New-York tribune., 1874-04-13
FACTS FOR A FRIENDLY INQUIRER.

We are in frequent receipt of letters like
the following, but have preferred to suppress
them. We mean now to make only single
exception:
TO Ihe Editor Of The Tribune.
SIR: Some OF your unhappy contemporaries. whom
you are probably too busy TO answer nd their avorte
subject OF discussion in the circulation. the conduct and
the financial condition Of THE TRIBUNE read to-day
statement which TO my own knowledge is untrue
AT the newsstand where 1 buy my papers, and
where a specially Jealous rival claims double your cir
culation the dealer himself told that your sales
were largely nexcess OF any other In another matter
have had occasion to detect falsehoOd emanating
from the quarter. 1t was said Wall-st broker
had large amount OF TRIBUNE stock for sale cheap
Inquired found he had three $1,000 shares which he
said were worth s9OOO This may DO cheap, but 1t is
certainly not low.
Now as a general thing approve your policy OF not
noticing the abuse OF inferior newspapers. business
should occupy himself not about his Duslness Dut
n retailing ISLANDERS concerning his neighbour now aOont
the amount OF his trade then about tho nature OF his
credit then about the extent OF his profits then about
the character OF his loans, such buSi-
ness man would be recognized at once as
excessively Jealous and therefore excessively Inferior
and would be promptly sent Coventry. You're very
right to send newspapers OF that sort there black
guard on the press and blackguard In the gutter de-
serve just about equal consideration.
But you certainly did.a good thing yesterday in the
frank statement which stopped the mouths OF your de-
tractors who screaming about your dvi-
dends They have now broken out again
on circulation. Many Of your friends myself
among them wish you would mako exception to your
rules for and tell how much truth ana how much
envy there ia in the daily yep Of the papers which seem
scared out of their wits by the shadow OF your pros
perity. Yours sincerely, MERCHANT
Neto- York, April II, 1874.
Newspapers which really have large or in
creasing circulatiOns never need to inform the
public of it by certificates. Much less are
they likely to enter into disputes with envious
rivals about it, 1t is only your third-class
paper that finds space or inclination
for that kind of wrangling. The above
letter, however, comes from source
so friendly and so intelligent that, solely
for the satisfaction Of our correspondent and
of friends feeling as he does, we take this
occasion to say that
1. The aggregate circulation of THE TRIBUNE
exceeds that of any other four-cent paper in
New-YOrk.
2. The circulation of THE WEEKLY TRIBUNE
is three times that of any other paper of its
class in New York; -four times that OF any
other save one.
8. The circulation Of THE SEn-WEEKLY
TRIBUNE is four OF five times greater than that
of any other sem-weekly in New-York.
4. The circulation of The DAILY TRIBUNE
is greater than that of any other four cent
paper in New-York except The Herald.
5. The general testimony of newsdealers
alike in town and country, has been, that
since the panic most newspapers have shown
more or less loss, and that the only paper of
its class which has been steadily gaining has
been THE TRIBUNE.
OF the character and value of our circulation
we need not speak. The facts above mentioned
about its extent are well known among all
who have cared to inform themselves on the
subject; and are not disputed, SO far as We
know, by any reputable newspaper, or in
any well-infOrmed quarter. If they should
be denied, with heated iteration and laborious
collation. Of One-sided or false statements, by
unfortuuates who feel their momentary luck
passing away with the credit of the partisan
combinations upon which they depend for sup
port, the circumstance would be neither un-
natural nor deserving of notice.