Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1878-03-19
A NEWSPAPER CORNER.
INs0ME SQUEEZING OUT
IN THE TOLKSZEITUNG.

A Very Neat Little Contest Among Our
German Newspaper Brethren--How They
POOLED 1T on Theodore Sander, One of
the Original Projectors of the Affair..A
New Paper Likely to be the Result
For some time past, rumors have prevailed
of more or less extensive complications in
the internal arrangement of the German
printing company of this city, now the pro-
prietor of the Volkszeitung, and with the
view of getting at the true inwardness of
matters and things connected with the es-
Enlistment in question, a GLOBE represen-
tative called yesterday upon Mr.. Theodore
Sander, who is large stakeholder in the
company, and under whose auspices as bus
mess manager, the craft was first launched
upon the waters of newspaper existence and
under whose management it remained up to
some time in January last. Upon meeting
Mr.. Sander, and making known the object
of the interview, he very readily and courte-
ously consented to give all information in
his possession, and the colloquy proceeded
somewhat as follows:
Reporter-Mr. Sander, hear some talk
of another German paper being started in
this city. Is there any thing in the report?
Mr.. Sander-Yes: there is some talk about
it, and l am pretty sure it will be done,
though l am not certain that l shall have
any business connection with it.
Rep.-This desire for new paper grows
out of opposition to the present management
of the FOlkzeitung, if I understand YOU
correctly.
MIR. Sander-Yes; it grows out of deep
seated opposition to Mr.. Leue and the Ger
man American bank, but the feeling is more
against the German American bank than
against Leue.
Rep.-Under your management, Mr. San
der, how did the paper get along? Did you
consider it success?
Mr.. Sander did. Under my control it
did well. From the time of starting, in Sep
TENDER, up to January, things worked well.
and considered the paper was doing very
well.
Rep.-How did they commence the cam
palgn against you!
Mr.. Sander-They commenced the quarrel
by examining the books and figuring out a
deficit, although they were well aware that
there was none in reality. told them that
| if they were afraid they were not going to
get enough on their stock, would make a
bargain with them, this way: would take
| nine years lease on the business and pay
| them five per cent. on their stock for the first
| three years; ten per cent. for the second
the third three years. This, they
refused to take, and raised the devil instead,
finding that, suppose, cheaper. Ny private
opinion is that they considered it cheaper to
euchre the minoritkout of their stock than
| to pay them fair price for it.
Rep.-How is the paper getting along
since you left it?
! Mr.. Sander-Since left our people have
not extended it such general support as
before. To my knowledge, subscriptions
have fallen off largely, and it is, think,
generally understood that it does not give as
| full satisfaction as it did under the former
management.
Rep-Give us brief history of the en-
terprise-the starting of the Tolkszesiung-
from the outset.
Mr.. Sander-Well, as you are aware, the
| VOtFscStung is the result of the consoida-
ton of the two German weekly papers of this
| city-the VolssJlatt and the .Staatz Zeiteueg.
The latter was under my management at the
time of consolidation, and the former was
l Towards
consolidation was made in February of last
year. The stock subscriptions were nearly
| all solicited by myself. The company was
incorporated in July, 1877, and commenced
operations in September following-the first
issue appearing September 9th. Everything
went on nice until shortly before Christmas,
! when the stockholders seemed to gather in
to etiquette ostensible head of which was
Gustav Wllllus, of the German American
bank. They formed pool, of
which Willius is president, and votes
| the entire stock. The conditions of the
pool were that Willins should be the actual
manager, although to the public was to be
| held out as the visible head. This was a
condition didn't like, and of course I left
it. The concern is, to-day, virtually run by
the German-American bank.
Rep.-When did you first find out about
| this pool?
| Mr.. Sander-I found out some time in
January that the pool had been formed and
this discovered by their commencing to
dictate-to make themselves officious around
| the establishment and to assume control of
the business. This ran on about month.
when the thing grew SO amazing that 1 re-
signed. Gnstav Willius is the fgurehead,
but the real power behind the throne is
ferQlnanO WlluUS.
| Rep.-Tell us something more about the
pool. How they worked it?
Mr.. Sander-In making this pool, they
got men to assign away their rights and
| thereby sought to control the stock without
| having actually purchased any considerable
portion of it. You must bear in mind, they
got possession Of the establishment by a
| bare majority of nine votes, though they
have since bought few shares. At the
| time, l looked on this majority as small I'M
der ordinary circumstances, but under the
| contrcat by which this pool was formed they
had this stock for number of years, and
therefore that there was no possibility of es-
Gaping their positive rule. SO got out.
Rep.-That little game was pretty we'll
played?
Mr.. Sander-Yes, it was, but if had only
gotten wind of it five days sooner, / would
have cleaned them.
Rep.-You still have an interest in the
concern?
Mr.. Sander, as we'll as my friends, still
hold stock in the concern. which amounts
to nearly one-half. AS I have told you, they
just managed to secure a controlling inter
est and with this bare majority they continue
to handle the entire establishment as their
own property, regardless of the wishes or
interests of the minority.
Rep.-You made inquiries as to their mo-
tives, at the outset?
Mr.. Sander-Yes, and Ferdinand Willius
replied "their motives was none of our bust
ness. The majority, some time ago, invited
the minority to conference to give them a
full explanation of the thing, and when we
asked an explanation our Onlv respOnse wac