The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1909-09-15
State Accounting Board Will
Consider School Sup
plies Matter.
COMBINATION REPORTED
OFFICIALS LEARN THAT CON-
PANlES FURNISHING THE SUP.
PLIES HAVE REACHED A CON-
PLETE UNDERSTANDING.

indianapolis, Ind, September 15.-
The state accounting board is to he
called on to decide an important ques-
ton with reference to the filing OF
bids for furnishing school supplies to
the various townships of the state.
Since the bids for supplies and the
contracts let for them will come under
the inspection of the accounting board
this board will have much to do with
keeping things straight.
According to word that has reached
the board there is combination
among the school supply men of the
state to fix prices and control the bus
mess in 1915 townships. This has
not yet been established. but it is one
= the things that the board will look
The story goes that there is one firm
in this city that does not belong to the
combination, and this firm is having
hard time to fight the combine Here
is the way the story goes as it has
reached the board:
Was Called Last June.
Last June a meeting was called o.
all of the school supply houses in the
city, and the outside firm was asked
to send a representative to the meet
ing. At this meeting an agreement
was reached among all the firms ex-
cept the outsider to fix the prices OF
all supplies at certain figures. The
rest of the supply men present sup.
posed, from the fact that he was at
the meeting, that the Independent man
would abide by the agreement. But a
few days later they found that his
house had sent out to every township
trustee in the state blanket bid COW
ering every item of supplies that are
needed in the schools, and the prices
quoted were those in effect before the
meeting of the combine had boosted
them. Along with each bid this firm
sent each trustee bond, as required
by law. thus filing its bid in every
township in the state at the same time
and at lower figures than the combine
would offer.
There was CONSERVATION in the COM
bine ranks, and a member was sent
to see the independent firm. The
latter. however, insisted that 1t was
not bound by any agreement as to
prices, and it refused to change Its
policy. Then the combine undertook
to force the Independent firm out OF
business. When the Independent firm
tried to buy some goods in the East 1t
was informed by the manufacturer
that he could not sell it any more
goods.
In some instances, trustees who. 1t
seems, wish to buy of the combine at
higher prices than they can buy the
same goods for from the Independent
firm, have refused the Independent bid
because. they say, it was not received
by them at the time provided by law.
The action of these trustees in thus
refusing the lowest bids will be looked
into by the accounting board.
It is understood that the accounting
board will inform the trustees that
they shall receive the bids whether
they were sent in to them at one time
or another.
In case the bids filed by the indie
pendent firm are held to be good and
they are known to be much below the
bids which have been and will be filed
by the combine firms, it will be inter-
esting to know how the trustees will
get around the independent bid. There
is a good deal of alarm among the
combine members