The Topeka state journal., 1902-05-07
BIDS ARE ALL IN.
State Text Book Board Now Has
the Documents.
Consideration of the Books Com
menced Today.
ALLOWED 10 MINUTES.
Each Representative Must Tell
His Story Briefly.
Forty Companies Have Submit
ted Bids For Books.

Promptly at o'clock Tuesday after
non the state textbook commission
shut down on receiving bids on school
books. Immediately afterwards the
bids We're opened and the work of
classifying them was begun. AS this is
part of the secret work of the com
mission. no information concerning the
bids viii be made public until after the
commission completes it's work.
Today the commission commenced the
consideration of the various books. The
order in which the different subjects
will be passed upon will be as follows
Physics.
History.
Physiology.
Spelling.
Readers.
Mental arithmetic.
Geography.
Arithmetic.
Algebra.
Physical geography.
Bookkeeping.
Civil government.
Grammar.
Writing.
The representatives of the various
competing companies will be allowed ten
minutes each to explain the merits of
each book as the various subjects are
taken up. AS there are about forty
firms bidding, and some OF them are bid
ding on most Of the subjects. it can be
easily seen that the commission Is good
for a ten-day session in all probability.
Some of the firms, however, are bidding
on only two or three lines OF books.
The American Book company is bid
ding on practically the entire line. This
is why it has so many representatives
here. Some of them are specialists in
certain lines of books, but know nothing
about other lines. Each man win push
HE 4
There is a spirited rivalry among the
agents for the various companies, but
it is for The most part good natured.
They tell stories on one another, and
there is a great deal of good humored
chatting" There have been strained
relations, however, between G. G. Bur
ton. now with Crane & Co., and the
representatives of the American Book
company. Burton was the Kansas rep
resentative Of the American Book COM
pany until about six weeks ago. when
he went into the employ of Mr. Crane.
Mr.. and Mrs. Burton have been stop
ping at the ThrOOp, and through mis-
understanding Burton and J. B. Blazer,
an agent of the American Book COM
pany got into a little physical alterca-
tion in the corridor of the hotel.
The sessions of the state text book
commission are held in the rooms of
the live stock sanitary comm ission on
the third floor of the state house. The
meetings are, of course extremely Sc
CfeJ, as the members OF the cOnnlS-
sion are strictly prohibited by law from
allowing any information relative TO
the business of the commission to be
made public until it is all over.
The school book men claim that the
value of the contracts have been great
" overestina ted, but just the same
they are well worth looking after. D.
W. Little assistant state superintend-
ent, believes the school books to be
bought during the next five years. the
time which the contracts win cover,
will amount to approximately 81 600 900.
Some of the agents admit that this may
be a correct estimate, but others say it
is too high. Other people, aside from the
book agents say it will run far over a
million dollars. The book men them
selves do not agree as to the probable
value of different contracts. Here is an
estimate which a State Journal reporter
secured from one of the agents. who
claims to have carefully canvassed the
situation:
Spoilers .......... ................$ 40 GOO
Readers ............ ............. 100 600
Arithmetics .......... ........... 100000
Biographies -.-.......... ...... 100 600
Grammars Observation-Disclosures. $4,000
Histories ....... .............. 30 600
PhysiolOgies ....... . 5000
Civil Governments. nts............ 5000
Algebras ........... ........ 10000
Physical geogra phies .......... 25 900