The new North-west., 1883-11-30
THE PRINTING LAW.

1
On January q, 1876, the Legislature Of
Montana passed an act placing in the hands
of the Governor, President Of the Council,
and Speaker of the House, the power to con.
tract, at certain specified rates, with some
person or persons, TO do all printing for the
Territory not provided for by the United
States; also to contract at certain specified
rates with some person or persons TO do all
printing In the several counties Of the Ter
ritory, publish all legal notices and to do all
printing for which such counties were charge
able. This contract was TO run for two
years. The above act was incorporated into
the Revised Statutes, which became law
January 25, 1881. There has been no act
since repeating the sections relating TO
printing. Recently, however, Messrs. Fisk
Bros, of the Helena Herald, brought the
matter up In Court under an application for
writ of mandamus to compel Auditor
Woolman to pay them for certain Territorial
printing done, the publishers Of the Inde.
pendent having the contract at the time from
the above named officers TO do the Terrific
rial printing, 1t having been customary every
two years succeeding the first enactment Of
the law for contracts TO be so awarded
for the Territorial and county printing.
The application was argued before Judge
Wade q few days ago, /. ID. McCutcheon,
Esq, appearing for Fisk Bros, and Warren
Toole, Esq, opposing. The claim set up by
the applicants was that the powers vested in
the Governor, President and Speaker were
exhausted when they made the first contract
for two years; that even If this power was
revived by re.enactment in the Revised Stat
utes, IL expired by Limitation in two years
thereafter, viz, Jan. 25th, 1888. Judge
Wade, in q written decision, gave judgment
for Fisk Bros, and directed the Territorial
Auditor to issue the warrant as applied for.
II this decision Is sustained by the Su-
preme Court, and from an incidental deci-
sion 1t is presumed 1t will be, it nuilifes all
the printing contracts in the Territory.
There is some natural rejoicing over the de-
cision by newspaper publishers who had not
received contracts, and perhaps correspond
ing disappointment, or rather grievance, on
the part of those who had them. The New
NORTH WEST has contracted each successive
year since the act was passed TO do the print
Ing for Deer Lodge county, but 1t was sim
ply to give the publications legal significance
as required by the statute, there being no
other paper published In this county. We
have always, therefore, regarded the law, as
we do now, disinterestedly.
The original printing bill was undoubt-
edly introduced at the instance Of Mr.. Bar
rett, then connected with the Independent,
to secure Territorial patronage to that paper
and incidentally to other Democratic papers,
where they had county competition In the
Territory. That bill was bad one and was
killed. A new bill, or substitute, was
offered, reducing rates fully one-half and
bringing them considerably below the rates
previously allowed by law. This latter bill
became law. 1t was exclusive and pro-
vided for q monopoly while the contract
lasted, as nearly all contracts do; but its
scope, purpose and effect possessed no more
OF those characteristics than the authority
vested in the Register and Receiver of the
land Office to discriminate between two
newspapers published In the same town and
throw the legal publications of the Land
Department TO such one as they may prefer,
provided 1t is q newspaper Of general circu-
lstion. We do not see that any newspaper
upholding the land Office methods can con-
sstently condemn the Montana printing law.
Either is merely carrying out the Marcy
maxim-"to the victors belong the spoils"-
maxim that with all our civil service refor-
nation appears to be about as generally
lived up to as ever.
Another question arises In connection with
this decision. II this act is null, what act
Is there on the statute books defining the
rates for legal publications or job work?
We do not know of any. No previous act
Is revived and there Is none In the Revised
Statutes TO revise. II reduces 1t to a ques.
tion between the person or officer having the
work done and the person or company doing
the work. Doubtless, If Judge Wade's de-
cision is accepted, 1t will result in some in
stances in cutting rates to secure the work.
But every publisher knows that the rates, as
now established for job work, are reasona-
bly, low, and the same Is true in advertising
In all Montana papers Of stability and good
circulation. These matters could not, of
course, be taken up by the Court, but they,
with others, will receive consideration at the
hands Of publishers and will somewhat un.
settle that which for years has been accepted
rs an exact science-legal publication rates.