Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1893-10-23
A NEWSPAPER TRUST.
A PROJECTED COMBINATION FOR
NEW ENGLAND JOURNALS.

A Proposed Combine with a CapitaI of
s1O,Ooo.0OO About to BE Formed to Con-
troll the Business Interests of the Road
ing Papers of New England,
The Providence News is informed bv
an authority that has always been con-
sidered reliable that another big fnan-
clal project Is under serious considera-
ton by number of capitalists of New
York, Philadelphia and Chicago to Sc
cure control and to manage number of
properties in the New England states
that are very valuable and profitable.
but which under such "a consideration as
the one proposed will prove even more
remunerative and influential by the re-
duction of the expense in operating. and
by the purchase of supplies in quantities
so large as to demand great reductions
in the price of material used.
FoI years it has been recognized that
a good paying newspaper is one of the
most solid and stable investments that
money can be put into, and the majority
of the newspapers of the country, too
large to be the personal property of sin
gle owners, have been managed bv stock
comp anies.
| This consolidation of newspapers I'M
der one management is not a particular
ly new idea. 1t has been very successful
on smaller scale in the west, where the
Scrirps league is widely known as a big
syndicate, managing a dozen valuable
newspaper plants.
1t was one of the dreams of the elder
Bennett which a number of wears ago
came near to realization. The New York
Herald and The Times, the Chicago Times,
st. Louis Post-Dispatch and the Boston
Herald at one time came very near being
controlled by a syndicate, with the elder
Bennett at its head, but disagreements
arose, and the negotiations came to
nauCht.
The enormous earnings of big papers
like the New York Herald, Sun and
World, the Boston Herald and Globe are
the natural results of serious and indie
fatlSable efforts extending over a series
of years. 1t is popularity reported that
the income of James Gordon Bennett of
the New York Herald from his paper is
$3.50 600 per annum. The World closely
follows this with over 100000. while
The Sun probably makes half that
amount. The Boston Herald Is supposed
to divide 100000 a year between the
owners, while The Globe pays at least 10
per cent net ON s. 100000.
The proposed combine. however. deals
witt New England newspapers, and even
\ this is deal of immense magnitude
The capitalists alluded to propose t.
purchase the leading daily papers il
+ New England, managing them Of COURSE
as individual papers and preserving thei1
separate autonomies, yet controlling
them by a directorate, to whom tn,
agent or manager in charge of eacI
paper shall report directly. 1t is est
n mated that SIC, 600, 900 IN capital viii be
required.
Il Tle plan is to purchase these proper
ties by issuing bonds for $1,000, 900, pre-
2. ferrad stock of $1,000. 600 and common
-, stock of $4,000 600, the bonds and tn,
common stock to be sold for the pur
L chase money. the bonds to carry an
% per cent guarantee, the preferred stool
n, to lie per cent stock, and the common
to declare whatever dividend might bt
c left over after an allowance for a sink
!, ing fund. At the present costo oQcrat
T. in- the common stock could declare a i
c per cent dividend and carry per cen
:, to the sinking fund.
e. The cost of operating would be great
i " reduced. Take for example the Bos
ton dailies CT the two big Sunday issues
Il The Herald and Globe each run trains
d out over the roads leading from Bostol
!, Sunday morning, seven trains each. on
10 of them could be cut off and a joint trair
! run, saving at least $50, 900 per year. B!
o purchasing paper in such immense guam
E titles the very lowest possible price coulC
ID be obtained, and very small fraction 9