The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1910-06-22
RIGHTS Or THE PRESS.
ADDRESS OF PRESIDENT KOHN
OF PRESS ASSOCIATION.
Timely suggestions as to- the Need of
Legislation On Libel Law and The
Legal Rate for Public Advertise
mcnts.

lima Press Association:
IL Is my pleasure To submit to you
this. my first statement as president
Of the South Carolina Press Associa-
ton.
The newspapers of the State Of
South Carolina have grown i'm num-
bers. AS a rule the papers are better
and are being conducted along more
businesS-like methods. There is room
for Improvement In many of the pa
pers. but this will come with greater
ability To- eXpend money I'm the MAX
Ing of the newspapers. AS a rule
good men. men of education and force
are entering nwspaper work and the
field Is well filled with young men.
Unfortunately the old guard the real
old guard men who suffered the strug-
giles OF founding newspapers when the
white readers were few and the dol
lars fewer, Is fast thinning out This
Press Association. the first of which
there Is record in this State. was or
ganized In Charleston May 6, 1875,
thirty-five years ago. There appears
twenty-seven nanes on the charter
roll. and of that number l recognize
only Ave as being alive Major j. C.
Hemphill, then OF the Abbeville Med
ium: Thomas G.. White, then of the
Beaufort Tribune; -. *. Harman. of
the Lexington Dispatch. T. b. Crews,
OF Laurensville Herald. and r. A.
Thompson. Of the Keowee Courier.
The others have al gone to the great
beyond. Dawson ant lToyt and Muir
ray and Logan and K. r. Hemphill
and Geneker and Melchers are all
being replaced by young men, full of
the enthusiasm and energy that these
men possessed.
Peace and Prosperity.
The Press Of South Carolina is to-
day In the midst Of peace and pros
perity; II has helped to bring about
these fortunate conditions and let us
hope that they will continue.
The prices of practically all COM
modities have gone up. 1t costs more
for your clothes. and pretty much
everything else. than il did ten years
ago. Your labor. your paper. your
material are perhaps costing you
more than in former years. but you
have not raised the price of your pa
per. You have. however. gotten on
a more business-like basis and are
making better collections. There are
legitimate sources of revenue that are
not properly protected. Let me call
your attention to one matter-legal
advertising. There does not appear
90 be any established rate. At the
recent session Of the General Assem-
bly, statute was enacted providing
5000 for all public advertising In
Lancaster County. and if this was
not accepted then all notices were to
be posted. The only State law as to
rates Is that which provides for adj
vertising notices OF election. The
maximum pay for such notices is
81. for 75 words for the first insertion
and so cents for 75 words for the
second or subsequent insertions. or
one and one-third cents per word for
the first insertion and three quarters
OF a cent per word for subsequent in
sertlons. and then matter is cut 10
the bones.
In Oklahoma / am advised that the
legal rate Is not more than one and
One-half cents per word for the first
insertion and one cent for each ad-
ditional insertion.
Ia Virginia.
In Virginia there is apparently no
legal rate. but the president OF the
Virginia Association advises that the
charge generally among the weekly
papers Is about cents per line each
insertion"
In Georgia the law requires "in
most cases four insertions. making
the total advertising fee SO 70 reach
100 words.
In Mississippi the rate Is quoted
"at one and one-half cents per word
for first insertion and one-half cent
per word for each subsequent inscr-
tion. Tn" law requires three consccu-
tive inst tons. and In some cases
four. and no posting Is permitted"
In Louisiana the president of their
Association SAYS that they have an
unfortunate law providing for com
petltivc bids. II works well i'm some
cases. but In many instances the COM
petition Is SO strong that papers do
the advertising for nothing.