Evening star., 1869-11-02

the excavation made in X and NJ streets can be
used in those street, there being sufficient
plus earth lexcavationl to bring both u and 1st
streets to the proper grade.
In the contract made with Mr.. Donovan the
Mayor inserted a clause .'that the earth taken
from one street and put him into S snSner Of s
the embankment on G and First streets will be
finished without expense TO the city.
The following is the cost OF grading and gray-
cling the several streets named according to the
bids referred to:
VI street, Geo G. W. Eslin............ 1922 &c
X street, P. Mcnamara ............. 1o,4se II
First street, III. G. Belt. ............... 492 IL
sle.g.4 A
John Donovan bid Oh all the Streets. 6.61i p
Amount saved by giving the contract
to Mr.. Donovan .................... S1,2I6 20
Your committee, therefore, report that the
contract for grading and gravcling N and X
streets north, from North Capitol street to
boundary street; G street north, from North
Capitol street to Second street east, and First
street east, from q to n street, was awarded to
the lowest and best bidders
has not been completed according to contract,
in this: that the streets in many places have not
been graded to the proper width, or gravelled to
the proper depth, and in many places the streets
are below las well as abOve) the established
grade This condition Of the streets is not neces-
sarily violation of the contract on account of
the present unfinished condition of the work,
nor can this portion Of the inquiry he properly
answered until the work is completed.
Your committee further report that advances
have been made upon this work amounting to
This certificate is held by the First National
Bank as collateral security for loan made 70
the contractors
An estimate of the amount of work performed,
made by the City Surveyor previous to these
payments being made, show that the city would
be justified in advancing sl2 600 OH the contract
The work is progressing Win grea, rapldlty; ana
the adv ances made and the city is in no danger
of suffering loss, either present prospective.
we MSou S
thority of law. We therefore submit the follow
ing resolutions:
Resolred, That in investigating the official con-
duct of Mayor Bowen, We find nothing to weak
en- our confidence in his honesty, integrity or
Resofre%. That the committee be discharged
from the further consideration of the subject.
(Signed,) II. 4. Hall,
Mr. Mcknight moved to adopt the resolutions
and moved the previous question.
Mr. Holmes said that he had, on the part Of the
minority, a partial report to make. which he
would submit, reserving to himself the right to
finish it hereafter; and the report OF Mr.. Holmes
The minority of the committee appointed i'm
pursuance Of the resolutiOn of the Board OF Com
mon Council, pissed August q, 1869, to inquire
ment on the work contract for grading and gra-
yelling portions Of X, NJ, and q streets north and
ist street east respectfully rel ort that they find
that said contract was awarded to John Donovan
at am estimated aggregate cost of xl1 40 while
the estimated cost Of the work. according to the
bids ofthe lowestresponshe bidders, was s16,I95,
which is SJ43i3 less than the price Tor which the
contract was awarded to John Donovan, John
Donovan being the lowest bidder only On q
street north and First street east, the work OH
those two streets being trihng compared with
that on X aud NJ streets, on which Peter Me-
Namara and q. w. q. Eslin were the lowest
bidders. 1t was alleged before the committee
that the work on the four streets was awarded To
John Donovan because Of his refusal to do the
work on q and 1st streets, for which he was the
lowest bidder, unless he could have the work on
all the four streets. 1t Is i'll evidence before the
committee that while the awarding of the work
on those streets was under consideration, MIR.
Peter Mcnamara, lowest bidder Oh X street, on
being informed that Donovan would not do the
work on Il and 1st streets unless he could have
the others, offered to do the work on the four
streets for $500 less than all the lowest bids,
which would have made the aggregate cost of
the work 81 ,0I3.43 less than the Irice for which
the work was awarded to Donovan.
Touching the second part OF the inquiry,
whether the work on said streets has been done
ding to the terms OF the cOntract-the
minority of committee find that all those parts
OF G., X and First streets included in the contract
referred to- except a short part Of X street, be-
tween Sixth and Eighth streets east, was gravel
ell i'm whole or in part at the time Of the eNami-
nation made by the committee, and of the
measurements made by the committee and the
CITY Surveyor, in evidence before the commit tee
The measurements made by the committee and
the measurements testified to by the city Sur
yeyor disclosed the fact that q street, which
should be AZ feet in width, is graded only to an
average width OF 40 feet. That street, which
should be 30 feet Sinches i'm width, is grad Il only
TO a width varying from 0 feet to 9s feet. and
Width. it is also In evidence before the sr COM
mirtee that the upper surface of the gravel on
X street, between the railroad and Boundary
street, is below the established grade Of the
street an average distance OF two feet, and that
the upper surface Of the gravel on q street be-
tween the railroad and Second street east. was
at some points not less than two feet below the
established grade.
1t is also in evidence before the committee that
the thickness OF gravel OF the streets that have
been graveled is less than that required in the
contract, which is nine inches AT the middle Of
the street and four inches at the gutter line.
The thickness OF the gravel is found to vary
from ga few pebbles on the surface" to the
thickness required by the contract only in one
place-a point i'm g street, near the curb line,
just east of the railrOad-the average thickness
being less than half OF that required by the con-
tract.
The contract under which this work is being
done, is dated February %, 1869, and provides
that the work shall be commenced within five
DAYS after the date Of the contract, and finished
within one hundred and eighty-hye days after
said date, which time expired August q, 1869.
With these facts before them, the minority
that the work has not been done according to
the terms OF the contract.
Touching the third inquiry, "whether any
money has been paid for work done under said
contract without warrant OF law" the minority
OF the committee find that the W Ork was bid for
after an advertisement setting forth that this
work was to be done according to certain speci-
ficatiOns one Of which requires that the work
shall be finished before any payment is made;
that one Of the bidders would have made his bid
one cent per yard, both for grayeling and grad
ing, less than il was had he known that pay
ments would have been made during the prog
ress of the work; that during the progress of the
work there was paid to Donovan -, 1883, and
there was loaned to him S3, 900 by the First Ma
tiOnal Bank ON a request Of the Mayor, purpOrt-
ing to authorize said bank to appropriate 5000
Of the first moneys received for taxes to repay
said loan; that by the terms Of the contract,
earth taken from excavation on one street and
used for embankment Oh another should be paid
for both as excavation and embankment; that
nearly all Of the embankment OH q and First
streets, paid for April a, 1869, was taken from
X street, and also paid for as excavation, and
that none OF the bills for work under this con-
tract that have been yaid have received the APP
prOval Of either the commissioner OF improve
ments Of the Fourth ward or any Of the assist
ant commissioners appointed to superintend the
work. -.,. , -
The minority Of the committee conclude that
the payment Of moneys for work for which the
city owes nothing, Is without warrant OF law,
and that to authorize the First National Bank
60