Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1904-12-20
a Word About the Printing.

cas-. throughout the state relative 10
the state Printing which, because OF
certain false and misleading assertions
which II makes, and the erroneous I'M
pressions, it is. therefore. hao'e u
create. would seem TO call for some at
tention.
AM citizen who aspires to public OF
Ace owes It to himself and to the pup''c
IN h. accurate in his statements
especialIy when his appeal for support
takes the form Of a personal attack up
on his competitor. We would therefore
call attention to few OF the places
IN which the letter above referred to Is
erroneous and misleading.
Tn the first place an effort has been
made to give the impression that III
some mysterious and unexplained way
the Public Printer has been Responsible
for the increase in the number Of state
dennrt.ocnts and institutions and for
the larger volume Of business done oS
the old State Departments ana by the
Maine Legislature. as compared with
the number Of departments and inso-
tutions and the volume Of business done
more than two decades ago.
This il r,anifestly absurd. The Leg
islature Of Maine has fixed by statute
law tic prices to BE- paid for printing.
II ia evident. therefore, that the total
cost OF printing to the State will de-
pend entirely upon the work the
printer is ordered 20 10 by the Legls-
lature and BY the Governor and Couh-
eli.
The present law grew out or the
recognition by consecutive Lesisla-
lures:
First. OF tho necessity Of having the
printing done at the State capital. IN
close touch with the state departments.
Second. OF having plant big
enough and efficient enough TO meet
the supreme test of legislative session
In luuttlVn 10 all JtIiei uSihah@S >AA~~
could be made upon it.
II was The recognition of the necessi-
~ of having such a plant at the Capt.
ia, that led the printing committee NJ
the Legislature Of 1895 TO unanimously
report the present law ana the Leg1Sla :
ture to give it unanimous passage.
The members Of that committee were
on the part OF the Senate: Hon. Edward
W,grin. Master Of the State Grange:
Hon. a. II. Savage. now justice ot
the supreme court. and Hon. Charles
II. Prescott Of Bideford. proprietor Of
the Biddeford Journal.
On the part OF the House:
Hon. George w. Abbott OF Bucksport.
Hon. Charles w. Coffin of Bangor. Hon.
A. NJ. wclch of Kennebunk. Hon. 7. ).
Burns Of Westbrook. Hon. l.. c. Whit
ten Of Carmel. Hon. John a. Spear Of
West Gardner and Hon. William
Dickey OF Port Kent.
The prices to be paid for printing
were fixed by this committee. upon the
basis Of the accepted bid. and were the
lowest In the history of the State-con-
siderable lower than the then existing
prices paid by private parties for COM
mcrcial printing. This was true Of them
then and II is true Of them now when
a ten hour working day has been super
ccdcd by nine hour working day. and
when printers wages are materially
higher than they were in 1895. The COM
mittec only reached an agreement on
these prices after personal conference
with leading printers in various parts
of the State
These prices were and are as follows
Book composition per 1000 ems. q cts
Job composition per 1000 ems. ;.....S cts
Book press work per 500 impressions ~ { S
job work per 500 iinprcssions..-....a3 CTS
Hour work .....-..........-..''.''' vs.
We shall be glad to leave it to any
the leading printers Of Maine to "a!
whether or not these prices are high o
whether they admit of an undue mar
gin for the printer.
II will be seen that the cost OF tn
printing is entirely dependent upon tn
amount Of work which the Legislature
and the Governor and Council order tn
printer to do.
Since the annual appropriation o
5000 was made for the printing Their
have been no deficiencies. On an aver
age, less than one-han OF the appro
priation for the Australian ballot ha
been paid for printing and this has in
clutied the folding which Is done b
hand and the counting into package
Of 60 each, II will be seen. therefore
that the attempt of Mr.. Nichols I
make it appear that the printer get
the whole Of this appropriation is. t
state it mildly. exceedingly mislead
ing.
The public printer has never. as Nj
Nichols intimates, received one dolla
from the appropriation for stationer.