State ex rel. Bare v. Lincoln County

• Decision Date: 05 October 1892
• Citation: 53 N.W. 147,35 Neb. 346
• Parties: STATE OF NEBRASKA, EX REL. IRA L. BARE ET AL., v. LINCOLN COUNTY ET AL
• Court: Nebraska Supreme Court

53 N.W. 147

35 Neb. 346

STATE OF NEBRASKA, EX REL. IRA L. BARE ET AL., v. LINCOLN COUNTY ET AL

Supreme Court of Nebraska

October 5, 1892

ORIGINAL application for mandamus.

Writ denied. Case DISMISSED.

George E. French, A. H. Church, T. C. Patterson, and Grimes & Wilcox, for relators.

George T. Snelling, and T. Fulton Gantt, contra.

OPINION

NORVAL, J.

This is an application for a peremptory mandamus to require the board of supervisors of Lincoln county to award to relators the contract for the county printing and for publishing the delinquent tax list for the year 1892.

It appears from the pleadings and evidence that one of the relators, Ira L. Bare, is the owner and publisher of the North Platte Tribune, a newspaper published at North Platte, and of general circulation in said Lincoln county that the other relator, Harvey W. Hill, is the owner and publisher of the North Platte Telegraph, a weekly newspaper published at North Platte, and of general circulation throughout said county; that on the 28th day of November, and for four successive weeks thereafter, the county clerk of said county published in the said North Platte Telegraph a notice to the effect that bids would be received until noon of the 1st day of January, 1892, for all books, blanks, and stationery required for the use of the county officers, together with all printing, publishing, and advertising required for the year 1892, the board reserving the right to reject any and all bids; that said printing publishing, and advertising were for a greater sum than $ 200; that, pursuant to said notice, relators, on December 31 1891, made and filed the following bid:

"NORTH PLATTE, NEB, December 31, 1891.

"To the Honorable Board of County Commissioners of Lincoln County: We, the undersigned, publishers respectively of the North Platte Tribune and of the North Platte Telegraph, submit the following bid for the county publishing for the year 1892:

"The commissioners' proceedings in full, road notices, treasurer's statements, bond propositions, and official notices of the county clerk will be published in both of said papers at one-twentieth of the legal rate, that is, one-fortieth of the legal rate to go to each publisher; the delinquent tax list will be published in each of the said papers at one-half the legal rate, each paper to receive five cents for each land description and two and one-half cents for each lot description.

"Bond in any reasonable sum for the faithful performance of the work to be furnished by each of the undersigned in case the contract is awarded to us.

"Respectfully yours,

"IRA L. BARE,

"Publisher of the Tribune.

"HARVEY H. HILL,

"Publisher of the Telegraph."

That on the same day the Independent Era Publishing Company, in response to said notice, filed its bid agreeing to publish all proceedings of the board free of charge, publish all road notices, election notices, notice to voters, and all other notices ordered by the board or county clerk, for one-half statutory rates, and soliciting the tax list on the terms specified by section 109, chapter 77, of the Compiled Statutes. The bid also specified prices for furnishing the county with blanks and commercial printing. That it always has been the usage and custom in said county for the county clerk to advertise for and invite bids from the various newspapers published in said county, to be filed with the county board, to do the county printing, publishing, and advertising required by law, and it has been the custom of the county board to award the contract upon such bids so filed to the lowest and best responsible bidder; that although relator's bid is the lowest and best the county board refused to...