The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1897-11-27
CIRCULATION AND COST.

CIRCULATION AND COST
An instance of this slipshod way of
doing business occurred in August. One
Tuesday morning a man killed his
wife and committed suicide. All the
papers Of Wednesday had the news ex-
cepting the Eclair and the Journal.
On Thursday these two papers, seeing
that they were beaten, printed the
item, but made the event occur on
Wednesday morning. On Friday morn
ing all the other papers printed il
again, under the misapprehension that
they had been beaten the day before
but made the killing and suicide hap
pen ON Thursday OF course this was
all the result of the secretaries de re-
daction. But they are hard worked.
1t is curious to note how a paper
like the Petit journal can sell daily
100000 copies. 1t is the typical paper
OF the French masses, and contains less
real news than two StiCkfuls OF The
Suns "Jottings About Town" It's sue
cess can only be ascribed TO it's hold on
the lower orders Of intelligence, with
its Observation-Disclosures continued stor-
les. The Petit Partisan, which comes
second in circulation with $40 900 copies
only in comparison; yet the stock of
the Petit journal is quoted at $245 on
a par value OF 800, and that Of the
Petit Partisan at $3.50 on a par value Of
$50. The former pays a dividend Of
IA per cent, and the latter one Of 16
per cent, and the stock of each has
lcen handsomely watered In other
words the net profits of the first aver
age 100000 yearly, and of the second
$375,OOO even after taking into consid-
Grafton the extremely high cost of pa
per in France, and the many enormous
taxes that a newspaper is subjected
to by the government
The advertising in French paper is
not profitable. AS rule it does not
take up one-fourth of one of it's pages
1t is not the custom to advertise. Aside
from the posters and nandbills pasted
on dead walls, nearly all the advertis-
ing is done in a small pamphlet called
the Journal des Petites Atiiches, which
one consults in the cafes. The pater-
nalism of the government, too, supplies
the place of advertising to some ex-
tent. 1t not only sells you matches
and cigars ard lends you money on
your watch, but it takes you under its
midwife, and has lists of almost any
thing that you can need, which lists
you can consult free Of charge. Then
there is a great deal Of free advcrtis-
ing done in the newspapers in the way
of puffs. If one has not the influence
to procure a puff, it is notorious that
the financial anG theatrical columns
Of all the papers but two or three are
IN a I a DIif ffS
in other parts of the paper cost from
SO to IS a line in all except the Petit
Journal, which is more virtuous and
charges $40. For this price the papers
will say anything you want them to
say SO long as it is not contrary to
law. For ordinary advertising, print
ed as such. the rate varies from 20
cents a line in the papers of small cir
| culation to $1.20 in the Figaro, the
Petit Journal and q few others.
The cost of producing the Paris pa
per is much larger than it's printed APP
pearance would seem to warrant. The
reporters get from $40 to 500 a month,
the editorial writer's from $500 to $500.
The cost of the telegraph service is
small, and nearly all the b;pense is in
the actual printing. The Petit Journal,
for instance, gives its yearly expense
account as follows:
| Editorial staff and telegraph tolls. S 80 900
| Typesetting ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS. 5000
| StcreOtyping ........................... l5OOO
| Paper OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES. 4lOON
| PreSswork Observation-Disclosures 2looU
| Ink, OIL fuel, etc......,.............. 5000
Iotal '''''''''''''''''''''''''' '$o0'o'u