"My Friend, the Enemy" THROUGHOUT THE TEN years the "Border Ruffians" published The Salt Lake Tribune they were obviously harassed by financial difficulties. They took the paper on trial from the founding schismatic elders, who were happy to be relieved "of the heavy burden of their subsidies, which had hitherto sustained it." 1 The Kansas trio also assumed some debts which they were still trying to pay off when they sold the newspaper ten years later. At the first meeting of the board of directors after the ownership change the capitalization of the enterprise was increased from an undisclosed figure to 300 shares of stock with a par value of $100 per share. Meetings of the board of directors were held at irregular intervals, or minutes were not always written down or were lost before the corporate records were turned over to the next succeeding owners. But such minutes as are still available show clearly that there was more exuberance in the editorial office than in the business office. At a board meeting on December 24, 1873, the directors engaged in "a general discussion of the possible success of the enterprise" and a resolution was adopted to try the venture one more year, "provided sufficient patronage was given to enable us to pay the current expense of publishing." Present at the meeting were Fred Lockley, who acted as chairman; George F. Prescott, who was president of the corporation; A. M. Hamilton;
54