“THE BRITISH GAZETTE”

New Zealand Times, Volume LIII, Issue 12483, 26 June 1926, Page 7

“THE BRITISH GAZETTE”

rirt UNEXAMPLED ACHIEVEMENT IN JOURNALISM WITH BACK TO M WALL IMPROVISED NEWSPAPER REACHES CIRCULATION OF 2,209,000 By this week's mail there has arrived in Wellington a copy of No 8 of “The British Gazette,” dated May 13th, which was published by H.M. Stationery Office during the great strike in England, when nearly, all public services were reduced to skeleton fovea- It contains the story of “The Birth and Life of ‘The British Gazette*.” _ _ It is the story of one of the most signal exploits.in the annals of British journalism, the foundation in a day and night of a daily newspaper, which within a week es tablished the stupendous circulation of well over two millions. It comprises four pages of seven columns each, and has the Royal Arms in each top corner of the title page. It was a feat unexampled the world over, a triumph or resource and determination over what appeared to be insuperable difficulties, a triumph redounding to. the credit of those who took part in it, and a tribute to the National purpose that it served.

The strike was declared at midnight on May 3rd, and the Nation was faced with a cessation of the whole of its social and industrial economy and the deprivation of its rows service. A suggestion went forth from the editor of the “Morning Post,” following an abortive effort to bring tho newspaper proprietors together for tho purpoGO of issuing a coir.moii emergency news-sheet. He gave an undertaking to produce a 4-page bulletin daily to the number of 100,000 with the co-operation of the Government, and suggested the commandeering of

a big newspaper office for the purpose. Subsequently the editor, general manager and managing editor drafted a memorandum offering, if adequate protection were given, to print at first tOO,OOO copies of a news-sheet a night, and to raise the output by the end of the week to 400,000, placing its staff at the disposal of the Government. .THE GOVERNMENT ARRIVES Late that night important visitors to the editor Were announced; and into the editorial room marched the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Sir Samuel Hoare, Mr 3. O. C. Davidson, and a train of departmental officials. They had come to act on the suggestion of the editor’s letter; to commandeer on behalf of His Majesty’s Government the “Morning Post,” and to convert it off hand into a Government newssheet—“The British Gazette.” Sir Malcolm Fraser was pnt in charge as the direct representative of the Government. The step about to be taken was a momentous one for the “Morning Post,” and hardly less so,for .the Government, who never before had taken responsibility for the production of a daily newspaper. In more than 150 years the “Morning Post” had hut once intermitted its daily issue, and now not only were all its resources to be handed over to others, but its very name was to disappear. Only the extreme gravity of the, occasion could have justified the innovation on the or,e side, and the self-effacement on the other. The act of taking over having been confirmed by a Cabinet Minute, signed by Mr Winston Churchill, the conference in the editor’s room, with the technical hands of the paper. present to advise, was continued until three o’clock in the morning. What was the utmost that could be done with the plant and resources available? For the answer to that question everything depended .on the attitude of the men employed on the 1 mechanical side, especially the compositors. At four o’clock in the morning on the fateful Tuesday, the general manager called a meeting of the machineroom overseers, and put the cose to them. All but the foundry overseer agreed to carry on. A CRUCIAL TEST Now came the crucial test—what would the staff of the composing-room do? The printer—Mr A. Turner, who was a tower of strength, a man of infinite resouioe and untiring energy all through the unexampled ordeal—was confident they would stand by the paper. Summoned by telegram and drought in by motor-car at an hour earlier than usual, they were assembled ir the composing-room and addressed by the editor and the general manager. They responded heartily to the appeal to stand by the paper which many of them had served so long; but they felt it to be their duty to report to their union, the London Society of Compositors. Pending instructions, they started the setting of the first number of “The British Gazette,” and had got up five solumns of matter when, at five o’clock, their representative came back to say that they wero forbidden to touch the work. There was nothing irore to he said, and it seemed doubtful whether there was anything more to be done; for the , production of a newspaper without anyone to set fhe type is impossible. It was a situation charged not only with fatcfulness, but with poignant feeling. There old servants of the ’‘Morning Post” wero hound by long . association arid many; memories to the

