The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1903-05-18
POLK COUNTY SUES
Publishers Have to Defend Alleged.
0vercharges in County Print
ing Bills.
Public Examiner Denies Charges Of
Local Influence and "Spite
Work.

Public Examiner S. T. Johnson has re-
turned from Crookston where on informa-
ton a suit has been brought against the
publishers Of the county for overcharges
in county printing, amounting to over
$1,000. He has been furiously assailed by
the ~Crookston Times, which charges him
with pursuing a personal motive and act
ing at the instigation Of n. S. Gordon,
publisher of the Crookston Journal, who is
not defendant in these actions. Mr..
Johnson made his first public statement
this morning Of the difficulties at Crook
stOn. He said:
'"There is absolutely no truth in the
charge that Mr.. Gordon has had anything
to do with the steps taken by this de-
partment in Polk county; nor has any
other individual CT set of individuals had
any influence whatever upon the depart
ment work or my official action.
Gin the regular examination Of the
county in accordance with the provisions
of law, my deputies discovered what they
| believed to be irregularities in the bills
of the engineering department of the pub
lie bitches, and in the bills of the official
printers. These matters were referred to
| the governor, and on his advice a con-
ference was held with the attorney gem
erals department, from which department
| a representative was sent to accompany
me to Crookston. On his request GER
| tain witnesses were summoned and testi-
| mony taken, which when written out was
handed to the. assistant to the attorney
! general, having left Crookston. Without
any further advice or suggestion from me
this evidence was taken before the grand
! jury and indictments We're found against
! George A. Ralph. So quietly had this in
vestigation been made UP to this time that
| neither of the daily papers Of the town
then, knew what we were there for. Mr..
Ralph was indicted and arraigned before
I again visited Crookston, nor was there
| any consultation concerning that matter
or any other between myself and Mr..
| Gordon.
Acting on the same legal advice, /
| caused careful measurement to be made
Of the public printing for the last six
years and the figures to be carefully tab
/ ulated. When completed this showed on
| the face of the records on file in Polk
| county overcharges of over $1,000, which
l believe is practically admitted by the
publishers. They excuse it by saying that
they printed in BREWER type and by agree
ment with some commissioner billed it as
i tho it was printed in nonpareil. Brewer.
of course, is a larger type and takes more
space. These figures were turned in about
three months ago to the county attorney
of Polk county. am informed that he
at that time drew the complaints against
the several papers in the syndicate headed
by the Crookston Times. I had no further
conference with the county attorney on
| the subject until my arrival in Crookston
last Wednesday morning, when / was in
formed by him that he had filed his suits
the day before for the recovery of this
money. Neither Mr.. Gordon nor any one
| else except the officials before named
have had any connection with any OF
/ these matters. AS before stated it all
came about in the ordinary course Of the
work of the department., and has been
done without any personal feeling on m,
part, and in fact was without any posi-.
BILE knowledge as to the parties in inter
| est"