Thomson, receiving teller for the
local Commercial Bank, skids over a slippery, tar-covered pavement into
a telegraph pole on one of the main streets of the town, killing him and
severely injuring two women in the car. What should the correspondent do
in such a case? The accident is good for a half-column in _The Herald_,
the local morning daily, but because Thomson was only moderately
prominent, one is doubtful if it is worth much in _The World_, the great
daily a hundred miles away. After considering all the details,
however,--Thomson's position locally and the fact that the city may be
held liable for the excess of tar at a dangerous turn in the
streets,--the reporter may conclude that the story is worth four hundred
words. He is still doubtful, however, whether the city paper will
consider it worth publishing. His message, therefore,--technically known
as a "query"--should be:

Otto Thomson, receiving teller Commercial Bank,
killed at six P.M. by automobile skidding into
telegraph pole. Two women in car injured. Four
hundred. 8:35 P.M. A. D. Anderson

This means that the correspondent is prepared to wire a
400-word story about the accidental death of Otto Thomson.
It tells, too, that the query was filed at 8:35, so that blame
may be placed if delivery is delayed. There is no need to
ask if the paper wants further details or how much it wants.
The message itself is an inquiry. One other important point
about it is that it bulletins the news. It is not a "blind"
query stating that "a prominent citizen has been killed" or
that "a regrettable tragedy has occurred." It gives the facts
concisely, so that the editor, if he wishes, may publish them
immediately and may decide whether additional details are
worth while.

=293. Waiting for the Reply.=--While the correspondent is waiting for
the reply, he should begin his story and, if possible, have it ready by
the time the dispatch comes. The most important details should be placed
first, of course, so that if the state editor asks for fewer than four
hundred words, the correspondent will have to kill only the last
paragraph or so and send the first part of the story as originally
written. There is no need of skeletonizing the story to lessen
telegraphic charges: that is, of omitting _the's_, _a's_, _an's_,
_is's_, etc. The small amount saved in this way is more than offset by
the additional time and cost of editing in the office.

=294.