The Brookings register. [volume] (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1903-1971, 1912-02-22

maximum rate under the amendment
offered by the newspapers was to be
5000 a paper or $500 for the three IN
each county II there were no laws
submitted then it would cost the coun-
ties nothing. If, as is the case this
wear. there were a large number sub
mitted. then no paper could be paid
more than 5000. This vas the amend
ment which the newspaper boys on
tn. ground worked for, not the re-
teutiou of the old law, as Mr.. Curtiss
falsely states.
In a circular which Mr.. Curtiss is
sending broadcast over this district
he now states that the cost of his
publicity pamphlet" will be about
$1,000. He is not quite as far off
in that statement as he was when he
emphatically announced before the
committee that it would cost but
$4,000, but almost.
The pamphlet was printed by the
Nipple Printing Company, of Pierre,
and the printing will cost the state
between $4,000 and $4,000. Add to
this the cost of postage, express,
clerical work in making up the lists
and addressing the envelopes, the cost
of the envelopes and minor expenses
and the total cost Of the pamphlet
when it reaches the voter will amount
to $4,000, if not more. SO that the
$4,000 argument offered by Mr.. Curtiss
has grown to five times its original
amount.
In the editorial of the American
referred to, it states:
The press cannot expect to hold
the confidence Of the people by on
tinuing to deceive their readers or
by s~uppressing the facts about the
results obtained by this legislative
act"
We will be very grateful indeed if
the American will call our attention
to one newspaper in the state, or n
editor, who has attempted to deceive
anybody on this proposition. The de-
ception, if any, should be charged to
the author of the bill, who stated that
the cost would be but 5000, when
the undisputed fact is that it will
cost five times that amount and even
then the service to the voter under
the pamphlet plan is not to be com
pared in effectiveness with publicity
through the newspapers.
The newspapers have criticised the
author of the Curtiss bill, who in his
arguments before the legislative com
mittee, designated the newspaper
men Of South Dakota as '~leeches,
petty grafters and n~innicoops." They
did criticise him for the statement
made that the people had been
feeced long enough by the newspaper
grafters." They did criticise these and
other statements and we feel that
they were FULLY justified in so doing
The $4,000 extra which the state
would have paid the newspapers haC
their amendment passed, would have
some but a short way in paying then
for the free boosting and advertis
ing they are giving the state every
day of the year.
Governor Vessey in addressing the
press association shortly before the
passage of the Curtiss bill, said:
You have been expected to ad
yertise the state. You have not beer
paid for it. You have borne the ex
pense of all that advertising and vol
have been liberal with it and the
state owes you a great debt"
Those were the words of the gov
ernor of this state, who recognized
the work of the newspaper men o.
the state and we do not believe the
payment of that $4,000 to 200 news
papers would have been considered
pretty grating" by any one EXCEPT
the gentleman who made the asser
ton.
The Curtiss bill will save the state
some money, but so would the bill
had it been amended as the newspa
] per men asked it should be. Curtiss
deserves no especial credit for intro
dGcing a bill which repealed a law
which there is not a man, women O,
child in the state but wanted repealed
The only difference in opinion at al
Z was whether the pamphlet gave 6
better publicity than publication in :
newspaper and on that issue we tax,
B exception to the attitude Of Mr.. Cur
d tiss.
For the amount expended under tn,
Curtiss law for putting out the pub
Lefty pamphlet. the amendments Il