Louisiana capitolian. (Baton Rouge, La.) 1879-1881, 1881-08-16
FRAUDS! FRAUDS!

as tar as names ana trims tend TO
contribute. Without q thought as to
the ease with which references can be
forged, and the total inconsistency in
the use Of them on the part of res
ponsible Business men, the publisher
inserts it in his paper, and at the end
of the iirst quarter sends bis bill. He
receives no answer he writes the sec
Ond and third time-stili no answer.
Fraud is then apparent He comes
out in an editorial and denounces the
adverGiseras swindler and advises
the public against dealing with him.
In this way publishers are bit year
after year, until we aresick and tired
of reading their yeils of duplicity.
Still they continue the same policy,
allowing themselves to be defrauded
and at the same understanding their
readers of a great zeal of valuable
reading matter. They not only wea-
| ken the tone and lower the stamdart.
of their Journals, but subject their
readers to the swindling operations of
worthless schemers. The readers, in
turn, feel the injustice, and become
careless about paving their subserip-
items.
This is so often the case we cannot
comprehend why publishers, who
have been duped time and again, will
not place themselves on the common
basis of business.
No grocer thermerchant willad-
vance goods to strangers without col
lateral Or sufficient guarantee from
responsible parties. If they did, the
commercial interests of the world
would not he worth shucks. And yet
newspaper publishers continue in
this groove CT dupes, apparently with
no business experience to protect
them. Have they no tact--no 'apti-
tude at all? Is it the fate of the
newspapers TO be managed by indi.
viduals of thas class 2 If SO, we have
a reason for the inferior quelity Of
our country journals!
One of the greatest frauds in the
line Of advertising is the due bill-tht
part cash and part advertising sort
Not one out of q hundred Of thes,
due bills are ever redeemed, and il
transactions where they are used, thu
amount of cash accompanying the or
der willnot cover the realvalu of thu
article purchased. We hope no on
will feel aggrieved, when we say tina
the journals having the largest dis
play of these one third cash electro
plates in their columns are the YER
poorest and most uninteresting Of al
the papers we receive; for our objee
is to throw out beneficial suggestions
These papers have no attractive fea
lures about chem, except possibl
:, where the e}ectro-cut pictures tax
the eye of the unlettered African G
, the A B c schoolboy.
We could have been swindled pei
haps fifty times within the pas
year; but we, escaped by demandiR
l spot cash or legitimate security. l
two cases we made inquiries of prom
inent parties, who represented thu
the contractors were solvent; bl
even then, the bills three months Ii
. ter found them insOlvent. Now "
t have adopted the cash basis, an
= these swindlers-whOm we believe
e have regularly organized associ'
J ton, by which they keep each otht
posted-have nearly stopped sendin
j. us their vile propositions. Oar vast
:, basket, consequently is not smptle
half so often, and we move alOn
with less annoyance.
We may talk about maximum rat'
and all that sort of stuff, to be fxe
i by press conventions; but we ca
do better. Let every publisher O.
ganize himself into a committee
l. one for self-protectioa, by the ado]
. ton of steadfast business principle
:, with which to stife irresponsible az
. vertisers. Newspapers will then mal
o more money and become more ind,
t pendent Of the ambiguous sl,arl
: that seek to steal away their Id
e giving substance.