Arkansas true Democrat., 1859-05-25
The Public Printing-A Invitation to
 Face the M

thousand dollars year for public printing, and his ally, in the House of Representa- tives, called for certain information. The resolution, though apparently calling for information for four years, really embraced all done in six, and included the printing of the Digest which occurs once in ten or twelve years. The Balance, Fort Smith Herald and other opposition and quasi-op- position presses have repeated and swelled the falsehood and thai so consistently that 1t Is possible they have induced some per sons to believe it. We intend to try to see if they believe it themselvA They charge that we are paid s20, ,000N'year.- Now, really, this is not crime, iflor to that amount was done at fair prices, but we will make two or three propositions that will, or should, concluSiyely settle the mat ter and demonstrate the falsity of their statements.
 First: They may commence with any date they please, so as to embrace five years, and pay to us the sum of one hundred thou sand dollars. They shall then ascertain from the offices of the auditor and treasurer the whole amounts paid to ns or to the publishers of the True Democrat. This amount we will pay to them and in addi- tion to this, pay them the sum of forty thousand dollars! The simple conditions annexed to this are that the amounts paid for stitching, folding and binding which, though drawn in our name, were for the be- neft of and enured to the binder, must be deducted, and the sums paid to us in swamp land scrip must be counted at the market val ue of the scrip at the time when received. Throw out the item for printing the Digest and we will pay the acceptor of this pro- position fifty thousand instead of forty thou sand dollars. It may be urged, that we make this offer supposing that no one would take the pains to collect S100,000, if they had the means to pay over to us as first proposed. To show that this need be no objection we will fix it mp so that no con siderable sum of money need be used in the transaction. Let the acceptor ascertain from the public records the full amount paid to us in five years, add to this, the forty or fifty thousand dollars we present him with, and then, if it falls short of a hundred thousand dollars, he shall execute a note with good security, for the difference, and on the other hand, if these combined amounts exceed $100,00O, we will pay an amount equal to the excess, in cash.
 To show that we are in earnest. this proposition shall remain open for three months, so as to allow ample time for in vestigation. If accepted by know noth- ing or one of the squad of bolters we will also make him present of the finest copy of the Bible to be found in town, provided, he will commit to memory two or three passages therein, one of which is the ninth commandment, and repeat them before us with the book closed.
 Second. Take the southwestern states, or to simplify things, any five or six of them, and ascertain the rates and amounts paid for public printing therein. If it shall be found that we are paid higher than they pay, we will pay to the acceptor of this proposition, the difference or per centage on all our work heretofore done. If, how ever, we charge lower, the acceptor shall pay the difference to us.
 To afford time to gather the necessary open year.
 Third. Our accounts for public printing all being on file and copies of the work done to be procured, the same shall beexamined, and if any account or item is found to be overeharged, we will give the acceptor of this proposition double the overehaYge, but if we show that the work was done for which no charge or not full charge was made, the acceptor hereof must make it good to us.
 We have made these in good faith and if the conductors of those journals which have given currency to the stuff about pub lie printing, told their readers the truth, they now have chance to enrich them selves at our expense. If they lied, they will not accept these propositions, either of which may be taken separately.
 If any good democrat should be so badly fooled by the opposition as to believe their stories and be induced to take up our first proposition, to save him as much as possi- ble, we will also give him all the amounts received by us from the United States for printing during that time
 We dislike to call men liars, even when they lie. We choose to prove them so and let the naming come from others. And most of all, we prefer, to make them prove themselves so. Walk upto the lick log, gentlemen. Let us have no fiaching.