

“If it has come to the point where ex-presidents cannot take care of themselves, we ought to make provision for their admission to a charitable institution,” said Congressman Henry of Texas.

“It isn’t worth doing,” was the comment of Speaker Champ Clark.

“The scheme doesn’t strike me very favorably,” said Senator McCumber.

“I don’t see any objection to it or any great value in it. I think any man elected for a public office ought to work himself back into citizenship when his term expires,” declared Senator Sutherland of Idaho.

(2)

That the question of adopting the commission form of government for Hamilton should be submitted to the voters at the election next spring, was the opinion expressed by many Hamilton business men and professional men today. The recent adoption of this form of municipal government by several other cities of the state has led to the discussion of the advisability[Pg 142] of adopting the commission system here.

The centralization of authority and the fixing of responsibility in the management of city affairs are urged by its advocates as important elements in the proposed method of administration. A number of business men expressed the belief that better business methods in the city’s finances would result from the new method.

When interviewed today, those who were in favor of the plan included the following:

WILSON R. HARRISON, President of Commercial National Bank—“The question of commission form of government should certainly be submitted to the citizens at the next election, and I believe that the plan will be adopted.”

ARTHUR C. PERKINS, Secretary of the Harrison Building House Association—“Government by commission appeals to me as the best method of managing municipal affairs in a city of the size of Hamilton, and I hope that the question will be brought before the electorate next spring.”

HENRY R. DE RAIN, of Hawley, Jenks, and De Rain, lawyers—“The adoption of the commission form by seventeen cities of the state indicates a widespread appreciation of the advantages of this centralized control of municipal government. Voters here should have an opportunity to put Hamilton in the list of progressive cities of this state.”

(3)

Leaders in finance and business appear to be of the opinion that questions relating to the tariff will be handled conservatively by the Democratic administration. In this belief it is held that the business of the country, which has gained such remarkable[Pg 143] headway, will continue uninterrupted.

James J. Hill, commenting upon the result of the election, declared that the success of the Democratic party would not have an adverse effect on business. He said:

“I feel better over the general outlook than I did before election. An attempt was made to bring about a political revolution, but the American people, while desiring a change, showed their good sense by repudiating the revolutionary doctrines offered them and by sticking to sound principles and established methods of bringing about their wishes.

“Governor Wilson, a deep student of the history of nations, has the training and qualifications which should make him an able president.”

W. E. Corey, formerly president of the United States Steel Corporation, now identified with many industrial and railroad companies, favors a gradual reduction in the tariff, but not a reduction sufficiently drastic to disturb the country’s commercial and financial equilibrium.

“I am convinced,” said Mr. Corey, “that Mr. Wilson will make an able and conservative business president and that the business of the country as a whole will reap great benefits during his administration. That he will handle the tariff and other problems ably and conservatively there seems to be no question.

“All indications point to a continuation of the prosperity the country is now enjoying, and business should be given a further impetus by the outcome of the election.”

Alvin Krech, president of the Equitable Trust Company, predicted a slowing up of business as a result of the Democratic victory and coming tariff revision.

“This will occur,” he said, “until the country can find out definitely what[Pg 144] the new administration intends to do with the tariff, and how drastic and how precipitately the question is attacked. If the new congress proceeds cautiously and gradually there is no doubt that business will finally adjust itself to any changes without serious disturbance.”

B. F. Yoakum, chairman of the board of the ’Frisco Lines, said:

“I am very much pleased with the election of Wilson. From my personal acquaintance with him I am confident he will carry out all the policies he has promised during the campaign. I am sure he is earnestly in favor of everything he advocated, and is entirely competent.

“The Democratic victory does not by any means settle all the big economic questions of the day. In meeting these the Democratic party is on probation. The entire country looks to it for results during the next four years.”

Francis L. Hine, president of the First National Bank, declared that the election of Mr. Wilson presented no immediate possibility of danger for the country, and as regards the future “one can only wait and see.”

