Texas Almanac, 1945-1946 Page: 34

TEXAS ALMANAC -1945-1946.

paper to use illustrations, the first to
publish regular and full market reports
by wire, the first to make home deliv-
eries outside its own city, the first
newspaper in Dallas to use typesetting
machines, as it was also the first to
print in colors. Typical of its enterprise
in early days were the specially leased
trains operated by The News. Among
these was the notable mile-a-minute
Comet, which began operation in 1887
over the Houston & Texas Central Rail-
road to give before-breakfast delivery of
The Dallas News to patrons in McKin-
ney, Sherman, Denison and other North
and East Texas communities and into
the then Indian Territory.
Into a New Century.
It is sometimes said that Texas entered
a new era with the turn of the century.
The discovery of the Spindletop oil field
and several other events in the first two
years of the Twentieth Century lend sub-
stance to this statement. This is true
also of The News both as its development
has been a reflection of the progress of
the state and as its own individual cor-
porate history has evolved. On the death
of Colonel Belo in 1901 his son, Alfred
H. Belo Jr., succeeded to the presidency.
At the same time Col. R. G. Lowe, vice-
president, and Thomas W. Dealey, secre-
tary, retained their residence in Galves-
ton, which was still the corporate head-
quarters of the company. But within
the span of six weeks in 1906 these three
ranking officers were taken by death.
G. B. Dealey succeeded as vice-president
and general manager with Mrs. Nettie
Ennis Belo, widow of Colonel Belo, as
nominal president. C. Lombardi, busi-
ness and civic leader and brother-in-law
of Mrs. Belo, joined the executive staff
at this time, and succeeded Mrs. Belo as
president when her death occurred in
1913. After the death of Mr. Lombardi in
1919, Mr. Dealey became president and
served until 1939 when he was elected
the first chairman of the board in the
history of the company and was suc-
ceeded in the presidency by his son, E. M.
(Ted) Dealey. The succession of major-

ity ownership of The News has paralleled
the succession of active executive direc-
tion-from Willard Richardson to Alfred
H. Belo to G. B. Dealey. The News has
always been a strictly Texas-owned
newspaper.
Company Organization.
Present officials of The News are G. B.
Dealey, chairman of the board; E. M.
(Ted) Dealey, president; James M. Mo-
roney, vice-president and secretary;
M. M. Donosky, treasurer. Members of
the board of directors are G. B. Dealey,
chairman; E. M. (Ted) Dealey, James
M. Moroney, M. M. Donosky, R. M.
Buchanan, Jack Estes, H. C. Withers,
L. T. Deputy and George Waverley
Briggs. Mr. Buchanan is business man-
ager; Mr. Estes, circulation manager,
and Mr. Deputy, mechanical superintend-
ent. All of the members of the board
live in Dallas and, with the exception of
Mr. Briggs, all are active daily in the
management of the company's affairs.
The %ditor in chief of The News is Lt.
Col. William B. Ruggles, currently on
leave from the staff for active duty with
the United States Sixth Army in the
Pacific theater of war. Harry C. Withers
is managing editor. The editor of the
Texas Almanac is Stuart McGregor, who
also serves currently as editor of The
News in the absence of Colonel Ruggles.
New Pledge, Old Faith.
The News enters the new century of
Texas Statehood with a new pledge to
maintain and reinforce an old policy,
which was summed up in a recent edito-
rial on the occasion of The News' anni-
versary, as follows: "To print the day's
chronicle truthfully, fairly and with re-
gard to the standards of decency; to
reason and to comment open-mindedly
and objectively; and to work in all ways
possible for the economic and social ad-
vancement of this great city and region,
and for those conditions that make a
greater, happier and freer people. To
these ends it would join hands with all
who would carry on with faith and
vision." THE EDITOR.