The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1898-03-09
COUNTY A9NERTlo.N5,
scne Very Sensible Remarks CT the
Subj C,

scne Very Sensible Remarks CT the
subj C,
We clip the following from tbs
Greenville News: To cut the prices Of
couDty advertising has become one OF
the settled habits o. the South Carroll
ma legislatures. Year after year, leg
islators wEo are as familiar with ad
vertisiDg rates and other matters per-
tanning TO newspapers SIS they are
gith the origin o. the Grrek alphabet,
pass laws AID spout speeches on the
sunj ct of advertising rates With
the exc, plion o. two or three printers,
not legislator can tell tie difference
between an IN" quad aud an INK
f0upt tain but they take TIE floor aDd
tell ii alp jus: tn same To the
States newspa oers, the county aGver
Using amountsto something although
i, has long since ceased 10 net them
large sum ia cash In many counties
the advertising is done by 8. least 10
papers for one price ard the prot. for
each is not colossal The legislators,
should, we think, deal With Ih9 public
advertising precisely as does John
Waonamaksr CT any other intelligent
merchant with his advertising. Thy
should buy the advertising space that
they ED pay fair price for it AID
stop bowling. In cur oiioion, the
ne Vspapers IL this State demands too
little They do entirely too much free
work They are constantly film
themselves with wnat arr properly
advertisements but which they publish
for thanks and the bill for thanks
usually goes to protest. Especially
is this true OF the couatry weekly
ns wspapsr. Hare are few examples
The South Carolina newspapers
slnost without exception publish
gratuitously the presentments OF grand
juri S These prasentments are Official
documents Ii they could not obtain
pu ollcity, they would be stripped OF
half their value. TO do good, their
contents, or the greater part OF the!n
must reach the people and only IL a
small degree can they reach the people
save through newspaper mediums.
Has any newspaper economis. IN the
legislator ever offered a bill 10 pay the
county newspapers for this official ad
vertisine-for which their constituents
nevertheless get value received! The
county newspapers Invariably print
the list OF petty jurors as soon as they
are drawn. That it is matter OF
great importance to the people Of a
county that they should know who
Ihe jurymen are will not be denied.
But there is no money in It for the
newspapers There are many other
examples of free county advertising
which will instantly suggest them
selves to newspaper men. On election
years the county newspapers publish
the calls for the State and county de
mocratic conventions and club meet.
ings. They amount to $40 or $50 worth
of advertising. The city newspapers
get something occasionally from the
city political organiz atoms but the
weekly newspapers get nothing save
in the rarest instances. And yet 1t IS
advertiser g-nothing more or less. It
is not county advertising out If the
county newspapers charged for It as
they have perfect right to do the
money would come ou! OF the pockets
OF the white people of South Carolina.
The amount of free official advertising
thatth weekly newspA pers have giyen
the State aud subordinate demccfStic
organizations in South Carolina dur
ing the last twenty Eve years, the
same sort of advertising that the large
newspapers in the larger cities, ike
Charleston, are well paid for, would
PROBABLY foot up to 100000 But it
is the democratic economists in the
South Carolina legislature who are
incessantJy on their feet to stab the
hum bic country newspaper. fhe only
answer to these facts that could be at
tempted is tha: the free matter pub
lished is worth something to the news
papers as news and that other wise It
would not be published That is true
but it is not perth Mt to the argument.
All advertising that is not in itself in
decat and offensive has value as news
The Announcements Of the grocer and
the dry goods man have valUe as news.
& ne sspaper without mercantile ad-
vertising would lack ore of the chief
attractions that lend newspsp RS in
terest. But nc merchant expects
space as gift. The railroad sched.
ules have value as news but the rail
roads willing ~ pay for them IN trans
porlation or money or both. Tne
county treasurer's repor: which the
newspapers are paid for publishing,
has great interest as news. Aud the
same is true of an advertis ement OF a
bridge contract to let o: OF the tour OF
the tax collector. But the newspapers
can not aft ord to publish these advec-
lisements for mere amusement or in-
struc:ion of their subscribers. The
newspapers must live Most Of them
have e hard time living and they die
by the dozen in South Carolina every
year. Yet they go on printing official
documents for the fun OF it and never
dream of asking what is justly due
them They are satisfied to remain on
The defensive, although it is the truth
thai the press of South Carolina is
poor today, actually to the point that
its poverty is stock JOKE, and II IS
chie fly on account of what i gives
away in work, not even asking CT ex
pecting ''thankee. It is high lime
that the worm should turn.
The Dangers octho Deep.
From March, 1870, until March
1898, 122 transatlantic vesssls-
steamships plying between Europe
and America onlv-Hele lost en- route,