The Florida agriculturist. [volume] (DeLand, Fla.) 1878-1911, 1896-04-01

| The law allows compensation for only fou
| insertions, but have no doubt that tn
paper that you select will let the advertise
meat run through another issue withou
extra charge, as the chief element of ex
pense is in the first ISSUE"
We clip the above from recent numbe
of the Citizen. The circular referred t.
has escaped our attention, but for the gooe
of all concerned we trust that the author
ties will come to definite understanding
on this vexed subject of tax sale advertise
ments before the patience of the people
and the publishers is entirely exhausted.
These tax sale advertisements have giver
the people of the State and the publishers
who print the advertisements, world Of
trouble. There has been pretty general
misunderstanding as to the length of time
it is required to print the advertisements
in order to make the sales valid. The law
is ambiguous on the subject, but the most
cautious publishers in the State have Otter
printed the advertisements for five consec.
utive weeks preceding the day of sale, sc
that there could be no possibility of mis-
take. Others have failed to do this, anc
followed what appeared to be the strict let
Ter of the law, and this has resulted ir
throwing doubt on the legality of the
sales.
Another matter that has given the pub
fishers no little trouble is the time of pub
fishing the lists. We know of several case:
last year, where the advertisements hac
been put in type at great cost, printed and
the forms distributed when the circular oil
the comptroller was issued extending the
time of payment. This necessitated the
resetting and reprinting of the lists, which
entailed a loss of several hundred dollars
to the printers. It strikes us that it should
be the duty Of the law makers to specify E
time for the closing of the books and thu
day of sale, and that no one should have
the authority to change this. We would
also suggest that the day set for these sale
should not be less than two months from
the time of closing the books. This woulc
give the collectors more time in which Il
make out the lists, and the publishers t.
print the advertisements.
The uninitiated have no idea of the vas
amount of work the making out Of thes
lists, the setting of them in type and tn
printing of them entails. 1t is a tedious
job. and as absolute accuracy is essentia
to validity both the collector and the prin
ter should have ample time to do the work
Under the present plan both the maxim!
of the lists and the setting of them in typ
is done at high pressure. and if mistake
do not creep in it is a mystery. During
the tax sale period it is no uncommon sigh
to see printing Offices ablaze with light al
night long. The list must be published a
certain time in order to be legal, and tn
suffering but willing printer is called upo
to work as long as he can keep his eye
open and hold stick" We have know
proof readers to sit at their desks for thirty
six hours without sleep. and in the thou
sands of figures and descriptions varyin
but little in character, which they are com
PEELED to scan, it is not reasonable to SUP
pose that absolute accuracy can be obtaine
under the circumstances.