Evening star., 1934-07-09
FEDERAL ADS co
TOPARTY PAPERS
Administration Order Sign
ed BY ICkes FaVOrs Dem.
ocratic Organs.
BY DAVID LAWRENCE.

Out OF the West-Black Hills. South
Dakota. TO be exact-Comes q plant
that would seem incredible II the Of
ncial document to prove the charge
were not available for all to see.
The Roosevelt administration has
now begun to dispense favors to news
papers which avow themselves Demo-
cratic.
BY the terms of an order issued by
the Department of Interior, legal ad-
vertiSements must be inserted only In
Democratic newspapers.
1t hardly seems possible that Secre-
tary Ickes, who has been an avowed
enemy Of things political, could have
signed the order. but his name Is on
the document just the same. 1t must
have been done by some subordinate.
Anyway. here Is the order, dated June
20. 1884.
After reciting the existing general
regulations which provide that news
papers of general or local circulation
in the various public land States. dis
tricts and counties shall be used for
legal notices. the general order adds
this interesting amendment:
ElONiNGhf oAblNNN w AtNoA HNN'AfN
tions. that Democratic papers shall
be designated for all publications to
be made under this authority and that
not more than three newspapers shall
be so selected In any one locality.
Signing OF Orders.
Advertising orders may be signed
by either the commissioner or assistant
commissioner or acting commissioner
of the General Land once. The au-
thority herein granted is limited to the
fiscal year ending June 30, 1885. Sin
cerely yours, Harold I. Ickes, Secre-
tary OF the Interior"
Ny attention was called TO the
foregoing by letter from Francis H.
Case. editor of the Custer County
Chronicle OF Custer, S. Oak, who
writes:
I'm a case in Sturgis. S. OAK. Victor
q. Marrs sought to prove up on
homestead entry. He takes the
6turgis Record and, incidentally, as he
was to pay the cost OF publication.
asked that the notice be sent TO the
Record.
The registrar OFred S. MINER at
the land Office at Pierre, S. Dak), sent
the notice to the Black Hills Press,
writing Mr.. Marrs of the order No.
626 and pointing out that the Press
was a Democratic newspaper and ac-
cordingly the publications should be
made there.
while one may not question the
custom of an Official using the paper
which he likes when his ONCE Is pay
ing for publication, it seems too
much of a racket TO demand that pub
lication paid for by individuals shall
be sent to newspapers that favor the
party in power.
Similarly. people dealing with the
Government will be told where TO buy
their food and what places to get their
boots blackened."
Original Order Last Year.
Inquiry at the Interior Department
here disclosed the fact that order No.
sac was originally issued May 4, 1898.
and that the new order dated June
20. 1894. is almost identical IN
wording
The incident is particularly signifi-
cant in view of the fact that the Ten
nessee Valley Authority has just hired
an advertising agency for the purpose
Of helping the T. v. A. sell refrigera-
tors and electrical supply equipment
and there has been evidences that
other Government departments are
planning to do q certain amount Of
paid advertising.
With the billions of dollars at the
disposal Of the Federal Government II
would be a simple matter TO suhsidiSe
the press in the country districts
especially, so that they would feel
obligated to support the Democratic
party.
Unfortunately. the wording of the
general order does not help so-called
new deal newspapers which are not
Democratic in the party sense at all.
but yet they would be excluded by
the terms Of the order Of Secretary
Ickes to the General Land once, for
the only papers that qualify are
Democratic newspapers"
It is not to be assumed that the
practice set up by the Interior De-
partment is as yet general, but It
constitutes an important precedent in
which the press Of the country VIII,
no doubt, take an alert interest, for
it is an aspect Of potential control OF
the press which has probably escaped
general attention.
fCopvrfrht 1o2AD