The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1899-01-05
THE PUBLICATION OF COUNTY
BOARD PROCEEDINGS.


thoss who are ANXIOUS that their private
grievance should appear as public
wrong. describes his action as "a fraud
upon the taxpayers" The fraud consists
10 the failure OF the committee appointed
by the county board to award the con.
tract for Publishing the proceeding of the
county board in The Citizen. The bid of
The Citizen was u cents per folio. That
OF The Pilot 40 cents per folio. The con-
tract was awarded The Pilot for reasons
deemed sufficient by the committee, and
without wori of solicitation OF the part
of the proprietor of The Pilot. There is
not publisher of a newspaper in the
state who will say that 40 cents per folio
is not just and fair coz pensation, neither
excessive nor insult lent. There Is not a
publisher of a paper 10 the state who
Will not say that a bid of II cents per
folio is SO much beneath the value OF the
services proposed to be rendered that sus
| picIon is at once aroused. there was no
c)ntest between the papers bidding of
8 ich nature rs would justify any one of
them In making a bid entaillng q loss
to itself for the mere pleasure of prevent
ing the others from being successful
The Citizens bid was such that none OF
it's competitors could do the work at the
rate It fixed without loss, if they valued
their space, as orders received weekly
from advertising agents, and weekly re-
| iectej, offer better remuneration. pap
er's space is worth a certain sum. 1t is
it's main source Of revenue. The con-
mittee was charged with the duty of Civ
ing publicity 10 the proceedings of tie
county board. The price asked by III e
Citizen was snch as to raise the suepicio n
that it could not give the publicity which
1t was the purpose of the board to secure
1t was not matter Of saving few dol.
lars but procuring the best service.
The Citizen may have been wrongtd d.,
but if 20 1t had the means of prevention
by submitting its books to the committee
MI. Maertz asked the proprietor of This
paper if he would furnish the committee
With its subscription books. This was
done and this request was the only com
munication the proprietor had directly
or indirectly with the committee or with
CT member of it.
When The Citizen says the former
price was only 20 cents per folio, half
| init iS tnI1 70 ha
OF incorporating. When 20 cents per
folio was paid, each one of the four Eng.
lish papers set up one fourth of the pro
caedings and they we're run off in supple.
ment form. There was i1st one-fourth
the work for each that will bs required
with one paper assuming the whole charg4
This The Citizen knows, as it has at
all times since publication in all the pa
pers has been In vogue, received from the
county 20 cents per folio for the proceed
ln2s, doing nothing except to set up its
share, being one-fourth, not using an inch
OF its space. Relieved of the Croub lie of
making up or press work. No expense
for paper, pressman, fuel or ink. 1t did
not hesitate to take 20 cents per folio
then. Now,lt proposed doing for Is cents
PER folio, four times the setting up and
! distributing, 10 addition furnishing paper.
ink and fuel, doing it's own press work
with expenses incident thereto. Wer
not the proceedings news IN the past as
well as now? Truly, if 10 cents per folio
Is fair compensation, Chairman Maertz
has done wonderful stroke of work 10
The county's behalf 10 cutting off the 20
cent rate.
So far as doubling the comDensation
o. The Pilot" goes, it now does four times
the work for double the former rate. Not
much doubling In that, is there? The
Pilot would much prefer the old method
so far as pecunlary compensation goes.
The proprietor of The Pilot did not know
until after the adjournment of the board
that such resolution as that under dis.
cussion had been offered or passed ard
expressed disapproval of it at once.
The Citizen says the printing was let
|
please. Hes Mr.. Maertz ever sought any
political office? Does Mr.. Schsffi .ad owe
The Pilot any good will for political fav.
ors? 1t conceded his excellence as an
officer but gave hearty support TO bis CD
ponent. Did Schaffland have a debt to
pay 10 the line of favor? He never acts
except for good reasons aid is seldom
swa ed by fear or prejudice.
Mr.. Maer'z never asked favor of The
Pilot nor has he been asked to hestow
one. When he became member of the
county board, it soon became evident b
would attain leadership He was a hard
! worker, cautious, aggressively independ
ent and could not be made tool by any
one. He earned recognition by his solid
Judgment and his iearlessness. He is q
man who cannot be used by The Pilot
and all the other papers of the county
combined.
The Citizens hint that there was q
combination between The Pilot and
=, Chronicle is maladrolt, As two papers
com bIning, with 10 cent per folio paper
10 the field, would be folly even It other
considerations would not prevent such 6
step being taken.
The Pilot thinks that publication oil
, the proceedings of the county board il
one paper is not sufficient and while cub
l1catlon IN all is too expensive, pubIics
10 IN one only, does not fully meet the
. purpose intended by publication. Nher
all the papers we're used the cost was
81 200. 1t will not be much more thar
one-sixt h OF that now, 81 that the Echemt
] with which Mr.. Maer'z is charged has
been a saving of $1,000 to the people
though one The. Plot does not who,
ly commend. But if he is TO be charged
with increasing the expense S125, beyond
what was possible he certainly is entitled
a to credit for an actual reduction of 81 600
Everything paper publishes Is news
All advertisements are such or they woulC
3 not be read. The tax list which the Citi
zan published and for which it received
full legal rates, is news. 1t Is a false ide
, Of business to assume that a paper mus