The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1897-09-19
Those School Books

1
Those School Books
Office American Book company, 521-53l
Wabash ave-, Chicago, Sept. IL. 1897.
Hon. William Stryker, State Superinten-
emit of Public instruction. Topeka,
Dear Sir-I regret that you should
deem il within the scope of your official
duty and dignity 10 publicly defame the
American Book company and its officers
| and agents. If correctly advised, 1 I'M
! derstand that you first took offence al
our presuming to question public
statement attributed to you that the
sales of school books made by our COM
pany in the state Of Kansas had amount
ed 10 a total Of 100000 per annum- To
correct an evident misrepresentation II
| was our duty to say in an equally public
manner that our actual sales in the state
had averaged only about $4,000 per an
mum. The reporter who interviewed
you a this juncture wrote that you had
| pronounced our statement "a lie"
Thereupon the secretary OF the COM
pany sent you courteous letter inquir-
ing if you had been correctly reported.
Your reply to this personal commune
|
| the press II is a very remarkable docu-
ment, inasmuch as it evades an answer
10 the question regarding your state
ment and ours relative to the amount OF
| annual sales in the state, and seeks 10
create a diversion by launching into
| personal criticism of our good secretary
for having read paper before the Ma
tional Educational association which in
your judgment was principally made up
| Of publications., coarse epithets, and
abuse OF all who believe as 1 do that it
! is possible by stare law to get good
books and get them cheap"
| This address has been printed for gen.
eraI distribution. We send you a copy
! one single word or phrase to justify the
first five words of the above quotation
from your own letter. Those who listen
ed TO Mr.. fuckers admirable and good
tempered presentation OF a publisher S
view Of the text book question will ut
terly fail to recognize it by your charac-
terization. Perhaps super-excited feel
ing occasioned by such radical differ
enceS from your own views may have
led you to eXaggerate the form Of this
staggering array Of facts.
AS to the original question, however,
involving the item Of annual sales, 1
hereby propose to exhibit our account
books and afford every facility to any
respectable and unprejudiced commits
sion, 10 be appointed by the governor Of
Kansas, to prove that our statement Of
sales in the state is strictly accurate and
carefully made up from the actual trans
actions. The American Book company
Will pay all expenses Of such COM
mission. Now as a gentleman and a
conscientious public officer, will you
promote this investigation and abide by
its results, or will you admit now that
you were only guessing wildly at the
facts?
The publishers who have received
your patronage under the new law will
naturally at first supply very large
amount of books to take the place Of
those in use which were practically con-
fiscated by the adoption of the new law
and made worthless to the pupils Of the
state, even though in the aggregate they
amounted to hundreds Of thousands OF
dollars. After the.e first supplies have
been distributed, and the contractors
settle down to the duty Of supplying the
regular annual consumption thereafter
required, the statement made by US and
disputed by yourself will be confirmed
by the ''inexorable logic Of events" 1t
will also soon be apparent from actual
experiment whether Kansas has really
secured good books which are also
Cheap"
1t may appear ominous that the only
bidders On common school books were
firms new and inexperienced in the
trade, who have dug out of oblivion GER
tain old-timers. long since discarded in
other states, or who offer experimental
series which have never been well con-
sidered or patronized elsewhere on their
merits. Possibly these gentlemen may
have been deiuded by your prodigious
estimate OF the business to be done. The
Sheldops, the Ginns. the Heaths, Mayn-
ard-Merrill, Butler & Co.. Silver-Bur-
dett, Leach, Shewell & Sanborn, and
other publishers OF standard and copy
right books were conspicuous by their
absence from the bidding.
The opulent Imagination which could
requirements Of Kansas runs riot in
your last public manifesto. Therein you
allege that the millionaire president" OF
the American Book company desired to
consult you about the bidding. Presum-
ing that you refer to my own request
for an interview, beg 10 say that l am
not the president Of the company, and
thirty-five years OF hard labor in the
school book business has not made me
a millionaire by any means Your
statements regarding myself seem 10 be
pretty fair specimens Of your general &C
curacy. The object OF my call was 70
ascertain whether a bid for the whole
list from the American Book company
would De considered. You know that is
so, because 1 frankly discussed il with
you, and distinctly told you that some
OF our people were disposed 10 advocat e
the publication OF an entirely new ser
les OF books for the purpose. providing
the size OF the contract would permit
economies in distribution, etc, which
would protect US from serious loss. You
also knew that 1 explained 70 you that
we could not afford 20 bid on our stand
ard books on which copyrights are paid,
and 1 also explained to you the advan-
tages OF copyright books because OF the
constant watchfulness CT authors, who
are ever on the alert % improve their
books in order that taey may be always
up 10 the times.
I presume you DO no; doubt the facili-
ties % our company in the matter %
preparing an entirely new series that
:
not hesitate 10 say that had We receiv-