Newspaper Page Text
Here It Is Without Com
Atlanta, Ga., Feb. 2,1907,
Mr. F. L. Seely, Publisher The Georgian, City.
I note the following statement and proposition in
your paper of this date:
“37,000 Circulation.”
"Regardless of the advertised claims of any daily
paper in Georgia, we say to the public that we will pay
for the examination by the American Audit Company,
under the same conditions that they examined The Geor
gian, and will give $1,000 worth of coal to the Orphan
Homes that may be selected by Mayor Joyner, Rabbi
Marx and'Forrest Adair, if more than 40,000 paid circula
tion (not including Sundays) can be shown as an average
for the three months ending January 31, 1907, the find
ings to be published. This in the face of the advertised
claims of as high as 52,000 and over.”
Signed “THE ATLANTA GEORGIAN AND NEWS.”
Replying to the above, I beg to advise that I accept
your proposition, on behalf of The Journal. The circula
tion books of The Journal are at the disposal of the
American Audit Cmpany. We will be pleased to have
the examination begin at once. Very truly yours,
J. R. GRAY,
General Manager Atlanta Journal.
Atlanta, Ga., Feb. 2, 1907.
Mr. F. L. Seely, Publisher The Georgian and News, City.
Dear Sir: I note in your paper of this date that you
claim 37,000 circulation, combining your own with that of
The News.
Without regard to the proposition which I have just
made you in connection with our own circulation, I beg
to say that The Journal will give $1,000 to any charitable
institution in Atlanta, to be selected by Mayor Joyner,
Rabbi Marx and Forrest Adair, if you can show more than
25,000 paid circulation as an average for the three months
ending January 31st, 1907, the findings to be published.
I beg to say further that The Journal will pay for the
examination by Messrs. Ralph Brown and Joel Hunter,
the regular auditors of this Company, under the same con
ditions as those under which the examination of our own
circulation is to be made by the American Audit Company.
Please favor me with an early reply.
Very truly yours,.
J. R. GRAY,
General Manager The Atlanta Journal.
Atlanta, Ga., Feb. 2, 1907.
Mr. James R. Gray, Publisher The Atlanta Journal, City.
Dear Sir: I am in receipt of your two communica
tions of this date carrying proposals regarding the circula
tion of The Georgian and News and The Journal.
I accept both of your propositions to be acted upon in
the order in which they were made.
I make haste to reply tonight in order that you may
have opportunity to make use of my acceptance in connec
tion with whatever publicity you may give the matter,
t Very respectfully,
F. L. SEELY,
Publisher The Georgian and News.
Atlanta, Ga., Feb. 4,1907.
Mr. F. L. Seely, Publisher The Georgian and News.
Dear Sir: This will introduce to you Mr. Ralph
Brown, of the firm of Brown & Hunter, who are expert ac
countants, and the regular auditors for The Journal.
In accordance with our agreement made Saturday
evening, February 2, as to the examination of the circula
tion tor The Journal and The Georgian, I beg to advise
that The Journal’s circulation books are at the disposal of
The American Audit Company, and we will be pleased to
have the examination begin at once. Mr. Brown is like
wise ready to begin the examination of your circulation,
and we will be glad to have you signify by letter your read
iness to have the work begin.
We would be glad to have both examinations proceed
at once, to determine the paid circulation of each paper for
the months of November and December, 1906, and Janu
ary, 1907. Very truly yours,
J. R. GRAY,
. General Manager Journal.
Atlanta, Ga., Feb. 4, 1907.
Mr. F. L. Seely, Publisher The Georgian arid News, City.
Dear Sir: Will you kindly favor me with a reply to
my letter delivered to you this morning by Mr. Ralph
Brown? I have waited all day for your reply, in order
that I may know when you desire to begin the work of ex
amining our respective circulations, and that I may give
instructions accordingly.
