Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1868-08-26


especially, were not strong enough, and
every way deficient Several witnesses
testified that the material and work were |
not such as the Specifications required.
Another pointto which the. investiga. |
tions Of the committee were especially di-
rected, was the
BRICK FRAUDS.
The whole number of brick charged to
the State, as having been used in the Asy-
lum, is S.090,622. According to an accu-
rate measurement, made and certified to by
Mr.. j. N. RIDGwAY, who mad been employ
ed for that purpose, the number of bricks
laid In the building (after deducting the
old bricks used) was 6,43l,375, showing a
difference of ], ,749, ,247 in the number, and a
difference of about SS7, 500 Ia the first cost
of the brick. at the minimum price of S5
per Thousand, to say nothing of the cost of
laying them. According to the testimony
of some of the witnesses who had contracts
for furnishing brick, the pan adopted by
BLACKBURN, through BROOKS, the assistant
architect, was to give the teamsters who
hauled the bricks, printed tickets for eve
ry load delivered. One of these witnesses
testified that, in accordance with an order
from Brooks, he delivered from 10000 to
$4,000 bricks for a dwelling house in CO.
lumbus, BROOKS stating that he would
charge himself with the tickets for these
bricks and settle with BLACKBURN. This
witness stated that the man in charge of
his ,brickyard had q large amount of tickets
he could not account for; and the witness
himself thought that he must have received
pay twice, In tickets, for over 10000 bricks.
The State, of course, footed the bill.
Another witness testified that he had re-
ceived from BROOKS, tickets for about 5000
more bricks than he had delivered. The
witness stated this fact to BLACKBURN, who
said BROOKS was right, and the witness
had made this mistake himself. The same
witness testified before the committee, that
while his tesmsters were hauling bricks
in the winter ,(when the work on the Asy-
lum was suspended, theyIwere taken away
from the Asylum grounds nearly as fast as
they were delivered. afr.issz vcI 81 arail
These are a few of the more glaring
specimens of the brick frauds. Others
equally fragrant and inexcusable were per-
petrated, but not so great in extent. All
that can be done in the limits of this
In which the people of the State were OUT
ragged in this stupendous swindle.
| y. FURNITURE AND FIXTURES. ltE'
On the 18th of May last, Hon. F. w.
THoRNHILE offered a resolution in the
House of Representatives, which was
adopted, requiring the Trustees of the
! Asylum I" to report to the House, forth
with, an itemized account of all furniture,
carpeting and fixtures purchased for said
Asylum, the cost of each article, and of
whom purchased" ~ 'itgs @' 't-E fla
| In compliance with this resolution, the
Trustees, on the 18th of May, furnished the
required statement--by which it appeared
that the expenditures for " furniture and
fixtures" up to that date, and the contracts
still pending, amounted to $29,256.91. By
| this "itemized account" of the Trustees,
it is evident that the articles, generally,
were of the most expensive and extrava-
giant kind. AS a sample: 1773 yards of
carpeting were purchased at from $1.55 to
$3.50; bedsteads, $35 each !; lounges, $25 to
$37 each chairs, $26 to S72 each side
boards, 500 each; tables, $21 to $4s each !;
chandeliers, $40 each; office desks, sos to
$12O each sociables, $45 to $s7 each !; wash
stands, $50 to s25 each hair mattresses,
711l cents per pound, and so on. .i9-siisi ii
/ While the committee and the public
agree that the Asylum should be furnished
in neat, appropriate and substantial man
ner. with a view to the health, comfort
and conve nienec of its inmates, the fact is
apparent to all, IS disclosed by the investi-
gait ons of the committee, that system of
profigacy and reckless extravaganza, in
the purchase OF a large portion of the fur
nitures and fixtures has been pursued,
wholly unwarrantable and inexcusable, in
the nature Of the case. t'7il1.-' .''.- - --9il
Instead Of adhering to the rule of comfort
and economy, the furniture purchased and
contracted for, was of style of regal mag
nificence, wholly uncalled for; and, in the
language of the committee, many of the
articles s1are of a kind too expensive, and
in other respects untitled for the pur-
pose for which they were purchased"
1t is proper to state, here. that the coni-
mittee, in their report on this subject, ,acquit
the Trustees themselves of intentional
wrong or fraud, and do not think the prices
paid were too high for "the kind and quail
ity" of the articles purchased. They only
object that there should have been SO great
waste of money, when furniture of a
palmer sort, and at far cheaper rates,
" ,uld have answered the purpose better.
Itis only necessary to add, in this con-
nection, that, after receiving the report of
the committee relative to this matter, the
House, on the recommendation of the COM
mittee, adopted the following resolution:
Resolued, That the Trustees of the Deaf
and Dumb Asylum are hereby instructed
not to complete the contract for the pur-
chase of articles named in the foregoing
list. (referring to list contained in the
report of the committee) nor pay therefor,
nor for any other articles ofa like expensive
or unsuitable character. % o.a
Another fraud. involving large loss to
the State, was perpetrated in the G'
CONSTRUCTION OF FLUEs.
1t was in evidence before the committee,
that there are, in all, about one thousand
fues in the Asylum building, only about
fifty of aohich aoere put up aoith the building.-
The rest soere all made after the building sods
up. The cutting of these fiues tended to
greatly weaken the walls of the building,
in some places leaving only three or four
inches of wall outside of them. A prac-
| tical mechanic who was employed on the
building, testified that the hues could haze
been made aoithoue any additional erpense, If
ttey had been constructed as the building loent
up; that the labor, expense, and waste of
material in constructing the fiues, as they
,,og are, involved a loss to the State of from