Jasper County Democrat, Volume 15, Number 7, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 27 April 1912 — ALLOWED TO SELL NEWS OF TITANIC [ARTICLE]

ALLOWED TO SELL NEWS OF TITANIC

Marconi Admits Authorizing Operators to Make Sale. DENIES HE SENT MESSAGES Wireless Men's Deal Which Led tc Holding Back Information of Disaster Allowed by Chief of Company. Washington, April ~ 26.—Wireless messages, intended for the operatoi on the Carpatbia, and intercepted by the United States battleship Florida, read before the senate investigating subcommittee, proved beyond doubt that the officers of the Marconi Wire less Telegraph company gave their consent to barter the news from the rescue ship and hold back for theh own price the details of the sinking of the Titanic. Messages signed by J. M. Sammis chief engineer of the Marconi company, by ‘ , S” and by Marconi himself and addressed to Herbert Cottam, operator on the Carpathia, were read by Chairman William Alden Smith. They instructed Cottam to “hold your story,' 1 "keep your mouth shut” and "meet Mr. Sammis a.nd 'Mr. Marconi at Strand hstel, 502 West Fourteenth street." immediately upon clearing at New York. "Arranged for your exclusive story in four figures, Mr. Marconi agreeing to say nothing until yo’* see mo," was another message.

Marconi a Witness. Guglielmo Marconi, chairman of the Marconi company, was grilled by Chairman Smith on the matter. He was on the stand when the wireless messages were read. Concluding the reading of the messages Chairman Smith asked Mr. Marconi: "What do you want to say about these messages?!’ "I can only say I know nothing about them," was the declaration of the inventor. Q —You gave permission to Cottam to sell his story? A —Yes, I thought he should be allowed to sell It. It was done in a previous case —when the ship Republic was wrecked. Blnns, the operator in that disaster, was permitted to sell his story and he was paid for it. Q —Do you mean to say that you thought that while the world anxious-ly-.awaited Information about this most epochal disaster, the operators should be allowed to withhold the facts and then to give them exclusively to some newspaper for a stated sum? A —l had no Idea that any general information should be withheld, but I had no objection to their selling their stories.

Allowed Cottam to Sell Story. Q —Do you know' how’ they sold their stories? A—l do not. I wish to repeat that I knew nothing about the messages. I gave no instructions in regard to the withholding of information, and I gave no advice or instruction in regard to any exclusive story to anybody. The only thing I did authorize was that if Cottam was offered payment for a story of the disaster he was permitted, so far as the English company w'as concerned, to take the money. Mr. Marconi denied absolutely that he had authorized the sale of any exclusive stories by the two operators whom he stoutly defended. “I did not expect the operators to give it exclusively nor put it up to the highest bidder or sell to any speJ cial news agency or paper.” He added that he did not know what Cottam received for his story, but had heard that Operator Bride got SSOO from a New York paper. Operator Cottam Testifies. Operator Cottam of the Carpathla followed Mr. Marconi on the stand. He said it was 11:20 o’clock, New York time, when he got the first message fj-om the Titanic. He had the receiver to his car awaiting confirmation of time on a message previously sent to the Allan lfner Parisian. As soon as It was received he intended to retire.

"The first message,” said the witness, "was, ‘Come at once. We have struck a berg. C. Q. D.’ I confirmed this by asking them If T should go to the bridge and ask the captain to turn around immediatelv and he replied : ‘Yes.’ ” Witness said the Titanic gave her position and he rpturned to the Canpathia’s captain. Admits “Strand Hotel” Messages. He was asked concerning the messages sent by the scout cruiser Chester on behalf of the president. He said that nothing indicated that the president had ask,ed for a list of the survivors and that the radiograms wm-e Simply signed "Commander” He said he received no messages from the Salem. Senator Smith then read the messages about newspaper articles. "Do you know anything about those messages ” he asked. “Yes, sir,” replied Cottam. "Bride took them and showed them to me or something like" them.” Cottam said that for two hours before the Carpathla docked Thursday night Bride was at the wireless instrument. He knew Bride received messages about “holding his mouth and arranging to sell his story,” and directing him, Cottam, to go to the Strand hotel to "meet Mr. Marconi andjMr. Sammls.” Bride told him he had received such messages from Seagate.