I wish to repeat what I have stated to you already: that
the books of The Journal are at the disposal of The Ameri
can Audit Company, and we will be glad for the examina
tion to proceed at once.
Please let me hear from you.
Very truly yours,
J. R. GRAY,
General Manager Atlanta Journal.
Mr. J. R. Gray, General Manager The Atlanta Journal,
Atlanta, Ga., Feb. 5,1907.
Atlanta, Ga.
Dear Sir: The bearer, Mr. C. B. Bidwell, resident
manager of The American Audit Company, is ready to
examine the circulation of The Atlanta Journal in accord
ance with the proposal of The Georgian and News, pub
lished in its issue of the 2d inst., and accepted by you. We
beg leave to attach copy of our original proposal, specify
ing that the examination shall be made under the same
conditions governing the examination of The Georgian’s
circulation by The American Audit Company; These con
ditions, as set forth in the certificate of circulation issued
The Georgian by the Audit Company, copy of which we
also attach, are as follows:
“We have exhaustively examined the Circulation
books and records of The Georgian, have had our men
watch counting mechanism, always selecting days when
we were not expected. We have had the accuracy of the
counting mechanism proven by actual physical count,
made by two of our men. We have had free and complete
access to its entire plant, and no attempt has been made by
anybody connected with The Georgian to indicate how we
should investigate its circulation.
Furthermore, we acknowledge receipt of your letter
borne by Mr. Ralph Brown requesting that he be allowed
to examine The Georgian and News at once, and your sec
ond letter of the same day, stating that you had waited alt
day for an answer.
Mr. Brown was notified that he would be informed
when he could start his examination, and we are not aware
that your letter required a reply.
Mr. Brown will not be allowed to examine The Geor
gian and News until the requirements of the entire matter
have been adhered to by The Journal. And I may say
further that as this is goingto be a straightforward, wide-
open proposition, we do not quite see the cause of such un
seemly haste.
The American Audit Company spent nearly a month
with three men examining The Georgian, at a cost of $480,
and I have no idea they can examine The Journal in even
so short a time. So, in addition to the fact that it is a con
siderable business matter with us, it is of vast import
ance to us as a newspaper to see whether we are being con
sidered by the advertiser at a disadvantage because we are
telling the truth about our circulation.
You saw fit to accept The Georgian’s challenge of
Saturday, and accompanied it with another. We accepted
both and specifically stated that they were to be acted
upon in the order to which they were made.
Now, Mr. Gray, we expect to see if The Journal will
do what we think it hasn’t done before, before we proceed.
Then, too, we would call to your attention, that the
fact that you have mentioned three times; to wit: i'The
circulation books are at the disposal of The American
Audit Company,” does not apply in this case. This is not
a mere examination of circulation books. It is to be an
examination cf the circulation of the daily Atlanta Jour
nal, without Sundays, Semi-Weeklies or anything else in
cluded, “under the same conditions The Georgian's books
were examined.”
We expect to see to it that the conditions are strictly
adhered to, the fact that your challenge to show 25,000
PAID circulation is something we have never claimed,
notwithstanding.
Mr. Bidwell is ready to proceed. Very truly,
THE ATLANTA GEORGIAN,
F. L. Seely, Publisher.
Atlanta, Ga., Feb. 6,1907.
Mr. F. L. Seely, Publisher The Georgian and News, City..
Dear Sir: Mr. Bidwell handed me your letter .of the
5th late Tuesday afternoon, in reply to mine of the 4th,
delivered to you Monday morning by Mr. Ralph Brown,
and a second letter delivered to you by Mr. Huie Monday
night, asking a reply to my request that the examination
proceed.
You say that you were not aware that my letter rev
quired a reply. You must have been extremely unfortu
nate in your understanding of what my letter meant, since
it specifically requested a reply, in these words: We will
be glad to have you signify by letter your readiness to
have the work begin.”
If I read your letter correctly, I understand you to
say that it will probably require a month or more for Mr.
