The Kalispell bee. [volume] (Kalispell, Mont.) 1901-1901, 1901-07-08
OFFICIAL CITY PAPER.
MONDAY, JULY 8, 1901.

formation leading to the arrest
and conviction of anyone steal.
ina the Bee from subscribers. MI
AS A BUSINESS PROPOSITION.
There is such thing as newspa-
per overshooting the mark when it |
goes cunning for political adversaries.
and as high shooter the local repub-
lican organ is a conspicuous success.
About every three months the Inter-
Lake becomes possessed of pretend |
ed solicitude for the interests of the |
taxpayers and proceeds to attack the |
county commissioners, two of whom |
happen to be democrats, for extrav-
agance in the use of the public money.
The word pretended" is used advised |
ly, for comparison of the words and
the works of the Inter Lake leave no
escape from the conclusion that it's in
terest in the matter of economy in the
expenditure of public money extends
only so far as it has not the opportuni
ty of being direct beneficiary. Most
of the taxpayers of this county have
had more or less dealings with the
Inter Lake in the matter of land no
tees. Parties under the necessity of
having such notices published have
frequently come to the Bee and have
been quoted rate materially lower
than that exacted by the Inter Lake
for such publications, but they have
invariably met with the dictation Of
the land Office officials that the Inter
Lake, being the official republican or
gan of the county, such notices must
be published therein, rate or no rate.
Now the Bee is not criticising this
action on the part of the land Office
officials and the Inter Lake-the prac-
tice has many commendable features
on the score of political expediency-
but it is highly unbecoming for a
newspaper which thus avalls itself of
an opportunity to- hold up" the rural
population to prate about official ex-
travagance in other quarters with
which it is not politically allied.
However, this republican practice
of holding the homesteader and tax.
payer while the Inter-Lake skins him
does not excuse democratic incompe
tency and extravaganza if it exists
but if there is one thing the Inter
Lake shows conclusively in it's two
columns of fault-finding and figures, /,
is that the present democratic coun
ty administration is giving the tax
payers better results for less none!
per capita than they ever had before
The Inter-Lake says that in 1897 tn
financial condition of the county wa
such that public meetings were he'll
and addresses issued to the count
commissioners requesting them to us
every possible means to cut down tn
expenditures. Then it proceeds t
show that the county expenses for tn
year 1897 amounted to $61,639.7;
while for the year 1901 the expense
for half the year have been SAT ,9S6S
or more than two-thirds of what the
were for the entire year of 1897 whe
public meetings of protest were b
ing held. Now, that appears to |
very bad, indeed, but strange to So
there is at this time no suggestion
public meetings of protest. On IL
contrary the taxpayers seem very We
satisfied. If the Inter Lake is rig
they should be up in arms, but tn,
are not. Why not? Does the Int
Lake know? OF course it knows, b
it would not agree with the Int
Lakes labored effort to make t
worse appear on the better cause
it to tell. 1t assumes that the av,
age taxpayer is too ignorant or t
indolent to investigate and will ,
cept the Inter Lakes palpable and d