Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1896-03-05
DISTRICT PRINTING
Proposition to Have It All Done at
Home.
IDEA OF A DISTRICT PRINTING OFFICE
The Commissioners asked to Ex-
press Their Views.
T H E PLAN TED

II has been the practice of the District
government for many years to let the pub
lie printing of the District to the lowest
bidder. For the most part this has worked
well, the successful bidders usually being
printing firms doing business in Washing
ton and sufficiently equipped to do all work
required of them promptly and conven-
iently. In several instances, however, the
lowest bidder has been firm out Of town.
and when contracts have been let in COM
pliance with the specifications and adver-
tisement large amounts of work have been
sent to Baltimore, Philadelphia and New
York In some classes of printing this ar
rangement works no disadvantage; in 9TH
ers, however, where instant work is de-
sired, delays have occurred which have
been seriously annoying and disadvan-
tageous to public business.
The Typographical Union has been dis
cussing the matter of District printing for
several months. At recent meeting a
resolution was adopted declaring it to be
the sense of the union that all such work
should be kept at home, and if let to the
lowest bidder the contract should be made
with local firm.
Congress to Look Into 1t.
A committee was appointed recently, con-
ssting of Geo. A. Tracy, president of the
union; w. N. Brockwell and E. M. Blake,
to confer with members of the joint COM
mittee on printing in Congress as to the
best method of keeping the District print
ing in Washington. Yesterday Senator
Hansbrough, who is a member of the print
ing committee and also of the District
committee, gave the committee from the
Typographical Union a hearing on the gen.
eral subject.
After pointing out the need of some pro-
vision regulating District printing and
showing the comparison between the old
contract system under which the govern
ment printing was formerly done, and the
present system. the committee suggested
two propositions. The first of these asks
for law providing that the bids for print
ing be confined to District firms with prop
er safeguards against combina tons among
bidders and proviso that in all contracts
made by the District Commissioners for
public printing it should be stipulated that
the wages 10 be paid by contractors for
labor upon District work, either skilled or
unskilled, shall be the maximum rate Of
wages paid employees in the District for
labor OF a similar character. The purpose
of this is to protect the employe from the
disposition of the contractor to grind down
labor to the lowest sustainable point, and
thus underbid competition.
A District Printing Office.
The other proposition was that the Dis
trict government establish printing office
of its own, modelled upon the same plan as
the government printing Office, but, of
course, upon limited scale. Such an Of
flee, it is intended, should be placed under
the civil service rules, thoroughly sySt.ma-
tZe1, equipped with the best ava able plant
of type and machinery, also provided with
bindery. and he able to turn out all the
work required by the District government
in the course of the fiscal year.
Just how large an office would be re-
quired under the latter plan was not stated
by the committee
1t was the desire, they said, first to have
consideration given to the general PROPOSE
ton to keep here at home the work that is
paid for by Washington taxpayers. They
also wished to have only District people
employed in such a printing office, in case
che should be established. If the printing
of free text books should be included in the
scope of this home printing office the
amount of work would be large, and give
employment to a large number of men.
Some of the text books are copyrighted,
and the District authorities could not bring
the printing of such books here but there
are number of free text books, on which
there is no copyright, and these the prin-
tiers urge, should be produced in Washing
ton.
The Proposition Defined.
The proposition that there be a District
printing office was embodied in the follow
ing bill, drawn by Mr.. Blake and left with
Senator Hansbrough:
aF BE II enacted by the Senate and House
of Representatives of the United States of
America in Congress assembled:
Section ]. That from AMI after the pass
age of this act the Commissioners of the
District of Columbia shall have supervision
and control of all printing and binding by
or on behalf of the District of Columbia
exclusive of contracts entered into prior
to the passage of this acD. and that no
printing or binding for the use of the Dis
trict OF Columbia shall be done by contract
10 ynlnpf aY,d all
rails necessary for carrying into execution
procured by the Commissioners of the Dis
trict through requisition upon the public
printer; said plant and materials to be
furnished by the public printer at cost
not to exceed the cost at which like Plant
and materials are purchased by the pub
lie printer for the use of the government
printing Office
Section 3. The hours of labor and rates
of wages of employees in this establishment
shall be the same those of employees in
similar occupations in the government
printing Office.
Section L. That all laws or parts of laws
inconsistent with the provisions of this act
are hereby repealed.
Senator HansOrough, who is himself
practical printer, was much pleased with
the ideas advanced by the committee, and
wrote letter to the Commissioners trans
hitting the Blake bill for their examina-
ton and report, and asking in case the
draft did not conform with existing
statutes their own ideas of the matter,
that they submit a bill of their own