Bidwell to examine The Jounal, and that Mr. Brown will
not be allowed to examine The Georgian until after that
examination shall have been completed.
Since Mr. Bidwell has nothing to do with the examina
tion of .The Georgian, I am amazed at your determination
to unnecessarily delay the examination of your paper a
month or more, which is directly contrary to the terms of
your acceptance.
• I'enclose a copy of a letter of authority which I have
placed in Mr. Bidwell’s hands. I call your attention to the
fact that I have given him carte blanche to make the most
rigid examination that he can devise; and have placed at
his disposl every facility of The Journal establishment,
You say that you accepted' both propositions of The
Journal, and specifically stated that they were to be acted
upon in the order in which they were made.
Will you kindly inform me as to the order in which
they were made? Th^y were both sent.you at the same
time, in the same envelope, by the same person, and bore
the same date. As a matter of fact, my proposition to you
was signed first. You accepted both. You said nothing
about the examination of The Journal being completed be
fore you would permit The Georgian to be examined. You
were notified immediately that we were ready to begin on
The Journal at any moment. Mr. Bidwell has likewise
been notified of our readiness, and I have expressed the
desire to him that the examination proceed without delay.
You will pardon me for suggesting that your clearly
expressed intention to delay the examination of your pa
per indefinitely, is in striking contrast with your printed
challenge of the correctness of our circulation statement,
and indicates a determined, though clumsy and ill-con
ceived trick, to escape the examination which you so glibly
accepted. It does not indicate that you are in earnest,
when you say:
“As this is going to be a straightforward, wide-open
proposition, we do not see the cause of your unseemly
haste.”
Let me assure you that this is going to be a straight
forward, wide-open proposition as to both papers, if it is
possible for us to make it so. It most certainly will be
straightforward and wide-open as far as The Journal is
concerned. I shall do my best to have it conducted in the
same manner with your paper. I fail utterly to discover
any “unseemly haste” when I ask that the examination of
both papers begin at once, without “unseemly” delay, and
without any opportunity for preparation or alteration of
records.
I can discover nothing in your desire for this delay,
except a determination to avoid an examination, if possi
ble, because you have accepted a proposition which you
virtually admit in the closing paragraph of-your letter
you are unable to substantiate. This “unseemly delay” is
quite contrary to a straightforward, wide-Open examina
tion. If I may paraphrase your expression, it seems to be
a straight backward, tightly closed proposition, as far as
The Georgian is concerned.
Let me give you a satisfying reason for what you are
pleased to term “unseemly haste.” Your proposition is
to furnish the orphans’ homes $1,000 worth of coal, if The
Journal can show more than 40,000 average paid circula
tion for the past three months. Our proposition is to give
$1,000 to the orphans’ homes if you can show as much as
25,000 average paid circulation for the past three months.
Let me suggest, for your most thoughtful and benevolent
consideration, that the winter is rapidly passing; the
weather is cold and disagreeable; the orphans need coal as
well as money. We are quite anxious to have them sup
plied with both. We will gladly furnish the money to be
sent with your compliments, if you can substantiate your
claims. We desire to send this coal to the orphans’ homes
while it is needed, and we expect to send it with the com
pliments of The Journal, at your expense.
You accepted my proposition, and I insist upon the
terms of it being observed. I have requested Mr. Bidwell
to proceed at once with his examination; I again request
you to permit Mr. Ralph Brown to proceed with his. It is
my desire that Mr. Bidwell make the most thorough and
rigid examination of that paper that is possible. I shall
place every facility at his command, and every record, pas*
book, cash book, cash receipt, subscription, and everf
other source of information, without Sunday’s and Week
ly’s, or anything else, included, and every facility for ex
amining the press room, mailing room, etc., at his disposal
In a word, I have given him absolutely authority to inves
tigate the circulation of this paper until he is satisfied, and
then I desire him to make a report.