The national Republican. [volume] (Washington City [D.C.]) 1866-1870, 1869-11-09

part OF the Mayor OF the city to set Its laws
at defiance, a teeklessness and itregularity
"circumstance" 10 explained to be the payment
by order OF the Mayor without the signature
OF Crane, the commissioner, for grading and
gtaveling Third street west from X street
north to New York avenue,
The papers referred to your committee con.
tain no other allegations OF crime than are
lions and iuierences from which they have
been educed IL regarded as less credible than
the swofn testimony that hiss been ELECTED
before the co N m lttee OF the Common Council,
and hence need not be considered; u cannot
properly be e'r7licrcd In the light OF evi.
dence.
The primary duty u the committee 10 to
inquire, hrst, whether gross fraud has been
committed by the Mayor or by the surveyor,
as charged, since no tribunal other than 4
court OF justice can arraiyn the other persons
denounccdi and, secondly, whethcr the Mayor
has set The laws Of the city at defiance aud
been guilty ora recklcssness and irrcsularity
wholly iuexcusablc," as alleged.
The htst charge Is based upon the allegation
Of corruption In the award OF contract TO
John Donovan, on the 23i day Of January,
1850, and subsequent partial pigments there.
for. In Mr.. Cranes testimony before the
committee he says:
/" Mr. Bowen directed me to draw up the
contract; adc ono out in the usual form and
took 1t Into the once; he was then occupying
Hall, workmen then being engaged ia atting
in the forenoon Of the 23i OF February, when
took the contract to the Mayor; John Dono.
van went In with mel the Mayor read the con.
wrote on it the words contained therein, IS
follows!
"And In case any surplus earth from any
other Of said ssreet., the contractor is to re-.
eeiye pay only for excavation on one streets
he shall not be paid for filling smother street
with the same earth
" The Mayor then said; MIR. Donovan 10 not
the lowest bidder for these streets, taken sep.
rrAtelyi but we hnd by taking the whole four
streets, aud reckoning them as one street, hat
he Is the lowest bidder estimating IL In thu
way, by careful calculation, We Ind we can
save the corporation from Vi, 500 to u, 900, and
my duty 10 siws the four srs. to & 6Sa
van had previously stated to him all I had
to say In the way OF objection, and therefore
which were Written The words be desired in.
serted In the contract, and having stepped over
10 a desk in the room and inserted them,
reading over what had written That will
dos AIR. Donovan, who remained In the room
then walked up to the desk and signed the
contract; u was then passed over to Mr.. Bowen
al forgot to state that Mr.. bowen further
shd, In speaking Of the advantages that would
be gained BY slying the work to Donovan,
filling, and the dirt to grade those streets
Will have to come out Of X street. We
would, therefore, he said, get q and First
the contract In the way proposed, II he were
TO let the contract for each Of the streets oIi
'ep'tNtely, OF course they would have to pay
ured the mOst.n
The sPiri, OF the Mayors dealing. with re.
rpeet to these contracts, or to this CONTRACT, is
revealed In this statement Of Mr.. Crane, which
IL not cDntradicted by any other part OF his tics
ttmOny nor by the testimony OF any other
witaess, but is eorrosorated most foreibly BY
both parties to the Investigations and In no
single Instance throughout the eutirc Invest.
CATION h.. 1t been shown, or even asserted.
that tho Mayor had been Influenced By mo.
tIves OF cupidity or selhshness In the NWttd
Of this or any other contract. The prosNu.
ton exercised b. him 10 the Interpolation
into the contract, before the signing thereof
Of the passage explained and reeited 10 the
above quoted testimony OF Mr.. Crane, is an
evidence Of fidelity to hi. trust wholly in con.
Met with the charge OF fraud against the city
preferred against him by the same person.
The entire history OF tho award OF this con.
tract, nnh Of the requirements Of the Mayor
with respect TO its fulallment, sceords with
testified!
ID. Have you. had any particular convers,.
to the contract with John Donovan for grading
and grayeling street north ant Frat, q and
streets, generally known and referred TO by
MI. crane as the OBeirne contract II so,
what did he sayt A. In one of my convers,.
tons with MI. Crane In regard to his dincul.
ties and the Mayors he stated to me, before
fore do not know-as sn evidence OF what he
regarded As the darkness OF the Mayor, hi.
dog{edness, that when he got anything Into
his heal he hung on to It, He said he h I'd Just
been called in to give his opinion, or to be
present at some converBation or examination
IN regard to contract between O'Beirne aad
Gleesnn. lie said that contract was \ very
hard one for the contractors; that It WAS cspa.