News Stories of Trials. In trials in court the reporter has to deal with material not unlike that in speeches, reports, or interviews. The arguments by the attorneys are in the nature of addresses. The questioning of the witnesses on direct and cross examination is not unlike the question and answer method of interviewing. The decisions handed down by the judges are the reports which those officials make. In general, then, many of the same points that have been considered in regard to addresses, reports, and interviews may be applied to court reports.

Writing the Lead. What the lead of the trial story should contain is determined by the status of the case in court. If a verdict or decision is rendered, that news is naturally the feature. If the trial is not completed, either the most significant testimony or the net result of the day’s proceedings may be made the feature. As the trial goes on from day to day, it is necessary to explain briefly in each story, usually in the lead, what the case deals with, who the parties are, and before whom and where the trial is being conducted, so that the situation will be clear to readers who have not seen the preceding stories of the trial. The reporter must not take for granted that, because all this information was given once when the accused person was arrested, or when the trial was begun, he need not give his readers information every day as to the essential elements of persons, time, place, cause, result, etc. Each of these essentials, as in other stories, may be the feature of the lead. When, for example, a jury has been deliberating for a long time in an interesting case, the exact time at which they reached their verdict may be placed in the first group of words, before the verdict itself.

Hearings before committees of legislative bodies that are getting information and arguments from men for and against proposed legislation, and the taking of testimony by investigating committees, partake so nearly of the nature of trials that the forms and methods of the one apply to the other with little or no modification.

Various forms of leads for reports of trials, hearings, and investigations, given below, show some of the possibilities.

(1)

To continue its study of the best methods of issuing railroad stocks and bonds, President Taft’s Railway Securities Committee met today in the banking house of J. W. Smith & Co., 3 William St.

(2)

That the government was a year too late in bringing its suit against the Standard Oil Company for accepting secret rebates, and the suit in which Judge K. M. Landis imposed the $29,000,000 fine, was brought out yesterday in the government suit for the dissolution of the Standard Oil Company of New Jersey under the Sherman Anti-trust Law, before Special Examiner Franklin Ferris in the Custom House.

(3)

Fraudulent scales were used to weigh raw sugar on the Brooklyn piers of the Sugar Trust, according to the testimony of Special Agent Richard Parr of the United States Treasury Department, this morning in the preliminary hearing of the government’s suits against the American Sugar Refining Company before Commissioner Shields in the Federal Building.

(4)

How suddenly and how radically a woman can exercise her inalienable right to change her mind was shown yesterday before Judge Thomas in the probate court, when in the hearing on the contested will of Mrs. Jane L. Whiting it was shown that she had made one will at 3 o’clock on July 4 last, and another at 7 o’clock in the evening of the same day.

(5)

“Go home and serve time with your families,” was the sentence imposed on two men charged with being drunk and disorderly, by Judge Wilkinson in the police court this morning.

(6)

“Would you send this venerable and honorable man to his grave with the taint of criminal conviction upon his great name?”

Thus Delancey Nicoll inquired of the jury today in Judge Hard’s court, where William E. Williams, aged 83, for forty years a leader of the American bar, is being tried with three other directors of the Cotton Trust on the charge of criminally conspiring to violate the Sherman Anti-trust Law.

(7)

“Never in the twenty years that I have been at the head of the women’s department of Blank University have I discriminated against any student because of race or religion.”

This statement made on the witness stand today was the answer of Dean Sarah Brown to the charge preferred by Miss Della Smith in her $10,000 slander suit against Dr. Brown, that she had been driven out of the university because of her religious views.

