Red Lodge picket. [volume] (Red Lodge, Mont.) 1889-1907, 1893-09-16
4 NEWSPAPER TRUST.
A PROJECTED CONSERVATION FOR
NEW ENGLAND JOURNALS.

s1c,coo.GGo Aboutto ise Formed to Con-
troll tho Business Interests of the Lead
ing Papers OF New England.
The Providence News is informed by
an authority that has always been con
sidered reliable that another big Gnan.
cial project is under serious considera-
ton by number OF capitalists Of New
York, Philadelphia and Chicago to Sc
cure control and to manage q num@'er OF
properties in tho New England states
that are very valuable and proita5i
but which under such IL consideration ai
the one proposed will prove even more
cemunerative 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.
For 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, toe
large to be the personal property of sin
gle owners. have been managed by stock
companies.
This consolidation of newspapers un-
der one management is not a particular
iy new idea. 1t has been very successful
on smaller scale in the west, where The
,5cripps league is widely known as big
syndicate. managing q dozen valuable
newspaper plants.
It was one cf the dreams of the elder
Bennett which number Of years aSo
came near to realization The New 7 ori
Herald and The Times, the Chicago Times
St. Louis Post-Dispatch and tie Bostor
Herald at one time came very neaf being
controlled by Il syndicate, with the elder
Bennett at its head. but Disagreement
arose, AID tho negotiations came te
naught.
The enormous earnings of big paper:
like the New York Herald, Sun anj
World, the Bostcn Herald and Globe art
the natural results Of serious and inde
fatigable efforts extending over series
Of years. It is popularly reported that
the income Of James Gordon Bennett CT
the New York Herald from his paper il
*75O, ,OC0 per annum. The World closely
follows this with over $780, 600, whilt
The Sun probably makes half tha
to divide 4 5000 year between ths
owners, Willie The Globe pays at least Il
per cent net On S., ,0G0,CG0.
The proposed combine, however, deals
with New England newspapers, and ever
this is deal of immense magnitude
The capitalists alluded to propose to
purchase the leading daily papers il:
New England, managing them Of course
as individual papers and preserving theil
separate autonomies, yet controlling
them by q directorate, to whom the
agent CT manager in charge Of cac!
paper shall report directly. 1t is est
mated that 100000 600 in capital will be
required.
The plan is to purchase these proper
ties by issuing bonds for $5 ,ot2, eco, pre-
ferred stock Of $5,090,0 600 and common
stock of $5,G00.0o0, the bonds and the
common stock to be sold for the pur
chase money, the bonds to carry an
per cent guarantee, the preferred stoca
to be per centstock, and the common
to declare whateve: dividend might be
left over after an allowance for sink
ing fund. 1t the present cost OF opezat
ing the common stock could declare q II
per cent dividend and carry per cent
to the sinking fund.
The cost Of operating would be great
ly reduced. Take for example the Bos
ton dailies or the two big Sunday issues
The Herald and Globe each run trains
out over the roads leading from Boston
Sunday morning, seven trains each. One
Of them could be cut of and joint train
run, saving at least $780, 900 per year. By
purchasing paper in such immense guam
titles the very lowest possible price coult
be obtained, and very small fraction ot
a per cent saved woull in the aggregate
amount to an enormous figure, and a:
| with paper so with type, presses, ink ant
all other materials. In the matter o.
distribution of papers in Boston alone al
enormous saving would be made,
By the control Of all the newspaper
properties in New England by one con
Germ q new era in the collection Of new
would at once follow. A system O.
leased lines, with operators in the EN-
ploy Of the combine, would be inevitable
The New England Associated Pres!
would either be merged in it or go to tht
wall, but this system of leased wires
would bring a saving Of such proper
tions as to be absolutely startling ant
which is at present impossible by any
one paper. It is expected that expense!
of operation would be reduced fully 2;
per cent.
The plan is not a political one and ha:
no political significance. The combine
is said to be evenly divided between botl
the great political parties; otherwise thi
absorption Of such papers would give
political influence that would be SO power
| ful that it could not be tolerated. Agent:
Of the syndicate are now in New Eng
land making inquiries and Investigations
The successful managementof of the Stand
ard Oil company, of the big street ca
combines and other trusts seems hkel.
to be followed by newspaper trust
Journalist.