e care. She is probably venting an old-time grudge against her
neighbors, whose son last month broke a window-pane in her house.
Countless libel suits might have been avoided had the reporters been
able to detect falsehood more readily.

[5] The value of characteristic phrases and gestures
in the interview is discussed on page 130.

=80. Questioning Everyone.=--Because of these sharp discrepancies in
men's natures and the fact that everyone sees an event from his own
individual angle, it is necessary for a reporter to question everybody
in any way connected with a story. He should see not only Mr. and Mrs.
Davidson, if possible, but other witnesses of the shooting,
acquaintances in the neighborhood, the servants in the house, and anyone
else, no matter how humble, likely in any way to be connected with or to
have knowledge of the occurrence. Oftentimes a janitor, a maid, or a
chauffeur will divulge facts that the mistress or the detective bureau
would not disclose for large sums of money. Frequently a child in the
yard or on the back steps will give invaluable information. This is
particularly true when the older persons are attempting to conceal facts
or are too much excited from a death or an accident to talk. Children
usually are less unstrung by distressing events and can give a more
connected account. Moreover, they are almost always willing to talk, and
they generally try to tell the truth.

=81. A Person's Previous Record.=--It is also well to inquire
particularly about the past history or the previous record of the person
involved. If the woman is a divorcee or the man an ex-convict, or if one
of the children previously has been arraigned in police court for
delinquency, or if any one of the participants has ever been drawn into
public notice, such items will be worth much in identifying the
characters in the story. If the man whose house is burning lost another
house, well insured, a year ago; if the widow has married secretly her
chauffeur two months after her husband's sudden death from ptomaine
poisoning; if the man who spoke last night was the preacher who declared
all protestant churches will some day return to the confessional;--if
such facts can be obtained, they will add greatly to the interest and
the value of the story, and the reporter should make every effort to
obtain them. Their interest lies, of course, either in the fact that
they aid the public in identifying the persons, or that