Forms for Testimony. The bodies of stories of trials and investigations, like those of speeches and reports, consist of direct quotations of the most significant testimony or arguments, with indirect quotations or summaries of other parts not worth quoting verbatim. The same general principles apply, except when it is necessary to give question and answer in direct or cross examination of witnesses in order to bring out significant points. Several forms are used for verbatim reports of such testimony. Sometimes, particularly in New York papers, the attorney’s questions are preceded by the letter “Q” and the witness’s answers by the letter “A,” each question with its answer constituting a separate paragraph. More commonly, the questions and answers are given in dialogue form as in short stories and novels, with the question followed by the explanatory material in one paragraph, and the answer with necessary explanatory material in another paragraph.

Occasionally, if on direct examination a witness’s testimony, although interrupted by questions, is fairly continuous, the questions may be omitted, and the story told by the witness can thus be given uninterruptedly. When the facts of the testimony rather than the form of it are sufficient, these facts may be given without using either direct or indirect quotations.

How the several forms of reporting testimony appear in newspapers is shown by the following examples which are taken from the body of the story, the leads being omitted here:

(1)

Thomas W. Farlin of Freeport, the next witness called before the committee, said that he was engaged in the real estate and fire insurance business, and that he represented Davis, Hibbard & Company, fire insurance brokers of this city.

“Was there a general increase in insurance rates on dwellings and stores in Freeport during the last three years?” asked William C. Brown, counsel for the committee.

“Yes, all the rates have gone up,” said Mr. Farlin.

“Did you learn why the rates were raised?”

“Oh, they joined the Fire Insurance Exchange.”

“Who did?”

“Davis, Hibbard & Company.”

“That’s why the rates were raised?”

“I suppose so.”

“You joined the Exchange too?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“They told me I’d have no trouble with the new rates.”[Pg 149]

“Were you forced into joining the Exchange?”

“I found that it was necessary in order to write policies.”

Mr. Farlin said that he preferred belonging to the exchange to doing business as an independent broker because it meant more money and less trouble.

“So you’re in favor of the higher rates?”

“Oh, no.”

“But you get more premium, don’t you?”

“Yes.”

(2)

Mr. Green then took the stand. In response to questions of Henry T. Williams, his counsel, he said that he was 57 years old, had lived in the city 50 years, and was a man of family. He named several social and charitable as well as financial institutions with which he was associated. In 1870, he said, he had entered the employ of the Harrington & Wilson Co. as a shipping clerk in the sugar department, subsequently he had been promoted to the position of cashier, and for the last 23 years had received in that position a salary of $5,000 a year.

Mr. Williams then sought to show that his client had no connection with the weighing of raw sugar on the docks, where the fraudulent practices are alleged to have taken place.

Q.—How much money was paid through your office in the course of a year? A.—Four million dollars.

Q.—So yours was a busy office? A.—Decidedly so.

Q.—How long were the raw sugar clerks in your office? A.—About twenty years.

Q.—Did you regulate their duties in any way? A.—No.

Q.—Were you connected with the docks in any way? A.—No, that was a separate department.[Pg 150]

Q.—How many times a year would you be on the raw sugar docks? A.—Twice a year.

Q.—How often were you in the dock department offices? A.—Only five or six times in twenty-five years.

Q.—Were you ever in the scale houses? A.—Never.

At this point the court adjourned until this afternoon when the direct examination of Mr. Green will be continued.

(3)

Mr. Hiller, Mr. Hart’s attorney, then asked Mrs. Hart why it was necessary to have so many gowns.

“At Palm Beach I had to change my gowns three times a day, and I had to have outfits of automobile clothes besides,” said Mrs. Hart.

“Do you wear the same dinner gown twice?” said the attorney.

“Women who can afford it never wear the same gown again at the same place,” she replied smilingly.

“What do you pay for your dinner gowns?”

“Three hundred dollars; sometimes five or six hundred.”

“Apiece?”

“Certainly,” snapped back the witness.

Court Decisions. The body of reports of important court decisions consists of summaries of the decisions with explanation of their significance, or of quotations from the decision when the language of the decree is important. The following stories are examples:

(1)

The first decision of the court of commerce to be received by the supreme court of the United States was reversed in an opinion handed down today.

