Melville Elijah Stone (August 22, 1848 – February 15, 1929) was an American newspaper publisher, the founder of the Chicago Daily News, and was the general manager of the reorganized Associated Press.

Stone became general manager of the reorganized Associated Press in 1893, and under his direction it became one of the great news agencies.

According to Harvey, Stone convinced local merchants that employee theft could be reduced if the price of item was sold for 99¢ instead of $1.00 etc., forcing employee to make change for sales and less likely to steal money since it required further calculation.

Merchants began experimenting with a penny price drop in their goods, meeting with success among their patrons.

[3] This story is also related in Scot Morris' The Book of Strange Facts and Useless Information, though there is some doubt as to its veracity.