Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1907-02-12
HOUSE.

{tE ilG III 81 liIOl lilliS ilOuSC 4SSSSlOli III
this assembly was held Monday and the
speaker says it is the intention to com
tinue them until the work is up to date
SO as to avoid as far as possible the.
rush and hurry so common during the
closing days.
The feature Of the morning session
came under the third reading of house
bills according to the house calendar
for the day, when H. B. 1876 was
reached. 1t was bill introduced by the
committee on public printing, bill
| referred back from general orders, an
act repeating section 1882 ClgO5) ], relat-
ing to public printing, the repeal Of the
act which provides that all public
printing must be done in the state.
Before the bill was read Mr.. Stevens
addressed the house preliminary to the
moving of motion that it be referred
back to the committee with the sugges-
ton that the section named be amended
| to include a protecting clause for the
benefit Of the printers of the state
| In a rather long address Mr.. Stevens
made careful, review of the public
printing matter and referred pointedly
to the agitation which had been before
the people during the last campaign and
how it had been impregnated with more
or less personal spite. He referred to
the alleged combine and strongly en-
| phasized the fact that there had been
no attempt to institute an investigation
i to find out whether the so-called COM
bine was holy or unholy. He said if
there is a combine, go after them and
/ wipe them out, but nothing had been
done in that direction.
Mr.. Stevens prefaced his remarks by
reading from the supreme court reports
of this state to establish the fact that
4 the law as it was was unconstitutional.
I He called the attention of the members
that they could not help but acknowl-
edge the benefits Of the protective tariff
that wheat, eggs and other products
were protected. He read from the CEN
sus reports which gave very fully the
status Of the printing business as an
industry in this state; that it was the
second largest industry in the state
milling being first, He quoted figures
showing the amount invested in ma
chinery and equipment, the number OF
employees and the, average and aggre-
gate wages paid out to them He
called attention to the extent and com
pleteness of the printing plants of the
Grand Forks Herald, the Fargo Forum
Walker Bros. & Hardy, Knight Print
ing Co. and others at Fargo, and the
Bismarck Tribune. At the present time
there were employed in the latter es-
Enlistment about seventy-fve employees
representing a payroll of over $1,000
every Saturday night. Mr.. Stevens
strongly eulogized Geo. B. Winship and
| he told of his struggles to build up his
office to its present high degree of ex-
cellence. He said that before the pas
sage Of the law as it stands there were
mot ten printing establishments in the
state with cylinder presses with power
attachments and the average investment
of a news and job Office was not much
more than $1,000. Now there are at
i least fifty Offices with power and cylin-
/ der presses and the average Office in
vestment is about $500. More than
that, today printing is done Is per cent
cheaper than it was four years ago be-
cause of the improved facilities for turn
4 ing out frst-class printing which have
/ been installed in nearly every Office in
the state. Mr.. Stevens called attention
TO the fact that state contracts had been
let and if the bill introduced passed il
would only affect the country newspaper
1 boys for the next two years. Closing,
/ Mr. Stevens said that the protective law
was one Of the best friends we had, il
enabled a man to. keep the clothes on
| his back the shoes on his feet and a
II nome 70 Sneitef& MIN 5sS as8g $#
Mr. Streeter told of his early strug-
a. giles as pioneer newspaper man, and
cited facts substantiating without q
show Of partiality the value Of the law
as it stood today He told how it was
possible to do printing now in this state
4 as well and at prices equal to any in
/ this country the printers Of the state
q were able 10 ill the bill for all needs
and he, was sure that the repeal Of the
present law would prove mistake.
]. A. Sorley Of Grand Forks was IA,
4 vorable to the motion to re-refer bach
TO the committee So that protective
feature could be introduced into ths
law. sSs
/. Nh, Mockler stated that up to til,
4 present time there had been no move
toward an investigation Of the alleged
combine. He urged consistency. Thi!
house a few days ago voted to havs