The highest court gave a signal victory to the interstate commerce commission[Pg 151] by deciding that it has power to compel water lines to report to it regarding intrastate as well as interstate business.

The court of commerce has been subjected to sharp attack in congress because of a series of decisions over-turning work of the interstate commerce commission, and a bill for the abolishment of the tribunal is now pending in the house on a favorable report from a committee.

While the case before the court concerned immediately only water lines, the government attorneys declared that the defeat of the commission in this case would mean that railroads also need not report regarding intrastate business and the commission’s whole system of gathering reports relative to commerce would be worthless.

The order in question required reports regarding operating expenses and operating revenues of water lines, and affected principally lines on the great lakes. The commerce court held that the commission had power to require reports only regarding traffic carried under joint arrangement with railroad carriers, but not as to purely intrastate and port-to-port business.

Justice Day said that a mistake had been made by the commerce court in confusing knowledge of intrastate commerce with regulation of it. He said it was within the power of the commission to require a “showdown of the whole business”, intrastate as well as interstate. Justices Lurton and Lamar dissented.

(2)

Power of the Interstate Commerce commission to force “inside information” from steamship lines as to their earnings was affirmed today by the Supreme Court. The proposed scope of the commission’s inquiry into the steamship business of the great lakes[Pg 152] to secure information for adjusting rates, was approved, and the commerce court decision in the matter overruled.

This is the first of the cases involving a dispute of jurisdiction between the commerce court and the commission.

Applications for writs, rehearings, and new trials are often worth reporting at some length, as is shown in the following story:

Declaring that the issues involved in the case are of the “greatest public importance,” the department of justice today joined in the application of the losers in the so-called patent monopoly case, asking a rehearing before a full bench of the Supreme Court. The case was recently decided four to three in favor of the contention that the patentee’s control of his product is absolute.

The government’s application signed by Attorney-General Wickersham and Solicitor-General Lehmann vigorously declares that the court’s decision sustaining the right of a patentee to attach to the sale of an invention, restrictions stipulating that the purchaser must use only such supplies which are not patented as are bought from the patentee of the invention, seriously concerns the United States in a number of civil and criminal cases now pending under the Sherman law.

The decision, the government submits, “extends the power of property held under letters patent beyond the warrant of the constitution and the grant of the patent laws, and publishes it above authority of Congress to regulate commerce among the several states, and above the universal limitation expressed in the maxim ‘So use your own as not to injure another’s.’”

How to Make Court Proceedings Interesting. The selection and arrangement of interesting details in legal proceedings is shown in the following court story of a bankruptcy case, in which the reader’s attention is attracted by the feature played up at the beginning:

How to start a furniture installment house on less than $1000, vote yourself a salary of $10,000 a year, furnish a mansion and live like a prince—all on the income from the original invest- ment—was revealed to District Judge Van Buren yesterday in the questioning of John C. Winifred. The court was astounded and angered. When the hearing ended Winifred was on his way to the county jail to begin an indeterminate sentence for contempt as a result of “mushroom” financing.

The story of Winifred’s remarkable success at furniture finance was told during the court’s investigation of the bankrupt Bijou Furniture Company, 610 Devine Street, of which Winifred was owner. Winifred had a branch store at Plaintown. Two days before his creditors filed an involuntary petition of bankruptcy Winifred sold the branch “Furniture Club” business to Frances Hankow for $1,100.

John Whittle, counsel for the receiver, thought the $1,100 belonged to the creditors. Judge Van Buren agreed with him. Winifred was ordered to produce the money. When he appeared in court without it, the judge sent him to jail until he changes his mind.

Winifred operated a “furniture club,” members paying from 25 cents to $1 each week. Its 2,500 members had paid in more than $40,000 when the crash came.

