Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1899-03-09
COUNTY BOARD-SPEcIAL SESSION
County Clerks Office.

calling the meeting was to hear the
report of the printing committee.
The report was read by Mr.. John
G. Martin as follows:
To the Honorable Board of Supervi-
sors of Iowa county Wisconsin:
Gentlemen:-Your committee on
county printing To whom was refer
red the matter of county printing, as
! per resolution of your honorable
body at the adjourned session held
January 4to to 9Th. 1899. beg leave to
make the following report
| pursuant to agreement your COM
mittee met at the county clerks Of
flee, in the city of Dodgeville, on the
l4th day of January, 1899, for the
purpose of preparing "A schedule of
what printing the county would need
the next two years. In order to pre-
| pare schedule that would contain
all the county printing (for your COM
mlttee found that the schedule of
two years ago had only part of the
county printing, large amount be-
ing omltted) your committee had to
examine all the printing bills for the
two years past, in order to ascertain
what the county had bought and
pald tor trom that we could form
an idea OF what would be needed in
the next two years, also the number
or each Kind of blank; by that
means we could order specified
number. BY comparing the bids of
the several printers of two years ago
your committee found great differ
ence. This led us to look for the
causes. We were not long in discov-
erIng that the successful bidder, Mr..
A. ). Hearn, was exceedingly low on
those things which were not much
used, and very high on those things
that many are needed. Your com
mittee found it necessary chat GER
tain number should be ordered at IA
time, so that number was put in the
schedule whenever we could deter
mine the amount needed. BY so do
ing it would serve as guide to de-
ternine which bid was the lowest
and best.
Your committee also found, when
examining the printing bills of the
past two years, that Mr.. A. :. Hearn,
who was awarded the contract for
the county printing two years ago,
had deviated from the spirit of the
contract IN several instances, espec-
tally on envelopes, there being quite
Il difference between contract price
and what he received-abOut $1,000.
Not being able to complete our
work we adjourned to meet on the
10Th of January. We meet on that
date and continued our work; pre-
pared a schedule containing what, in
our Judgment, the county would need
and have to pay for, including the
publishing of the notices of judicial
election, the list of nominations and
information, the publishing of of
fetal canvass of votes, notices of tax
sales, etc, the right of which some
of the printers of the county question.
But your committee believes it
comes under the scope of your reso-
luton.
Your committee, after completing
the schedule, had it carefully pre-
pared, by being written by IA type
writer Ga copy Of which is here pre-
scented for your inspectiou). Had a
copy sent by the county clerk to the
several printers of the county, ask
ing them to bid on the same by the
9th of February, 1899, at o'clock in
the afternoon. Your committee met
on that day, at the Office of the
county clerk, for the purpose OF
opening bids and awarding the con-
tract to the lowest and best bidder,
but finding no bids had been filed
and 40 printer present, and bellev-
ing. from the best information We
could obtain, that a conspiracy had
been formed by some OF the princi-
pal printers of the county against
the people of the county, represented
by your honorable body, by agreeing
| between themselves to ignore your
committee and the resolution which
you passed, thinking by that means
10 compel the county TO have It's
printing done by them, they to get
whatever they may see fit to charge.
Not only did they conSpire, but GER
tain of the number tried to have
some of the county officers, if not
| all, to disregard the schedule, and
order their printing of them as usual,
and ignore the wish Of your honor
able body, who have the desire to
economic on the county printing
which cost this county last year the
sum of S2O63,Yl for the last two
y
contract to the lowest bidder, S3,O99.34,
according to the bills audited and
allowed, some If which were dis
counted 900.
Your committee deeming the stu
alton to be one that needed the at
tention of your honorable body to
receive our report, discharge Us, and
determine VINO runs this county,
whether ii is you, the representatives.
| of the people, or Few printers oil
| the county, or further instruct u to
| procure bids from printers outside Of
| the county, as by your resolution We
were limited to this county. Your
| committee called in Supervisors :.
! w. Reese and Edward Bergman to
| advise with Us as to what was best
| to be done, and with their advice
| your committee circulated petition
to have your honorable body meet
at this time on this special occasion
for the purpose as above stated.
! All of which il most respectfully
submitted.
w. J. PEAKCE,
j. {. MARTIN,
W. }. ROBERTS,