St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1890-07-10
EXPl AVIATION ASKED
Of How State School Book
acquisitions on Ramsey
County
Are Drawn by D. D. Merrill
Under His Present
Contract.
Several Street Grades Go
Sliding Through the
Council.
Morphine Ends the Existence
Grown Unendurabie to a
Stranger.
To the Editor of the Globe.

To the Editor of the Globe.
1t was hintt d to the public few days
ago that D.. d. Merrill ST., state text
book contractor, by the aid of his son,
D. d. Merrill Jr., the text book agent of
Ramsey county, was working Ramsey
county in the interest of their whole
sale trade by imposing upon its citizens
unjust taxes on account of commissions
paid to Merrill on state text books sold
outside of Ramsey county. The case
looks bad upon its face. but possibly
Merrill can satisfactorily explain. How
ever that may be, the facts would seem
to warrant our county commissioners III
refusing to allow any more state requl-
sitions, especially as there is not now,
nor ever has been, any saving to the
county or state by the requisition plan.
We find that on Dec. 26, 1889, D. ID.
Merrill Jr. reported stock of state text
books on hand in his agency amounting
to $102.99; Feb. 3, 1890, books received,
$1,022; March l, 1890, books received,
S12O; making total 81, PASS. When, on
June %, 1890, Mr.. Merrill was required
by County Auditor Kahn to make the re-
port long past due. he stated under
oath, as follows:
Books on hand last report ........... S102 80
Books received since last regort. Il, 142 90
Books sold ....:... ...........-..... I99 !S
Books on hand ............ -. 45o IL
Commission, 8 per cent .......... 6o ~
Ramsey county has therefore paid to
Merrill since December, 1889. commits
sion for selling books to pupils in the
county at the rate of Sl27.80 per year on
sales of about $1,000.
Further examination shows: First
The city of st. Paul has not bought to
exceed $500 worth of state books during
the past six months.
Pupils in the city do not buy state
books for regular class use, and only
those state text books that have been
purchased by the board of education for
supplementary use have been sold IN
the city.
Outside of St.Paul, in Ramsey county,
there were only 966 pupils for the year
ending July 81, 1889, who were entitled
to apportionment. Of these 216 are in
White Bear, where Eo state text books
have been used for more than year.
North St. Paul had 156, and as that COM
munity has a text book agent who is
generously supplied with books, it is
quite evident that the st. Paul Book
and Stationery company has not sold
many books to pupils in North st. Paul.
Deduct from the 966 the 216 for
White Bear, 156 for West st. Paul, to-
gether with so for Gladstone, where only
a part of the books used are state books,
and deduct the $500 worth sold to st.
Paul, and we arrive at the startling re-
suit that 534 pupils in Ramsey county
use $1,000 worth of common school
books per year, an amount about seven
times as great in proportion as is paid
for all the books in all the schools of
all grades in Detroit, Mimi, where free
text books are in vogue.
An examination of the list of books
ordered by Merrill. Feb. 3, 1890. and
Feb. 26, 1890, when compared with the
statement he makes of books ON hand
June %, 1890, proves this condition
false: and it certainly seems to prove
also that Merrill has sold books to deal
ers in other parts of the state and taxed
Ramsey county for the commission.
Books ordered Feb. 8, 1890