The “furniture wizard” said he began business about two years ago with a capital of less than $1000. He voted himself an annual salary of $10,000, the money being taken from the accumulated[Pg 154] payments of club members. Attorney Whittle further found that the residence at 4621 Oakland Place had been purchased and then furnished without regard to expense. This property rests in the name of Mrs. Winifred. It was admitted that this luxury was paid for by the poor who can afford to buy furniture only by making a small payment each week.

Quoting from Publications. Government publications, pamphlets, books, and magazines often contain material for good news stories, particularly when copies can be secured so that the story may be printed simultaneously with the publication of the book or magazine. The use that may be made of an article in a scientific publication is shown in the following story, which in form is like the stories of speeches and other utterances discussed above:

Serious dangers in children’s parties, dancing schools, and even kindergartens are pointed out by Dr. Thomas S. Southworth of New York, writing in the Journal of the American Medical association. He finds them agents in spreading infectious colds leading to more serious ailments.

Against “light colds” themselves he warns parents, and urges the use of rational preventive measures. To parental carelessness, selfishness, and lack of common sense he attributes much of the illness among little children.

“The amount of injury done to young children each year by such colds can scarcely be estimated,” says Dr. Southworth. “During their prevalence the possibilities of infection are excellent if the child rides in public conveyances, or is taken to hotels or crowded shops.

“Children’s parties or dancing schools for the very young come under[Pg 155] the same ban. It is an open question whether the greatly increased opportunity for major and minor infections in kindergartens does not more than offset the real advantages they offer.

“Excluding exceptional cases, I am of the opinion that safeguarding the health of the young child is the more important consideration, and that any home worthy of the name should be able to furnish all the simple instruction and direction of the play instinct the child requires.”

SUGGESTIONS

Get advance copies of speeches, statements, and reports when it is possible.
Give direct, verbatim quotations whenever they are effective.
Don’t misrepresent a speaker by “playing up” a quotation that, taken from its context, is misleading.
Combine excerpts into a coherent, unified story.
Select the form of beginning best suited to the subject matter.
Set off as a paragraph a direct quotation of more than one sentence at the beginning of a story.
Avoid too many or too involved “that” clauses in the lead.
Put strong direct or indirect quotations at beginnings of paragraphs.
Don’t place unemphatic phrases at the beginning of a paragraph, such as, “The speaker then said that,” etc.
Avoid as far as possible combinations of direct and indirect quotations in the same paragraph.
Avoid “I believe,” “I think,” etc., at the beginning of sentences of direct quotation.
Make separate paragraphs of introductory statements like “He said in part,” and end them with a colon.
Give in the lead of each day’s story of a trial, the essential explanatory details concerning the case.
Vary explanatory phrases; don’t use repeatedly in the same story “he said,” “the report continues,” etc.
Don’t fail to enclose in quotation marks every direct quotation.
Use single quotation marks for quotations within other quotations.
Use quotation marks only at the beginning of each paragraph of a continuous quotation of several paragraphs and at the end of the last paragraph.
Quote important testimony verbatim.
Keep yourself out of your interviews.

PRACTICE WORK

1. Write a news story of 500 words on the following address by Senator William E. Borah of Idaho on “Why We Need an Income Tax,” which you may say was delivered before a large audience at the Auditorium last night under the auspices of the Progressive Republican Club:

One of the many unfortunate things imposed from first to last upon this country by reason of the existence of slavery was the compromise in the constitution of the United States providing that direct taxes should be imposed in accordance with population.

To levy taxes according to population upon any kind of property is impracticable and cumbersome even when the tax is confined to the kind of property contemplated by the framers of the constitution. It is not too much to say that the clause with reference to imposing a direct tax would never have found its way into the constitution but through the fear which arose out of the belief that the North might impose an arbitrary and unjust tax upon slaves.

