New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1843-01-25


both Boards 10 the lowest bdder the conditions hereto
upoa bonds will good security 10 be
the Finance Consee Of both Boards icing gves Tor the
performance OF The Such Offer OF ihe lowest BID.
ger not 10 be accepted By the Csmte unless they shall
believe 10 Hc made In good faith snd The sald bidder is
person OF sutcien, ability 10 perform tie said contract
Proctedings Of the Board ittiJsnts pot IL, %
While The proceedings pending before the Common
Council Comptroller, CT whom may be said
dlsparagemenI his views city econsny border
upon pasmony, presented in MS Annual Report al IS
timae OF the w!cs would require he rBe by
taxation, for 34l On the 97h OF which be ca for
following sum Cleaning streets 10y coniract) s25 OCO'
and The Committee do do11t that in making This EST
ne aided not only By past experience respect
10 The expenditures OF The city :o this object showing
average annual expenditure for III preceding SIX wears of
haa $4,000 but by TIE advice corporation Of
the perenced head OF thu: partuet ad * Ir Cana
niit-e on Cleaning SireeS
Il mua be b,rn- il mind, also that in neither The e1pen
dures when have been above particularly forth,
The contract which was then proposed, ncluded the
expense o. sweeping the public 1rE-;s wbi ch. VIII be
sen py she Com poers report ofhc la: year amounted
10 81 GO, and which, for several yea past has rarely a
en- below that sum And vrhe- that uy The proposed
lrsct further and very material saving winecessariIy be
effected in dispensing with number OF ward officers
WHOSE aaties have not been embraced n aay ofhe Items
OF annual e1pend iure above set forth
with all these facts before The ComaIef showing an
average annual expenditure about Si5p for the per-
oTnanee oil The work which. was TO be etnbaces IN The
contract committed 10 them, With the fact that The able and
experienced financial officer referred 10 upon his Official
responsibility called tor tax Of Ss7ooO upon contract
embracing less work by 5000 .LaD the present. with The
additional fact thai The proposals which we're hia oeio
them by we'll versed in the subject and ANXIOUS TO OBJ
tam the contract and who II may b. fairly INFERRED irsl
mo'es OF interest estimated az low as they could afford,
ranged a65G; the allowed :he present
up to s75,0Co beyond that uIa the cues
ton submitted 10 the consideration OF the Ccmmiuee was
one involving great dscreon While they are willing
admit, it carried with great o,sibty Bot when, in
addition 10 this remembered, that former board
ting directly upon tbs SUBJECT and without dissenting
voice. adopted has been seen, terms the
cpe that the offer OF The lowest bidder should not be
cspted by the Committee unes. they should believe nade
tt1atf Ite irIau
ability 10 per form the contract and when moreover II
taken INTO View TINT proposition 10 inruct he Committee
the presen, the to the lowest bddeI
was distinctly presented 10 The board and rejected by them
The line duty which they 10 pursue plain 10
be mistaken Were they TO slut their eyes TO ihe ac;,
known TO every in the least degree with
the subject o! estimates and proposals for Contracts. that
they coHs,an,y made wholly inadequate their
uihment, and when accepted resulting IN ruin 10 one or
both Of the contracting We're they overlook the
fact at nconlacts OF this description the pockets of their
fellow cizens have been drained allowances upon
lard contracts, sometimes, they have TO lear
reward Tor pazan services, and occasionally pernaps
even rom less worthy motive! Were they 10 pay no al
the fact that those who have labored 10 effect
relreDcmen, in the burdens upon citizens by the
question: have been met at every step by partisan
avowal Of reputation Were they, in Short IN place thr
Of the of men who bid Tor
which showed upon lis very face that they either
could did not intend 10 perform IL Ii there be
ming in the assumed against the action OF toe
Committee they bound 10 overlook all these consider
ations and To execute the contract with Bartlett Smith, o,
s2 1885, offer absurd upon It's face HAT they had
copied IT, they could have hoped 10 The
and indgnation OF every sensible II they JUST
ned in rejecting this proposal also justified upon
he principle that they bound take into consdera
ion the whole subject matter of the Contract and 10 act in
reference ill., according the dictate, OF sound dscre
ion. This discretion given 10 them by the Cannon
Council by their acos refusing 10 restrict them 10 the
bidder; and they had refused TO be governed by
it, hey would have sgnaly a!ed IN the performance OF the
nigh COUNT cd 10 their hands We're they not then
equally bound TO exercise the same discretion IN regard o
other proposals. higser in amount though nay made
Guaie 10 lie object which il their duty 10 attain! II
hey had right 10 reject the proposal Of Mr. smith, they
conceive that they had equally right 10 reject that oil the
Messrs. Cumming, if they believed il m.de in goo
ah, of which they were only enabled 10 judge by The gross
lud manifest dsproporton between The work to be done
and the asked for lis performance This dSproporteD
IL abundaDty shown by the facts 10 which the Committee
already called the attention Of the Board Nor is the
Of this answered by The fact that those
ties may possibly have been enabled TO perform their
tract by The only means by which could be performed,
reduction OF the amount 10 he paid for labor. The Com
miee trust that the day far distant, it will be
adopted part OF the policy OF our City, 10 effect even
retrenchmen IN It's expenditures by grinding he aces Of
the poor and they only the Board, that ii such
be now It's policy 1T must BE- carried out by other hands
han theirs.
have only performed their duy without any feeling
other than that OF comalon interest with the whole com
uny but that they have done with the best lights they
ad before hen with strong and earnest desire 10 ensure
OF an important reform and 10 place IN the bands
Of the city the certain OF eectng that REFORM bis
they proposed 10 do not by giving the city succession
lawsuits against but by the execution OF contract
which they had The best believe could and would
performed They consclentiopsy believe that It's entire
failure would have been the consequence OF amy other
than that which they have pursued and relying
conscious purity of their motives and The candid and
dspa'sonaie judgement OF the Board, and oil their fellow
citizens they nduige The confident expectations that ih'
course which they have adopted will 6e sustained
Respectfully submitted. CALVIN BALLS.
HENRY K. DAVIES,
VIM V. BRADY,
WALTER MEAD.