GOVERNMENT ADVERTISING.

Bruce Herald, Volume XI, Issue 1017, 11 June 1878, Page 5

GOVERNMENT ADVERTISING.

Chbistchttbch, Monday. The following appears ia the • Press ' this morning : — " The directors of the ' Press ' Company lay before their subscribers and the public generally the following facts. The Government had been in the habit of inserting public notifications in both the morning papers published in (Jhristchurch until the 1 7th April last. Since that date no orders for advertising have been given to the ' Press ' newspaper from the Colonial Secretary's Office or the Public Works Department; while such notices have been regularly and to a large extent advertised in the ' Lyttelton Times.' In consequence of this change, the directors of the * Press ' Company deemed it desirable to make enquiries at head-quarters, anc! one of -them visited Wellington for that purpose, and had interviews with the Government on the subject ''generally, it was ascertained that in future such advertisement would*be given only to the ' Lyttelton Times ' and the ' Timaru Herald ' in Canterbury. It was represented to the the Government that so partial a distribution of Government advertising would not only place the excluded journals at a^disadvautage, but would also be injurious to the public interest, as tending to lessen the publicity of the advertisements. The Government.stated that economy in advertising was necessary, and that other things being equal^it was not surprising "if they gave their advertisements to their supporters. The 'Press' Company replied that if such was the intention of the Government, the ' Press,'- to prevent its subscribers being placed at a disadvantage, have determined to publish without charge all Government notices appearing in the ' Lytteltou Times,' but withheld from the 'Press.' In making this preliminary sacrifice, the 'Press' Company feel they will have the public sympathy, and that public opiuion will justify their present action in any attempt on the part of the Government to use the "Government advertising as a means

of securing political support." The notice is followed by upwards of a column of Government advertisements copied from the ' Lyttelton Times. '