The discussion first arose over the protection of the slaves, and to guard against this the Southern delegates insisted upon an equal representation in Congress with the North. Gouverneur Morris and others declared they would never consent to counting a slave equal to his master. The discussion finally took a wider range owing to the existence of large tracts of land in the South of less value per acre than the land in the North; hence it was believed that these lands might be taxed unfairly.

At last, therefore, it was provided that direct taxes should be imposed according to population, and direct taxes, in my opinion,[Pg 157] referred alone to slaves and lands and the improvements on lands.

The Supreme Court in the Pollock case extended and broadened the terms of this somewhat unfortunate compromise so that it now not only covers lands but income from land, personal property, and income from personal property. This decision was made possible by invoking a mere technicality, that is, that a tax upon the rents of land is a tax upon the land.

I am not going to discuss at this time the decision further than to say I am one of those who believe that the income tax decision is as indefensible as a matter of law as the Dred Scott decision, and fraught with far more danger in its ultimate effect, if it is to become the settled law of the land, to the Republic.

The income tax is the fairest and most equitable of all the taxes. It is the one tax which approaches us in the hour of prosperity and departs in the hour of adversity. The farmer though he may have lost his entire crop must meet the taxes levied upon his property. The merchant though on the verge of bankruptcy must respond to the taxes imposed. The laborer who goes to the store to buy his food, though it be his last, must buy with whatever extra cost there may be imposed by reason of customs duties.

But the income tax is to be met only after you have realized your income. After you have met your expenses, provided for your family, paid for the education of your children for the year, then, provided you have an income left, you turn to meet the obligations you owe to the government. For instance, according to amendments recently pending relative to the income tax, a man with an income of ten thousand dollars would pay the modest sum of one hundred dollars. “Man as a human being owes services to his fellows, and one of the first of these is to support the government which makes civilization possible.”

It seems incomprehensible that anyone would seriously contend that property and wealth should not bear their fair share of the burdens of the general government. Adam Smith says, “The subjects of every state ought to contribute toward the support of the government as nearly as possible in proportion to their respective abilities, that is, in proportion to the revenue which they respectively enjoy under the protection of the state.”

Notwithstanding our large standing army, our large navy, our all but criminal extravagance as a government, men are found who still unblushingly argue that this burden must all be laid upon consumption and nothing upon wealth, that is, that the man of most ordinary means must pay practically as much to the general government as the man with his uncounted millions. It is strange indeed that men can bring themselves to believe in so unfair and unjust a position.

They soothe their consciences to some extent by saying that it is a just tax, a fair tax, and that the property should indeed bear[Pg 158] its proportion of the expenses of the general government but an income tax causes men to commit perjury! Of course the man who says this would resent the idea that he would commit perjury, but his evangelical spirit leads him to look with particular care to the salvation of his neighbor’s soul. There is not a state in the Union today but has laws just as exacting with reference to accounting with personal property, just as onerous as an income tax law would be, and just as liable to encourage perjury. Yet the tax gatherer does not stop gathering taxes.

They say it is inquisitorial. Do you know of any kind of taxes which are not inquisitorial? For instance, under the internal revenue system now in existence, the whiskey of the citizen is taken possession of by the government, placed in a warehouse, locked up, and a key given to a United States official. In the collection of our customs duties, packages and the baggage of the citizen are taken, opened and inspected, and, male or female though the citizens may be, they are sometimes taken into a room and searched. Nothing could be more inquisitorial than this.

All these arguments are put forth in the hope of leading us away from the great and fundamental principle of equity in taxation, and that is that every man should respond to the burdens of the government in accordance with his ability. It is nothing less than a crime to put all the burdens of this government on consumption.

I think those who advocate the income tax merely as a revenue producing proposition rob the proposition of its moral foundation. We should contend for an income tax not simply for the purpose of raising revenue but for the purpose of framing a revenue system which will distribute the burdens of government between consumption and accumulated wealth, which will enable us to call upon property and wealth not in an unfair and burdensome way but in a just and equitable way to meet their proportionate expenses of the government, for certainly it will be conceded by all that the great expense of government is in the protection of property and of wealth.

