Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1896-11-26
OF County Printing,

board of supervisors passed resolu-
tipn providing that all printing and
publishing for the county during the
next year be let to the lowest bidder,
arrangements for such letting to be
deferred until the January session of
the board. The TRIBUNE being an
interested party, suggestions and ad-
vice may be of little value, but we
venture to submit few remarks upon
the subject, nevertheless.
All the printing and publishing for
the county cannot be done by one
publishing house, because the state
laws require that some of the mat
ters, including the most costly, shall
be published in more than one paper
of the county, For these matters
and Others the statutes provide what
the compensation shall be, and how
to determine it. For instance, the
law provides that the treasurer's list
of unredeemed lands shall be pub
lished for thirteen weeks, and that
the compensation therefor shall be
thirty cents for each description. In
the TRIBUNE at present such list for
1896 appears, it contains So descrip-
tions, and the fee for publishing at
80 cents per description, aggregates
$26.40. This list contains "A statutory
folios. At the ordinary statutory rate
for legal publications-60 cents per
folio for the first insertion and 30 cts.
| for each subsequent insertion-the
publication Of this list would cost
the county $115.20, instead of $26.40.
Ii a party bids to do all the printing
and publishing of the county at 90
per cent Of statutory rates per folio,
his contract would include publica-
tion of this land list, and he would
get for it $3.50, instead of $26.40, as
allowed to the TRIBUNE under the
law. Suppose the TB1BUNE Were
awarded all the county printing and
publishing at 90 per cent. of standard
rates, certain matters must also be
published in a democratic paper, for
instance the sample election ticket,
(the legal rate for which is 81 per
square, and the Dodgeville sun is
selected to make such publication;
| being under no contract, the Sun
could fairly charge and surely collect
twice us much as the TRIBUNE for
the same piece of work. These two
| illustrations are given to demonstrate
that advertising at least cannot be
wisely let TO the lowest bidder.
With regard to job printing, the
c.se is different, but the difficulties
in the way of letting upon bids
are scarcely less. First of all the
requirement should be for good work
and first class material. To turn out
job neatly printed on high priced
paper with fine ink. and artistically
set up, costs sometimes twice as much
as to put out the same job in a slip
shod manner,with inferior materials.
True il may be strongly stipulated
that the printing shall be well done
and the materials first class. But
who is to determine on these points?
No county officer is competent, and
the employment of an expert to eX
anime each piece of work would cost
more than the probable saving by
the proposed change; for it must be
remembered that the cost Of miscel
laneous job printing for the county
does dot exceed one-third of the to-
tai printing bills annually.
If the county board can devise any
plan By which money can be saved
on printing, ana insure the work be-
ing done well, and to the satisfaction
Of the county officers, the board and
their constituents, it should be done.
but such a result is not promised by
the Lewis resolution as ii stands.
We do not wish to be understood as
opposed to efforts to correct any eX-
trayagance in county printing that
RAY be found ON full and fair investi-
CATION, and if invited to submit a
proposal to do the printing Of the
county on specifications insuring just
and proper award, we shall respond.
one condition Of bids should be that
good and sufficient bond accom-
pany each; another that no work be
p1id for until examined by COM
mittee Of three, to be composed Of
one member Of the county board aud
two practical printers, residing and
doing business in different towns Of
the county, and not more than one OF
the three 10 be Of the same political
party as the contractor When APP
proved by such a committee there.
would DO no doubt that tho printing
was well done and according to the
contract.
MRs. f. Y. HUTcHfsoN gave a very