The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1901-05-04
TALKS BY THE
PUBLISHER .x.x.s
City Advertising The Law and
The Tribune's Rate Card.1.S.S

4 $ "ihe publisher" was out ol the
IA city the latter part of last week.
- his customary Saturday 'talk
did not appear and the"uuestion oi the
city advertising. which was aWarueu
a day or two previous. was ieterteu'
The law in regard to the puDllcat'oh
of city advertising IL very specinc-
that IL. 1t would he If the papers were
only built" 10 conform with the law
1t stipulates that the contracts are 10
be let t. the lowest bidder, agat"
MEASURE, per line There is not Il
paper III scranton that uses agate
type aud yet bid; we're submitted on
this basis and contracts awarded
can the law compel these papers 10
Use agate type! II moi WHAT 'Hp'
are they at liberty to t,an? There are
fourteen lines of agate type Ill an
inch. and these bids were submitted
with the understanding that th" papers
publishing the advertising would re-
,eive pay for fourteen lines Tor every
inch occupied BY city advertising.
'rhe Republican and Times use non
pareil for their legal advertising,
twelve lines of which occupy an inch,
and the Truth is using minion type.
thorities intend to pay for fourteen
| lines when only ten and twelve lines
arrear? In placing Il price on DIS
| play advertising 1T Is customary 10
estimate fourteen lines to the inch.
| but legal advertising Is entirely ditfer-
cnt, it being charged for by the count
! line Probably the learned lawyer
who drew up this statute was familiar
| ,.tf
| used agate type in legal advertising,
| but that city was not Scranton. There
| is 10 provision in the law for the size
of type in which the advertising Is to
| be. sot The law does not even say
the citys advertising shall be pup
| lish,d in the type ordinarily used Tor
legal advertising. If the au'horlties
cannot compel the use Of agate. Is
there anything to prevent the use or
pica. which has only sis lines to the
| irch:
The Tribune knew that its bid was
irregular. according to the reading or
| The law, but it was no more Irregular
tEan the other bids submitted. when
the fl ct is considered that the papers
submitting those bids wcud be un!ble
to carry out the provisions strictly In
|
law. The Tr,bune', bid was strictly
an honest cne 1t has taken the stand
of treating every advertiser exactly
the SANG as every olher adNcri'Ser'
| whether n merchant, a CORPORATION or
| the city Of Scranton. In submitting Il
bid for the city advertising, Il copy OF
it's rate cara was sent to tho author-
tiles with the following paragraph un-
..l ,,,J,.n n,.ti is.in III
per line, first insertion; cents each
subseuuent insertion The Tribune
prints its legal advertising in nonpareil
type Twelve lines to tn inch, and the
charge would be made upon the basis
of twelve lines and not upon fourteen'
when only twelve wer" used.
| Another feature of this advertising
is. the number Of insertions each adj
| will receive Wa are informed that
some of the advertisements will be in
serted thIee consecutive times and
others four times. Tho Tribune's bid
u,ou a basis of three insertions, calls
for an average of so cents per inch
| What the other papers are to receive
cnnnot be- determined until their sworn
statements of circulation are submit
ted. There will probably De some in
,o"esting developments along this line
later.
We c,ner:ittilate our cont' mpofalleS
upon their success in this matter
particularly the republican. whose
bid wa. eight times larger than tha'
of the Truth. but the Times and Trutr
made a great mistake in not placing
their bids higher. as the game was en-
,irely tLeir own. SO long as rate cafds
mean nothing. these discrepancies VIII
he sure to CrCp ont.