A tax placed upon consumption is based upon what men want and must have. A tax placed upon wealth falls upon those who have enough and to spare and therefore have more which it is necessary for the government to protect. “All the enjoyments which a man can receive from his property come from his connection with society. Cut off from all social relations, a man would find wealth useless to him. In fact, there could be no such thing as wealth without society. Wealth is what may be exchanged and requires for its existence a community of persons with reciprocal wants.”

The general government, as we have said, has its armies and its navies and its great burden of expense for the purpose, among other things, of protecting property, protecting gathered and accumulated[Pg 159] wealth, of enabling men to make fortunes and to preserve their fortunes, and there is no possible argument founded in law or in morals why these protected interests should not bear their proportionate burden of government.

No man in his right mind would make an assault upon wealth as such, or upon property as such, or upon the honest acquisition of property—we simply call upon those who have the good fortune to have accumulated wealth to respond to the expenses of the great government under which they live and thrive.

2. Write a news story of 250 words on the following excerpts from a report made by the Division of Education of the Russell Sage Foundation on “A Comparative Study of Public School Systems in the Forty-eight States,” playing up the feature that you think will be of general interest to the readers of a daily paper in the metropolis of your state:

The average annual salary paid to public school teachers in the United States as a whole is $485. In one state, North Carolina, the average is only $200 per year. In another, Mississippi, it is $210, and in South Carolina $212. The wages received by school teachers constitute a measure of two things: first, the quality of ability of the teacher; second, the value the community puts upon the teacher’s services. The fact that the teacher’s wages are lower than those paid for almost any other sort of service means that as a nation we are neither asking for nor getting a high grade of service, and as a nation we place a low valuation on the teacher’s work.

While it is difficult to get accurate data on wages, the best available figures indicate that the average annual wages received by workers in five great occupations are about as follows:—

Carpenters	$802
Coal miners	600
Factory workers	550
Common laborers	513
Teachers	485

Throughout the southern states thousands of rural teachers earn less than $150 per year. In one New England state hundreds of teachers earn less than $6.00 per week. In one county in a central Atlantic state the average for all teachers is $129 per year. In one southern state convicts from the penitentiaries are let to contractors at the rate of about $400 per year, while the state pays its teachers about $300 per year.

The average annual salary of teachers in the public schools in[Pg 160] each state in 1910 and the rank of the state, based on the average annual salary of school teachers, is as follows:—

1. California, $918; 2. Arizona, $817; 3. New York, $813; 4. Massachusetts, $757; 5. New Jersey, $731; 6. Washington, $692; 7. Montana, $645; 8. Colorado, $642; 9. Rhode Island, $647; 10. Utah, $592; 11. Illinois, $588; 12. Connecticut, $561; 13. Pennsylvania, $554; 14. Idaho, $549; 15. Ohio, $524; 16. Indiana, $523; 17. Oregon, $516; 18. Maryland, $515; 19. Minnesota, $486; 20. Michigan, $480; 21. Nevada, $470; 22. Wisconsin, $456; 23. Missouri, $443; 24. Wyoming, $439; 25. Kansas, $429; 26. Louisiana, $415; 27. Delaware, $414; 28. Nebraska, $411; 29. Oklahoma, $408; 30. Texas, $384; 31. New Mexico, $348; 32. North Dakota, $339; 33. Kentucky, $337; 34. South Dakota, $329; 35. New Hampshire, $328; 36. West Virginia, $323; 37. Alabama, $314; 38. Iowa, $302; 39. Tennessee, $293; 40. Arkansas, $284; 41. Florida, $276; 42. Virginia, $268; 43. Vermont, $266; 44. Georgia, $250; 45. Maine, $244; 46. South Carolina, $212; 47. Mississippi, $210; 48. North Carolina, $200.