paper, and were deeply attaobed to its fortunes. It was a hard and bitter choice that they had to make between the two allegiances; end not a few.of them broke down under the strain. When the last men had gone, the iron doors of the composing-room were shut with a clang, and thd work went on. For measures had already been taken to meet the emergency which had arisen. WELCOME HELP The Chancellor of the Exchequer had rung up Lord Beaverbrook to ask what help he crtuld give; and' Lord Beaverbrook responded by lending for the service of the “British Gazette” the one man without whom it is not too much to say the situation could not have been saved. This was Mr Sydney W. 11. Long, the night superintendent of the “Daily Express”—a man of great experience and rare skill on the technical side of the printing. After working for years as a linotype operator, he had become master-print-er and then night superintendent of Lord Beaverhrook’s paper. He was also a stout trade unionist and had played a leading part in getting for the Compositors’ Union their present charter. It was in his hands alone that tho setting of the “British Gazette” depended. But five columns of the 14 in the first number were set. The rest Mr • Long did with his own hands, except for the little brought in from the outside by the Stationery Office. Of the reader's, three remained staunch —Mr R. Harris, the headreader, Mr P. J. Green, and Mr F, Moody. With Mr Long cams Mr Evans, head machine-room overseer, and Air Trotter, chief mechanical engineer of the “Daily Express.” By the courtesy of the directors, Mr Alfred Hawkins, chief stereotyper cf the “Daily Mail,’* was provided for the foundry a little later. In the machine room, where tho great presses operate, there was left of the “Morning Post” staff only Mr Holmes, works' manager, and Mr Boyd, machine-room overseer of the “Morning Post,” but they wero reinforced by Mr chief engineer of the “Morning Post,” Mr Norris; chief electrician, and Mr Palmer, linotype mechanic. But three or four men, however expert, cannot run two rotary presses. Crews for each machine are required, to handle the paper reels, to oil and tend the machinery, to clothe the cylinders with the stereo-plates, and to take away printed papers as they pour from the flies. A MEMORABLE SCENE There was some volunteer labour available, all of it inexpert, but it was thought better on this critical occasion to depend on members of the “Morning Post” household; and so the editorial staff, most of which was out of commission in dealing with so small a paper, clothed itself in dungarees, and marched down to the machineroom, *0 be initiated into its job. Such a sight was never seen before. Leader-writers, art and music critics, reporters, sub-editors, financial experts —every able-bodied man, of whatever rank or station, was recruited for the occasion, and all responded to the call with “a frolic welcome.” ' The machines were late in starting. There was an accident in the foundry. A mould was broken; it took neArly two hours to clear away the splashed metal so that the autoplate would work again. It was nearly midnight when the last plate had been locked on the cylinder, and the signal to start was given. It was a night of “toil and ineffable weariness” for all engaged—a night-full of anxieties and some disappointments, as might be expected with what was after all hut a brilliant improvisation. But tho end was achieved. By six o’clock in the morning 230,000 copies of the first number of tli© “British Gazette” had been produced, and largely distributed. The first supplies were sent to the aeroplane stations to be conveyed to the provinces, and the remainder of the edition was dispatched by motorvan or oar. On. Wednesday morning the “Bri-. tish Gazette” was a newspaper in’ being. It was indeed the first step that cost. Every succeeding night the organisation improved, the resources, except on tho mechanical side, developed, and processes of production became more methodical and easilyworking.' MANY INVENTIONS On the first night it had been necessary to leave the two • inside pages of the four-page sheet a blank. On the .next night, Wednesday, all •four were filled with news, and the amount of the issue was more than doubled. Indeed the total print increased rapidly in geometrical progression, until, at the end of a week, no fewer* than two million copies of the “British Gazette” were/ being printed and distributed all over the country. To produce this result a complete reorganisation of the office had to. be undertaken. A new telephone system was installed as in the twinkling of an eye, and arrangements were made for feeding the multitudinous staff which rapidly grew up for transporting many workers to and from their homes, and for sleeping others on the premises. The protection of tho building also became a primary necessity. Its approaches were guarded by Metropolitan police and special constables, and admission to the building could, only be obtained on official pass. The building was like a beleaguered fortress. The work on the production of She

paper began at 10 o'clock in the -morning—only an hour or two after the printing of it had been suspended. Owing to the fact that there was only one man operating the linotype, -a very, early start was essential. Those of the editorial staff .who were not, employed on editing or sub-editing took turns as copy-holders in the read-ing-room, where the chief reader and two of his colleagues had stood by, or in the composing-room, pulling proofs, or driving oars, or even acting as messengers. I*o understand the strain Under which the “British Gazette” was produced in its early days, it is only necessary to realise that many of the key-men worked, sleeping in snatches, for 72 hours oa end; and that a number of these never left the building at all. Without such devotion to their task the “British Gazette” would never, have been possible. The “Gazette, from which the dbove interesting details have been collated, concludes thus: — Now that the .end of the strike has come, and the need for a Government news-sheet is over—now that the organisation so hurriedly improvised, is working at its highest efficiency—the elaborate machine, so painfully and laboriously constructed and adjusted, has to be scrapped. That is the irony of the situation. But the heroio task attempted has been achieved. The situation, desperate though it seemed, has been saved. The most formidable and insidious attempt that has yet been made to cripple the freedom of the Press, and to withhold essintial news from the public, has been'frustn ted. The “British Gazette” may have had a short life; but it has fulfilled the purpose of living. It becomes a memory; but it remains y monument.

