Freeland tribune. (Freeland, Pa.) 1888-1921, 1898-11-03
THE RECORD STEAL.

low the Publication of the Legisla-
tive Proceedings Is Made to DO Duty
for Machine Proteges--The Fright
fui Padding, Enormous Indices and
the Costly, Confusing and Exaspera-
ting Results--When the Contract
Price Falls the Cost to the Taxpayers
Increases - What An Honest and
More Intelligent and Useful Per-
formance ofthe Work Would Save.
The printing and distribution of the
Legislative Record involves a shame
fully reckless waste of the public
money, and, if it does not include a
straight steal, the facts which the fig
ures divulge show a mighty close ap-
proach to it. Its distribution by issues,
during the sessions, which was intended
to keep the people apprised of what
their servants at Harrisburg are doing
with their time and opportunities, was
for years scandal, owing to the dila-
toriness on the part of the publishers,
but even more specifically of the pas
ters' and folders departments of the
senate and house. The men appointed
~ SNi VIZ IA tliioG dtptl liIlCilNS dIt lHe
working politicians in the districts of
those senators and members who have
the strongest pull during the sessions.
They receive close to 81, 900 per session
as salary, but a large proportion of
them never do any of the work. They
are content to pocket the pay and per-
ouisites and to appear upon the rec
ords as pastors and folders, but either
because they regard it as demeaning,
or because they have something else
to employ their time, or because they
are adverse TO toll of any kind, they
refuse to perform the incident labor
and employ substitutes to perform it.
at from one-fourth to one-half what
they receive from the state. These
substitutes are generally very cheap
ana incompetent men, often boys, and
as a result 1t is happening constantly
that even when the printing has been
reasonably prompt, the distribution is
unconscionably delayed, the pasting
and folding rooms being gorged with
stacks of the stuff which should long
before have been in the mails. How
ever, as has been stated there has re-
Gently been some little Improvement
IN thlS regard, because of the persist
ent and long continued protests of citl-
zens against being served with printed
copies OF proceedings month or two
old ana long after, as news, they had
lost all interest and value.
The total cost of the printing and
distributing of the Legislative Record,
as set forth in the various auditor gem
erals reports, was, in the years sever
ally named, as follows:
A'S' S2G,S2D
80 $3.50 '''''''' '''''..'''.....' 1obfD
1888 '..''..... ....... ............ 30 09t
800 " ''' '''''''''''''''' oo'lol
lc'i ......,-... .......... ........ AZ $50
The figure for 1897 is made up by ad-
ding the $500 paid on account in 1897
and the state treasurers estimate of
the sum required to complete the pay
ment in 1898.
preponderating element in this steal
Is the index. The reporting of the pro-
ceedinGs and the printing of the Rec
ord is paid for, under contract. at so
much per page. Bids are received and
the award mde to the lowest bidder. A
maximum price of $40 is fixed and
the competitors bid so much percentage
Off that price. The president of the
senate and speaker of the house make
the award and get, by the way, $1OO
each for the few hours spent in doing
it, while their clerk gets $50
The contract price for 1895 and 1897
was 1896 per page. This be it under
stood, is for both reporting and print
ing, $500 additional being always al,
lowed for the compilation of the index.
NOW, the ponderous tones that CON
tam the proceedings of the legisla-
tive session of 1897 cover a total of
6,02 pages, distributed as follows:
Iroceedlhgs ........ ..... ...3,732 pages
report aliens committee -. sos pages
Report penitentiary investl-
eating committee ... ...... 2S1 pages
InueN ''''.... ....... ....,2,237 pages
blank pages ............ pages
Iotal '''.....".. ......... 6,772 pages
Here are almost two-thirds as MANY
pages of index as there are in the re-
port proper. Add to these the 500
pages of reports and blank pages, and
we have a total of 3,O4O pages, or not
far from half of the whole number
which the state paid for as having
been stenosraphically reported, as well
as printed, whereas not a line in any
OF them was reported. Whatever is
the difference between the cost of re-
PoitlhS anu printing and that of the
printing alone is, as to these S,04O pages
sheer robbery. The volumes are pad
ded by reports. index, etc, to the ex-
tent of over so per cent of the total
payment. and this is exclusive of the
constant repetitions and not only use
less, but confusing superfluties in the
proceedings themselves, and which, it
is safe TO say, constitute fully two
thirds of the total bulk. What this
padding costs at 1896 per page, inde-
rendently of that in the proceedings
proper, is as follows:
ihueh ''..s.,. ....... ......., IS S5S. so
Aliens report ..... ...... 2.237 40
Penltentiary report ........... 91476
Blank pages ..... ............ 27.72
i'''i ''''''' '''''''''. Sl2, US. 40
An infinitely more intelligent and sat
isfactory record of the sessions pro-
ceedings could have been compressed
into about 1000 to 1900 pages without
sacrificing word of the ''elouuence" of
the senator's and members which, 1t is
fc