Juniata sentinel. [volume] (Mifflintown, Pa.) 1846-1873, 1872-06-19

The County Printiug-The Announced De.
cision Of the C0mmissioners-A Chanee
Of the Law Needed.
Last week We stated that the Commits.
sioners Of this county called to their
Office the publishers of the Register, the
Sentinel, and lhe RepuJlicon. on the 10th
in.t.. for the purpose Of ascertaining the
circulation of said papers within the
county. that they-the Commissioners -
might direct the county printing to be
published in the two papers having the
largest number of bona ,ide subscribers
within the county. We also stated the
number that each publisher was sworn to
as bona fde subscribers and further, we
stated that the Republicans list was
largely made up of names secured for
three months or the emergency Many
of these papers, the parties who receive
them say, have been received with the
understanding that they are not to pay
for them for three months, and may dis
continue at the expiration of that term
free of charge. The conditions on which
many of these papers were sent out
varied to suit the respective places and
circumstances. The people of Lack,
Tuscarora, Monroe, Greenwood and Sus-
quehanna townships and Patterson Dor
ough, and other districts not necessary to
mention now, know how the business
was done.
1t was not believed that the Commits
sioners would receive such list as bona
file subscribers They did; and if they
grimmaced. it was because there were
objections made to their receiving it
They not only received such list, but
they fastened to publish TO the citizens
of the county the result of their ques
tionable work in their chosen organs, the
Register and Republican. of last week
Their advertisement appears over the sig
nature of their Clerk, that the "public
printing" has been awarded to the two
papers just stated
They fastened to create more patron
age fol their papers. We say, create,
for the law does not authorize them to
publish their decision-probably they did
i: under their reserved rights. as the
rebels said when they seeded. State after
State, from the General Government.
Their decision was not rendered as
Justice is supposed to render hers
blindfolded, go that she cannot see any of
the parties in the contest, so that she may
be governed only by the principles of
right and honor as they are made clear
by evidence.
They required no evidence, no proof,
though the law says that they shall hear
proof. They were not blindfolded. nei
ther were they deaf They heard the
common report from different parts of the
county, and heard the declaration in their
Office that the means employed by the
RepuJiicaa, to say the very least of it,
was not of that kind that commends it.
,alf to bonorahle mon
They seemed in as great hurry to
push the case to a conclusion without
evidence-for they scarcely allowed the
time that was asked to make out list of
subscribers from the subscriptio books
to be placed on file in their own ofice-as
they were to publish their miserably de
tective advertisem. .nt of their decision or
award
Their advertisement is defective in this,
that it does not say how long their
award-which was made. at least so far
as one paper is concerned, chiefly on a
three months list-shall stand, whether
for three months, six months, one year,
or till the "crack of DOOM" ut may be
parenths tically added here that when |
that great event will have been ushered
in, the awards then meted out will be in |
accordance with justice, and there will |
be no reserved rights to claim and fall
back to-
The failure to specify the duration or
The length or time that the decision of
The Commissioners shall remain in force
nay have appeared unintentionally, and
t may have been intended to appear Just
Is it does
These custodians of the public affairs
If the county should issue another proc
amation for the triple purpose of manu-
acturing patronage for their organs. and
o clearly set before the minds of the
public for what length of time their de.
,ision or decree shall remain in force, and
hat all publishers of newspapers in the
county of Juniata will be allowed to pre-
ent any kind of a list they pleaae and
10 questions will be asked. only SO that
he Clerk administer the oath.
To issue such a proclamation would
ot more forcibly argue their utter inca.
'acity for the position of public trust
hat they now hold, than their manner of ,
he disposal of the public printing ar
ued their incapacity.
1t is high time that the people of Ju-
iata county put into that Office a set of
len of different grade. A change is
eeded. We want men who have