Little Falls herald. [volume] (Little Falls, Morrison County, Minn.) 1889-1950, 1900-02-09

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Commissioner l,af.ad's csa,ls en- De
fease st als Actloa. I'll ). !; ];
:, The following letter from County
Commissioner George LaFond* j,
published at his request. - :, I'll i
cnAs E. .yAsAhr, En,roR or The :HsRA1p
DEAR SlR:- -: r.,
In your editorials IN last tw O or threi
Issues Of your paper you have been con
tinualIy attacking me and my action ii
reference to the tax matter OF ti,e Ant:
Iers hotel. You have falsely charged
that my action robbed the county @:ou,
OF $1,000. Although you welt knew tina,
my action was the came as that of each
and every other Of the county commits:
siopers before whom the matter came.
you attempted to hold me up in ridicnle
before the public. You vel! knew that
the action OF the county commissioners
in said matter was just and fair, and YET
you hold yourself az an honest man
honestly working for the interest of Thu
people. You pose Us q reformer. You
howl against trust" and YOU te!E ua
that trust ia monopoiy-an "unhoiy
combination" formed for the purpose: Of
defrauding the common people; and You
hold up your immaculate hands in holy
horror as you howl about the unclean.
ness OF those against them you .in-
Weigh. y: =
Permit me- to request that you furnish
the readers OF your invaluable paper
with further light by answering the fol-
lowing qnestiOns. j
l. Is it not a fact that the legislature
en- acted a statute limiting the price which
might be charged for legal printing; that
in framing that law they took into con
sideration the fact that one paper may
be worth many times az much as ali.
other as au advertising medium, that,
for instance. the St. Paul Globe, Pioneer
Press or the Minneapolis Journal anI
other tapers OF like Importance aod cir
cutation would be worth maty times I'd
much as al advertising medium as would
be paper like the Little Falls Herald
tRe Little Falls Transcript or any other
paper with tt circulation would likely
get in county like Morrison? -
a. lsi it not "A fact thai the Legislature
in framing aaid law placed the maxjmum
price which might BE- charged Tor the
publication of legal matter so>high that
IT would be a reasonable remuneration
for publication. in: any paper published
idethes state, expectiaaa stl,as..the spr;;s1r lpr;;1
charged by any publication would be- 10
proportion to the value of the adyertis-
ing medium used? =;
3. Is it not fact that the value OF
any of the great papers Of St. Paul or
Minneapolis as an advertising medium is
many times that OF any paper published
in Morrison county, and the rates which
any OF those papers receive ia many times
the rates which you receive for like ad-
vertiai7g save legal printing? "
4. Now trust is an 'sunholy conbin-
ation'' formed for the purpose OF de-
frauding the good people, do you know
anything about such tru It's? Did you
ever help TO form any? Do you belong
to any now? Do you know about the
Morrison County Democrat, Little Falls
Transcript and the RoyaIton Banner?
IRE not these together with yours, the
only newspapers in Morrison comfy.
and are they not the only papers III said
county, which under our laws. are per-
mitted to publish legal notices? We're
not these all being published in the year
1896?
5. ls it not fact that there was no
combination among these papers in
1896; that each and all OF said papers
submitted bids for the county printing
for that year?
6. Is it not fact because Of that
competition you bid cents Der folio
for the publishing Of the proceedings Of
the board. * cents Der description for
publishing the delinquent tax list and
20 cents per folio for 3 insertions of the
financial statement; that the Democrat
bid 3 cents per folio tor the proceedings
OF the hoard. 4 cents per description for
delinquent tax list and IA cents for 3
insertions Of the financial statement:
tn at the Transcript bid 6 cents Der folio
for the proceedings of the board. only
2 cents per description for DELINQUENT
tax lists aud only 10 cents per folio for
three insertions Of the financial state
mrnt, and all this was because there
wasno 'unholy combination" to de-
fraud the people of Morrison county.
:. Is it not a fact that pursuant to
these bids the county paid, for all it's
printing for the entire year to the. four
newspapers :of the comfy The sum OF
.$281. .1e? i.