The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1916-04-12
THE GRAND OPERA HOUSE.

to continue it's course of the past two
or three days in defending the condi-
! ton of the Grand opera house, as out
lined in official reports of the state
and city fire authorities, it is all right
with US. They can make their own
settlement with the public. but when
that paper attempts to make its read
ers in Topeka believe that the Grand
opera house is entirely safe, notwith-
standing official reports to the con-
trary condemning conditions there;
and attempts to lead the public to
think that the matter in controversy
is a question of advertising rates in
the State Journal it is time for this
paper to say something.
Something is necessary to say, too,
for the reason that at the Grand opera
house last evening there was dis
played on the screens the statement
that the Crawfords do not advertise in
the State Journal
This was rather unkind of Mr..
Crawford and perhaps unnecessary as
well. for his readers may have dis
Journal has innocently been heaping
head. Last evening as usual under its
amusements it referred to the attrac-
lions at the Grand, the Novelty and
the Hip. The reader was informed of
what was going on at those theaters.
He could go or stay away as he
| chose. The readers of this paper will
continue to be informed from day TO
day of the amusements offered at the
various theaters, including the Grand.
In the first place, it IS largely a
matter of indifference with us just
now whether the Crawfords advertise
the Grand opera house in the State
Journal or not, for the reason that the
season is over and Mr.. Crawford has
little or no advertising to do for his
opera house.
In the next place, the State Journal
wrote a fair review of the present per-
Torrance at the Grand for appearance
| in Mondays paper. This review
duly appeared in the State Journal on
Monday, dealing in an unbiased man
ner with the attraction now on and
covering its first production here. On
Monday, the State Journal, discover
ing the erection of the dangerous
booth, as above noted, and having in
mind the accident at the Iris theater
two evenings before, where the booth
was firepro,f and doubtless thereby
saved the lives, of many people, did
criticize at its earliest moment this
particular hazardous booth. The state
and city fire authorities took quick
action, condemned the booth and re-
on he T,1a
instead. This latter was done while
the audience was filing into the thea
ter Monday afternoon. The audience
was small.
The attraction had not been thor
oughly advertised. The audience that
evening was not a very large one.
The State Journal has not advanced
the advertiing rate to Mr.. Crawford
for eighteen years until April 1. The
rate we are now asking him to pay
is less than the rate he pays in Lin
coin, Nebraska, and is a much lower
rate than many daily newspapers are
charging for theatrical advertising I'M
der similar conditions of circulation
and population. If Mr.. Crawford does
not think it pays him to advertise IN
the State Journal he has a perfect
right to stay out and we have no quar-
rel with him on that score, except that
both of us are losing money by that
sort of an arrangement, he far more
than this paper.
Mr. Crawford, like this newspaper
and the merchants, finds. that the ex-
pense of doing business is increasing.
The State Journal is fortunately in
position to give Mr.. Crawford and 9TH
ers who have advertised with it. more
than double the circulation it gave
them when the old rate was first quot
ed to them. Mr.. Crawford has in
creased his rental charges over 100
per cent in seven years. Shall every
body else remain stationary? In 1909,
when the Commercial club first made
it's lease. the terms were $1,000 per
year. Later an advance was made to
$2,1OO; still later to $2,4OO, and now,
the Commercial club committee says,
Mr.. Crawford has served notice to the
club to vacate unless it is willing to
pay him $500. Perhaps he too
thinks he. is giving double the service
he gave to the club when it paid only
$500 seven years ago.
We are not losing much so far as
the Grand Opera house is concerned,
because, previous to April 1, the
Grand was paying us during March
less than $1.00 a day. If the opera
house was not securing it's value many
times more than the advertising cost,
such publicity certainly did not pay.
During the month of March, before
the new rate went into effect, the
Grand Opera house spent with the
State Journal, at the old rate, the sum
of 1859, for the attractions at the
Grand during that month. Under this
significant sum, Mr.. Crawford spent
$2.73 to advertise the A, G. Field Min
strels. Hardly enough for that at
traction. 1t has been the custom of