Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1898-07-06
The 4torkrille Gaq,'irrr.
YORKVILLE, S. c.:
WEDNESDAY, JULY 6, 1898.
PUBLIC ADVERTISING.

fUDUlO Adv En- i lOlNV'
The public advertising question has
been brought to the fore again by the
county board of commissioners in a
way that is at once significant and pc
culiar. What the real inside facts are
we can only, to a certain extent, sur
mise; but leaving out surmises and
drawing only logical conclusions, it
appears:
l. That majority of the board that
is entrusted with the conduct of the
business affairs of York county does
not recognize advertising space-how-
ever much labor and expense it may
require to make the same valuable
as a commercial commodity.
2. That majority of the board does
not Geem it important to inform the
public of numerous official matters
about which the legislature has all
along intended it shall have informa-
ton.
8. That in carrying out its peculiar
notions in regard to this matter, ma
iority of the board does not hesitate 10
usurp Jurisdiction, even in cases where
such jurisdiction was not intended by
the general assembly. In other words,
it enters upon it's last move not as a
matter of duty or responsibility; but
purely from what seems to be gratui-
tous desire to interfere with things
which in no way concern it.
The best known means of getting
certain information to the public is
through the newspapers, and the best
newspapers for use as medium, are the
ones which reach the largest number OF
people desired to be reached with a par
ticular kind of information. The best
newspapers-those which rely upon
merit for patronage-are necessarily
expensive in their production. Prop
erly directed labor and expense are
the principal elements which make
them sought after by the public. The
fact that they are sought after by the
public, gives value to their advertising
space, and the publishers, as busi-
ness proposition, are entitled to charge
more for that advertising space for the
reason that it has cost them more to
give it value. For public officials then
to assume to place all advertising
space on the same basis, regardless of
known value, seems to be, to say the
least, unjust.
But then another step. There are
three papers in York county-The
Herald, at Rock Hill, and The Yeo-
man and THE ENQUIRER, at York
Vile. The Herald does not claim to
circulate any papers west of Yorkville.
Suppose it is the lowest bidder. Are
the announcements of the three off,
cials mentioned to be placed in its
columns and then the assumption made
that the whole people have been in
formed? Or suppose The Yeoman
should be the lowest bidder. There
are localities into which that paper
does not 60 at all, and there are hun
dreds of subscribers to THE ENQUIRER
in York county who do not read The
Yeoman. Or suppose THE ENQUIRER
should be the lowest bidder. Both OF
the other papers have some readers
who do not read THE ENQUIRER.
Then where is the justice or common
sense of this proposition ?
But again, the law does not make it
incumbent upon the county board to
assume the guardianship of the audit
or, treasurer and superintendent of
education. The legislature has speci-
fed certain announcements that these
official must publish and the price at
which newspapers must publish them.
The county board has nothing to do
with the matter further than to see
that the publisher has not charged
more than he is entitled to charge, and
pay the bill. Ifthe auditor, treasurer
and superintendent of education de-
sire TO let out their advertising to the
lowest bidder, regardless of the matter
of informing the public, they have
right to do it; but it is beyond the
province of the county board of COM
missioners, and in fact none of the
business of that body.
The board of county commissioners
has right to let out its own advertls-
ing, of course, and it has done so.
This advertising is now being done
without cost to the public treasury,
however much it may cost the county
rs a whole. If the other officials de-
sire to pursue this narrow-minded,
short sighted policy, let them do so
but let them do so on their own re-
sponsibilty. In the matter of respon-