Evening journal., 1906-11-10
Saturday, November 10, 1906.
THosE ELECTION BILLs.

THOSE ELECTION BILLS.
TN YESTERDAYS Every Evening, caustic,
4 and we think somewhat unfair comment was
made about the printing of the ballots for the re-
cen, election Every Evening takes the position
that the printing OF the ballots should be put out
at public bid, and. of course, given to the lowest
bidder Fcr. .ordnary printing that plan might
be all right but ia such work as the printing of
ballots, where they must be completed at a given
time and SO printed OF, paper that one cannot
be detected from another, something more than
the lowest bid must be considered. There arc
but few printers in this city who could do such
work in accordance with the requirements. And
yet probably one-haf OF the printers in VIII
iningtou would bid on and undertake the work.
We do not know what charge will be made for
printing the ballots, but we are sure it will be
much less than it was when the old Democratic
Levy. Court gave the contract to job printer
who is a well-known Democrat, and whose enor-
nous bills TO the county were never objected to
by Every Evening. We do not mean that if
Every Evening was either ignorant or for any
other reason was silent when grating was going
on several years ago that it should not speak out
against the system to-day in cases where it actu-
ally exists
This matter was threshed over very thorough
ly two years ago. and our recollection is that the
charges for printing ballots then were not con-
sidered unreasonable, although the total amount
the taxpayers the county had to pay was very
considerable because of the carelessness OF the
Clerk of the Peace, who had printed nearly 10000
useless or unnecessary ballots .,lv
We sec no reason why the News Publishing
Company or any competent person should not be
given the contract at fair price to furnish the
ballots and other supplies, nor do we see the least
objection to a reasonable amount being added by
such personsto-he printers bill to compensate for
the amount Of work. care and trouble required in
preparing the ballots, after they have been re-
ceived from the printer for distribution to the
sevral hundred election officers by counting and
packing them with the other supplies in the sew
eral hundred boxes
There is another matter, however in connec-
ton with the ballots to which We would cali at
tenton, because it is OF far more consequence to
the taxpayers in that an euqrmous sum OF money
may be taken away from them without any ade-
quate return or compensation. Two years ago,
for experimenting the preparation and print
ing of the ballots the Clerk of the Peace made a
charge and received 81 500. The charge was hid
den away in one OF the long quarterly accounts
OF the Clerk of the Peace thus escaping the at
tention of the County Comptroller, otherwise il
certainly would not have been passed and paid
excepting over his protest 1t needs do discus
sion TO convince anyone that such charge is al
outrageous one, and 70 man or public ofhcia
who has any consideration for those who are tC
pay the money would make such charge for the
trihing service rendered. The ballots of the diff
ferent parties are all filed within twenty days Of
the election and if the Clerk OF the Peace re-
NAMED all OF those twenty days in his office, and
in addition to the $40 day he regularly receives
he made another charge OF $40 a day
which would be unreasonably large, it would
amount for the twenty days to only $500. 1t is
fact, however, that many of these twenty days
the Clerk of the Peace probably had not his at
tention drawn to the matter of the ballots FIVE
minutes. Having succeeded in gouging S15oc
from the taxpayers two years ago, the Clerk OF
the Peace will probably, if he considered his bill
lair and honest then, endeavor to make the
taxpayers hand over the same amount this year
We feel sure that any man in the Levy Court
who would allow larger sum than $500 for the
small service rendered by the Clerk of the >Peac,
10 connection with the printing and distributor
sf the ballots, does not intend to remain muci
longer in public lie.