Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1902-10-21
Some People Complain About
Board of Controls Way of
Doing Business
DEMOCRATIC PAPER TAKES 1T UP
Board Has Found That Dealers Object
to Having Their Prices Published
When They Give the State Inside
Fisures-secretary Martin Refuses
Home Investment Companies.

| Special to Times
| Des Moines, Oct. 21.-A democratic
| newspaper at Davenport has made an
attempt to stir up threadbare COM
to the failure of the state board of con-
| troll to publish to the world the prices
| the state is paying for every article of
consumption at the various state insti-
! tutions. The demand is made for pub
| licity. 1t is stated that Davenport
| business house has serious complaint
against the state board, that it has sub
mitted many bids on goods desired for
| the state, that samples have been sent
at considerable expense, that there is
evidence that the samples have never
been examined at all, that the firm has
| been unable to learn the prices of the
successful bidders, altho an effort has
been made to do so. All that is done by
the board Is to make an announcement
| that certain firms have secured the
contracts for the quarter, but prices are
not published. The Davenporters want
not only the price of the successful bid
ders, but those of all others published.
This matter has been gone over before
at various times. The board, when
first organized. gave to the newspapers
in Des Moines and all others who cared
to know, statements of all the bids Of
| fered and the contract prices on the
goods desired for the state. This looked
4 all right on the surface. But the suc-
cessful bidders did not like it and quite
| a number of the best bidders. whether
| they got contracts or not, practically
notified the board that unless there was
| less publicity to their bids they would
have to stop submitting bids. Their
argument was that they were in some
cases, at least, giving prices to the
/ state, a large customer and sure pay.
| that they would not like to give to a
private customer. If their offers to the
| state board We're published broadcast
| their private customers would have a
1 right to complain when asked more for
,li.e .:.,14e 81 Sie:s. z is ,S@rla nor ne
/ true in all lines, but il would be in some
Iof the most important. For this reason
land this alone, to please the bidders
/! and not otherwise, the policy was
/ changed and the newspapers are not
given all the bids nor the prices of the
successful ones. But it is also true, as
| has been repeatedly published, that the
! bids are all on file and are kept, and
any one who has any cause Of COM
plant or who questions the regularity
| of any award or who can show that he
lis directly interested in the matter, can
! have access to all the facts and figures.
Those who have had direct dealings
with the board here feel that any criti-
| cism of the board which questions the
fairness with which the public business
is transacted by them is unjust. 1t has
been sugges ted, however. that the board
might cause to be published at the end
of each year the bids and contracts on
+ all public matters, in pamphlet form, at
a time when no possible harm could
come to the firms competing by making
known to competitors or customers
their prices to the state.
= =
The prohibitionists have compiled
list Of the voting precincts in Which
| they are entitled to one of the judges of
election. and are urging the local pro-
hibitionist committeeman to insist up
on their rights. These are precincts in
the state where the prohibition vote
last year was greater than the demo-
Gr0IlC VOTE. LueTe, dIe llltS VI
these precincts. and in each and every
one the prohibitionists have right to
Judge of the election instead of the
democrats or the republicans. Three
of these precincts are in the city of Des
Nfoines. Strangely enough one of them
is in Sioux City and two are III Mar
shall county The others are scattered
about in the following counties: Boone,
p,,t1a oil
Gordo, Dallas, Delaware. Dickinson,
Fayette. Greene, Hardin, Jefferson,
Linn, Mitchell. Pocahontas, Sac. Story,
| Tama and Wright.
Capt. j. A. T. Hull, member of con-
gress from the Seventh district, is in
great demand at republiucan congress
sional headquarters as an adviser on
political matters. He arrived home
Monday, and in accordance with invi
tations sent out in advance. the COM
mittee chairmen met him here and re-
ported on the political situation in the
district. 1t was his intention to remain
here until election and ttake some part
in the campaign, but before he had
been home half day kilograms COM
menced to come from Chairman Bah
cock and others at headquarters urging
that he return as soon as possible toll
New York. He went over to Indianola
today. where Congressman Walter 1.
Siniht is billed for a speech and will
also talk at the meeting with Smith,
but he does not intend to make any for
NAL addresses in the campaign. So far
as can be ascertained there has been no
campaign made by the democrats in
the district and will be none. Capt.
Hull feels reasonably sure of his cleo
ton, even tho he does not make can-
#yass of the district in person.
Secretary of State Martin has now
been twice sued for trying to enforce
the latest law to prevent frauds and
deception. He has refused to file artt-
cles of Incorporation of certain compa-
MES projected to do a "home co-opera-
tive" business, so-called. and each time
suit has been brought to compel him
to file the articles. The latest is the
American Home Investment Company,I
another OF the numerous Kansas City !