BILE Of an Interpretation by which the Mayor
might let those men ups but he found he had
got good contract for the city, and he was
disposed to take all the Advantage Of It that
he could and that the result Of It was that
these contractors are going TO be ruined rhl.
Is the substance OF the coayersatioH In regard
to that matter with me.
z what have you found the Mayors LIspo-
tIoh TO be In relstion to tr.nsscting busi.
ness connected with contracts for the interest
gard to that has been limited. | do not kn ow
opinion.
q. From your observation ! A. The result
OF my observation has been that the Mayor ia
duppscd to Insist upon men keeping their con.
tracts, Whc'hnr 50 IN regard to hard contract
or not do not know.
Z What dIsposition has he manifested as
lar rs has come under your observation In ~.
lation TO protecting the interests of the city !
A. ! think the Mayor 10 remarkably vlkiIAat
IN mat respect speak now from my oiiicI n
connection with him IS disbursing otiicer Of
the capitalization the Instructions | re-.
eelyed from time TO- time In regard to the pay.
mont OF cOntracts.n
An effort has been made to show that Mr.
Donovan wa, not the contractor, but tho
papers in the case show that he was That
tie hryor knew or did not know that suhsc.
qTrn'iy several persons, uniting In the bond
OF D1a1y'n, became Interested with him
could not 80 affect the character OF the trans
action M TO warrant the assumption Of the
perpetratiDn or Of the purpose OF fraud by the
Mayor and the thea surveyor, or by either OF
them, A business arrangement Of this char.
hctrr Is not necessarily either fraudulent or
Illegal, provided none OF the parties to It are
At the same time office. holders under anil 10
. F.l a - 1l nnNR 40 ..Tat ~. 4.
tinn. Partnership relations, whether silent
or active, In the business Of digging, cAriiny
and graveliug, are as legitimate as In any
business OF trading or trafiicing; and private
arrangements among men who sign each
others bonds cannot be considered as neces.
ssriiy pre- Judicial to the public welfare, each
person, whstevef his interest may he, being
assumes,
Much testimony was produced before the
committee to determine whether the contract
especially under consideration was awarded
to the lowest bidder. 1t is not necessary Tor
The rinIieatlon OF the persons accused th.t
ms shhl be determined. 1t was the du'y
Of the Mayor, In tho exercise OF the disrrr.
ton that usage has sanctioned, and that (,
iuIly Implied ~ the terms and spirit of the
ordinance Of May q, 1858, to enter into = Goa.
tract upon such terms as would best promote
the interests OF the cityi and though his Iuig.
ment might be at fault III his endeAvors to do
lhis, (Which, however, this co IN 4 &C docs not
hrhcNcl other evidence than that furnished
wpull 10 requisite to prove fraudulent uur.
Fpstt Nhi tsptclAlly when the teTInA u
contract, by him prescribed, are mani(,suy
ard conIesscdly so severe and cxartiuE ia their
d eject upon the contractor as to excite tho In.
dignatton evca OF those by whom he has bfen
denounced.
The charge of"reeklessness and IrreguIarlty
wholly inexeusable," based upon payne nts by
b the Mayor for portions OF work in progress
under contract, has been fully rrfuted; irs :,
blythe testimony, especially Of Mr.. Klopfer,
a peculiarly intelligen and respectable wit.
ness-to the effect that partial payments,
within the limits Ofthe amount OF work com.
pletci, have habituAlly been made by a sue.
ccsslOn OF the Mayors OF Washington, In or.
der l!Iht other persons than large capitalists
GI.Bht become contractors therefor; aud.
secondly, by the law In relation TO the sub.
Jrct OF improvements for which specific ap-
Precipitation are made, which law, unlike that
relating to paved lootwAys, does not require
the signature OF the ward commissioner but
requ Tres every act to be performed under the
direction and with the consent Of the Mayor
tSce the act above cited, sections 2, 3 And{)
Your committee quote and adopt the follow.
Ing extract from the report OF the committee
OF the Com mOn Council, communicated to aud
adopted BY that board GU the 9th OF November,
l,ag
"lrur committee further report that the
work has not been completed according to con
tract, IN ms: that tho streets IN many places
have not been graded to the DFODer ilih mr.