The Evansville daily journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ia. [i.e. Ind.]) 1848-1862, 1859-09-06
The Franklin street Bridge.

We cherfully give Mr.. Saundersthe beneht
of the following communication, and would
be pleased to have him answer through our
columns, the few simple interrogatories we
have thought it our duty to append TO 1t, for
the informotion of the public.
Communicated.
EprroR OF JoURNAL,-Sir:-Iny your issue
of Saturday, there appears paragraph
relative to the Franklin Street Bridge, in
which there wereseveral incorrect statements
some of which relate to myself as Engineer
and Superintendent, and which, for the sake
of Justice and fairness to all concerned, de-
mand contradiction.
In the first place, you state that Mr.. Nc
kinney proposed TO build the abutments of
the bridge for 5000. This is not so, as
the bids on file in the Auditors Office will
exhibit. Mr.. Mckinley bid in the same
manner as all the other bidders. The form
of bids was published before the letting, and
which bids had to state the price per cubic
ward for excavating the foundation pits; the
price per cubic foot for timber in foundations,
and the price per perch for masory; and for
the information of the public, | hereby give
the amount as per final estimate. 81,
2,s7l cubic yards Of excavation in foun-
dation pits; 1880 cubic feet of timber in
foundations; 3,ll4 perches of masonry in
abutments, besides the cost of pile-driving,
&c. Such comparisons as that INDUCED in
by you, relative to a bridge built elsewhere,
of as great span as the Franklin street
bridge, for half the cost of the abutments, is
calculated to mislead the public. The bridge
abutments would cost as much, though the
span were only half what it is; or, in other
words, the "span has nothing, whatever,
TO do with the cost Of the masonry in the
abutments; the difference is in the super
structure-a small item when compared TO
the cost Of the masonry in this, or any other
bridge of similar description. A COMPARE
SON can only be instituted when all circum-
stances are equal. The cost Of procuring
materials, price of labor, &c, in all cases,
are the principal items to be considered
You might say, with equal propriety, that a
house of given dimensions ought to be built
for the same cost in Henderson as in Evans
Vile, where the price Of material and labor
is 50 much cheaper. t....
As regards the remark relative to the
letting of the contract to Mr.. Hugo, I sup
pose that the Commissioners acted accord
ing to the best of their judgment and in
consonancs with their oath of Office, and
also to what they considered to be the best
interests of the county. The contract was
awarded to Mr. Hugo in consequence of his
being the lowest bidder; Mr.. Mckinley
having failed to procure acceptable bond
Mr.. Hugo subsequently re-let the stone cut
ting and building as well as the excavation
OF the foundation pits, after delivering
1852 perches of stone to Messrs. Gusiin &
Pillsbury and after doing so he turned over
the remainder of the job to them, they Civ
ing a new bond to the Commissioners, which
act released Mr.. Hugo from all risk. f-s
As to the unfinished state of the abur-
ments, allow me to inform you that they
have been completed since the middle of
June, although their contract gave the con-
tractors till the first Of November. .r... .
In conclusion allow me to state that
write this in justice to all persons concern
ed and to set the matter truly before the
citizens of this county. This is the only
excuse have to offer for thus appearing in
your columns. Very respectfully,
JAS. d. SAUNDERS.
Was not the original estimate of the
$4,000 as the cost of the bridge, based up
on your calculations Of the work? How is
it that the two abutments have cost more
than the expense of the entire work, as es-
timated by you? Atwhat per cent on the
whole cost, will you insure, by good bonds
to the county, that the abutments at
the Franklin bridge will not, within FIVE
years-like those of the bridge at Codey's
mill, built under your uperintendence,-
slip into the creek, or tumble DOWN. How
does the final estimate correspond with your
original estimate, and what has made the
important difference
Has the work, as accepted and approved by
you, been done according to the rigid speci-
fcations on which it was let? Has the stone
been laid in good cement, or poor lime NOR
tar, which will fall out the first time the
piers are Inundated? When these are an
swered other interrogatories will belpro-
pounded. 5sIr
We know that Mr.. Mckinley calculated
that the entire stone, and timber work for
the abutments, upon the terms of his bid,
would not exceed $4,000 to the county,
and allow him clear margin Of So, 900 for
profits. We did not allude to the Anderson
bridge to compare the costs of the two
structures, but to show that a good and eff
fcient contractor had been rejected, and the
job given to another at greatly increased
prices, and without good reasons; for the
security offered by the former was better bv
fifty per cent. than that accepted from the
latter. We now learn that the Anderson