NEW ZEALANDERS ABROAD (“British Australian and New Zealander,” May 35th.) . Mr and Mrs Cory Wright, of Auckland, return to New Zealand at the end of May by the Taimii. Miss M. Stedman, of Marton, is in England on a pleasure trip, and intends visiting Switzerland. Mrs Knox Gilmer, daughter of the late Hon. R. J. Seddon, is in London. Mr A. E. Cowley, of Palmerston North, arrived via South Africa. He will he here until November. Miss C. Low and Miss S- B. Tennent, of Dunedin, have left for the Continent for a month’s tour. Mr and Mr H. N. Hunt, of Auckland, have left for a trip to the Continent, visiting Paris first. i • . Mrs H. Donaldson, of the Bluff, is at present in London, and later goes to Newcastle and Scotland. Lady Strathspey will present her daughter, the Hon. Joan Grant of Grant, at the first court of the season. Miss J. S. Adams, of Gisborne, at present in London, is on a pleasure trip to England and the Continent. Mr and Mrs H. Caudwell, of Auckland, have been staying at Abingdon, Berkshire, with the Misses Caudwell. Mr and Mrs W. H. Rose, of Christchurch, broke their journey at Codomibo and at Port Said and visited JeruMr C. H. Withers, of Palmerston North, arrived via South Africa. Ho is travelling for health reasons and for business. Mrs F. M. Wallace, of Waverley, is in London for the season. In July she will leave for Scotland to visit her husband’s relations. Mrs A. B. Robertson, of Auckland, and her daughters, who will be here for. about a year, expect to do a good deal of motoring. Mr A. E. Mulgan, editor of the Auckland “Star,” is staying in Chelsea with his brother. He is aocompanied by Mrs and Miss Mulgan. Miss I. O. Cooper, of Dunedin, is shortly leaving London for a tour in Ireland or Scotland. In August she will go to the Continent. Sir -Francis Billon Bell, late Attor-ney-General far New Zealand, will attend tiie Council of the League of Nations at Geneva in September. Mr M. Myers, K. 0., of Wellington, a former partner of Messrs Bell, Gully and Myers, is in London to appear in several Privy Council cases. Miss Olive E. lorns, of Masterton, is staying with her brother, Mr W. A. lorns, in London. Later, she will visit Scotland ■ and the Continent. Dr R. L. Barclay has arranged to do post-graduate work in London, Edinburgh and Glasgow, prior to an extended tour with Mrs Barclay. The Misses lioudon, of Auckland, are staying with friends at Golders Green. They have arranged a niotor tour through England and Scotland. Mr and Mrs G. A. U. Tapper, of Christchurch, have taken a flat in Kensington. They are accompanied bjr Miss Tapper and Mr Cholmondeley E. H.' Bowden, of Napier, ■ is on ■» holiday visit. She hopes to make a tour of the Continent before returning to New Zealand at the end of the year. Dr and Mrs E. C. Hayes, of Wfu-' mate, spent three weeks inr France, Belgium and Holland, and passed through London on their way to Scotland and Ireland. Mr Nigel Wallnutt, of Auckland, G«jme to England xia India. Egypt,

and France. Until September, he will tour in Britain, and then leave for a Continental trip. Mr and Mrs Cowles, of Hamilton, are spending a-holiday in London. Mr Cowles has recently retired from the position of Inspector of Telegraphs in New Zealand. Mrs Horace Thompson and Miss Piri Thompson, of Christchurch, are visiting friends in Hertford. Miss Thompson intends to study and teach as a pianist while in England. Mr F. M. Nairn, of Auckland, and his daughter, intend making their headquarters at Dundee. They probably return to New Zealand about the end of September, via Canada. Mrs A. P. Speedy, of Hamilton, has been touring for some weeks _in France, Italy and Switzerland. During the coming months she intends to see a good deal of Great Britain. Mr and Mrs Denniston, of Chrisbchurch, the latter a daughter of Sir Francis Bell, were in France _ during the strike, staying near Dunkirk, bnt are coming to England for a holiday. Dr C. A.‘ Taylor, a recent alTival from Auckland, has been appointed whole-time casualty officer for six nionths from May Ist, at the East London Hospital for Children, Shadwell.

Miss Xi. R. Roberts, of Waihi, and Miss E. de Rensy, of Hamilton, ‘left the Cathay at Marseilles and made a tour through Italy, Switzerland, and France. After several weeks in London. they will tour England and Scotland. At the last congregation at Cambridge degrees were conferred upon three New Zealanders; Doctor of Philosophy on Mr A. J. Harrop, of Christchurch ; Master of Arts upon Mr K. R. J. Saxon and Mr W. L. M. Dearsley. Mr and Mrs Robert L. Williams and their daughter, of Hastings, Hawke’s Bay, arrived by the Majestic from New York, where they spent a fortnight on their way from Vancouver. They hope to return to New Zealand at the end of September, via Suez. Lieut.-Colonel T. A. Hunter, Director of Dental Hygiene, Wellington, is in England on a health trip. He came via America, where he visited a number of the larger centres. A*- +<T ”' of these places he spoke before dental societies and explained the dental work being done in schools by the New Zealand Government. Miss G. Helen Gard’ner, of Wellington, and Miss Bessie Thomson, of Dunedin, return to New Zealand by the Ormonde on May 29th. Since their arrival here about a year ago, they have both attended the Filippi School of Drama, and Miss Gard’ner has studied singing under Mr Maurice D’Oisly, husband of Miss Rosina Buckman. They ljave also toured widely on tho Continent.