The evening Argus. [volume] (Rock Island, Ill.) 1861-1871, 1869-02-20
And an Incompetent or Drunken supsrin-
tOndent.


Company, they have conceived the idea OF
supplying the newspapers with reports
They have no reports Of their own, except
from their boys along the river, who teIe.
graph, daily, how thick the ice is; which
way the wind blows; whether it is wet or
dry whether it is cloudy or sunshine the
state Of the roads, the price Of putty, and
such triaing stuff as boy could get up with
out going out of doors-nOne Of 1t worth
red cent. Anything else they send over the
wires, including the markets, they probably
steal from the Chicago evening papers, and
furnish it at so late an hour that it isentire.
" worthless
Along towards the last Of January, the
very clever boy who has very lonesome,
lazy time in their office here, came to us
two or three times and said, "Our SuPern'
tendont says be can furnish you as good re.
ports as the other line and at q good deal
lower rates" We asked how it could be
possible, as we knew he could not gel the
reports Of the Press Associations, nor could
the company Oxford to employ news agents
at important points to collect and transmit
news The boy said he could not answer
that, but he had done his errand as directed
This occurred on Two or three different oc
cR8ion8. And then, on the 2Gth Of January
we got Il message, as large as life, as fol
lows
DvBrquR Jan 2Gtb, To the Rock Island An
GUs.-We can furnish you full report less than
the Western Union including markets, &c. An
IwCr
B. A. ~QrIRgs GES, Surf.
We answered a3 follows:
"Bong a member Il the y. W. Associated
| Press Wo DO nos like to withdraw without some
guarantee that We shall get ss full and reliable
reports, AMI for stipulated time
Some unimportant messages followed and
on the nth we tslegraphed the fellow,
Squires, as follows
"For what sum day will you furnish us day
reports equal to those we now get, and as early
In the day, including Chicago, New York and ST
Louis markets"
SquireS answered, giving us price muci
above what we we're then paying, instead o
Cess as he first proposed to do. Severa
unimportant messages followed, on dItYeren
days, but finally, on the 9th Of February, h,
evidently being anxious to get something t
help support an Office here, came down TO
price much lower than we we're paying, an
= we accepted, and agreed to commence o
the following Monday.
! Now mark the result Of a trial of nearl
n two weeks: On Monday he had no operate
d here who could take report, but a kind sn
3 benevolent gentleman in town took repoI
e for him, including very imperfect markC
Q report, and all so late in the day as to rer
e der it almost impossible for US to place it
70 type i'll time for our paper. AS it was v
at were an hour late, at least, in getting OF
I'LL paper on tho street. Tuesday it was wor
n yet and 80 late that most Of the report WI
rs, thrown in the waste paper basket, and o.
nd paper kept back till dark, before it was
'd' the street-aud the report lacked any ms
ed ket, and was taken by u friend who cousc
90 ed to hel p the boy out, as he said "Squil
10 has promised to send an operator here.
he Wednesday the boy sent over the river
at have it taken there, and it was in time
n US to use part Of it. Thursday worse al
10 worse. Friday nothing and Saturday dit
"a and then the whole concern collapse
n petered out and dried up.
ii We notified j. b. Champin, presden
IS aud j. l., Reid, secretary, Of the inethcienc
ID Of their superintendent; that they had Il
n operator here who could tnko .~Po''S M
of tho dsoopuon practiced to get us to Il
le their line; but getting no satisfactory q
d. swer from them we quit the concern and I
united with the n. W. Associated Press,
which association we are now memb,
Ia. with equal rights of any other member
Tor the Rim can haul down its little piece
w. "buncome,' that it is the "oRiy paper
Rock Island which regularly receives al
90 publishes the Geographic dispatches Of Il
of Northwestern Associated Press"
e. If the mississippi Valley Telegraph Cor
., psuy' wishes to gain and retain the con
d dence of the pubHc,ts officers should reno
n the nincompoop Squires, who is either a 70
Tn or knnve. The dispatches which pass
N, between us are in the nature of a contra
p and must be construed together They !
a. qure, as Il condition precedent to any ira,
u with that company, that we should he fl
49, nished with reports equal in value, and at
early hours Of the day, as the Western [
- ion line-and Squires knew, IN less he is
,,, fool, or was drunk when he made the trad
that this was the fact. If he has iutelHgen
enough to know this, he is u knGye, and
- guilty of swindlng US by promising to
he what neither he or his company can DO.
I'd be did not know it the is an incompetent a,
II and the company will remove him, if it co
= suits its interests.
,v 1t is due to Col. Wilson, Of Chicago, &c
at eral superintendent of the Western Uni,
=, Telegraph Company to Mr. John Il. Flel
a ing, manager of the Office here, and to NJ
ve Charles W,Cropper, assistant to say that the
er office here is conducted to the entere SAT-
~ faction Of the public, and to express OF
, belief that so long as it shall be as we
managed as at present, it will retain Il
lat confidence and patronage of this communit
ng And it is also due to Mr.. Vim. II. Bal
40 hache, of Quincy, president of the n. "
to Associated Press, and Mr.. J. P. Cadogau, (
be Quincy, Of the Executive Committee, to Ga