The national Republican. [volume] (Washington City [D.C.]) 1866-1870, 1869-10-15
TIE CITY HALL INVESTIGATION


Testimspy or Mayor nsvsu.
testimony OF Mayor Bowen before the City
n all inyestis.tion com mittse, M n v.s an |
\. $50 49,. 50 ....,.., 1880. ~
the sshu our'ns wv" eVehinss session OF the
and what follows WAS elected dur
ing the second days examination.
a.,
Nj; os.ns.l ,.,-,, -
. v. You were understood TO say last evening /
that you were eonadent that there was no
street, A. beg pardon, said no such thing |
y, DID you not state that you regarded MT. |
Biiss' estimate as sceurstet A. That T. quite |
nsst 70 nave word 10 p nj into ny mossS
on oath, and calculate to testify to the truth.
pSt at words in my mouth, and hope hereafter il
will be avoided.
q, DO you regard MI. Bliss estimate OF tho |
street as corree,i A. IEn,w OF nothing TO the
contraryi as 1 said before, II may be, and IL |
may not be. The estimate was called for by
TO the COS, d gfsdins and travelling the streets
IN question,
u. Please state the amount that you esti.
would be saved to he sofporstion by giving
II 10 John DonoyAnt A, MY recollection 10,
that / said to Mr.. Crane, and to Others, thu, II
the contract for the -four streets was given to
MI, Donovan, that the corporation would DO
saved from "a. 500 10 "a oo) That 10 my recol.
lection, 1 am not very positive about III and
that IL the Tecoliection of Mr., pliss, Ihsye
eonysr,ea win him today rcspeciiog IL, and
respecting the calculations that we made at
the time, we went over the.thing carefully,
riyedl that By lettins the contract to Nj.
Donoyan for the four streets, we saved to the
corporst,on from a, 500 10 8, 600. cannot now
No., sesoI,e, sat .hss VA. tse eoncin.ion we
arrived AZ, Al the time that the contract was
made.
AMOUNT A. We took the estimstes OF Mr.
nii.s m ,ha thros .treats and arriyed At II a.
nsariy A. ve oouid. There was no estimate
for First sfteet at all. And there was smother
saTf WhieE MI. obifiss, "a our eonverisiloa 70:
day, reminded me of that WAS, that In grading
K street or 90 II street, and that when they
could take cutting and deposit II 10 one OF the
other streets with iess hadiiog than to dspositit
on the further end OF the same street. It was bet.
ter to do so. Say, for Instance, X street was
to be allied up at or near the boundary, the cost
| OF carrying the cutting from Second street
he had better, therefore, take the surplus
| earth from X street aud deposit u on some OF
the cross streets, and lose It entirely, than to
take the same from X street and cart !, me
the low ground.
q. Did you understand that In case the ex-
| and they should take dirt out Of one street
| part OF that street and put II into Nnother
street, that they were not to be paid Tor III A.
q. / mean that ia case there 10 no more
| earth In X street than 10 needed there but
where the embankment 10 required, In case
| case they put that excavation into u street
| or First street, being nearer by, did you under.
that dirt into those streets' A. The contract
| specifies very plsinly that they were to be
| paid but for one way.
paid for only one way; that the whole foo,
| streets are to be considered as ole street
A. Just one streot-as It is-just one contract.
Yes, air,
| q. And they can only get pay for excavation
or embsnkment, the whole four streets TO be
Isn't that Just what the contract saysl
Mr.. Crane. 1t says very differently, as un'
q understand, then, BY what you say, that
II the excavation In X street shall amount 70
| little more than the embankment In NJ, u
and First streets, Donovan might elect to
pay for grading the other streetsi A. II the
earth 10 taken from X and put into q street
Donovan could get pay for taking 1t out OF
he might elect to do
| O Suppose It remains In the same street,
and the work 10 measured, the four street,
| reckoned as one street, and they elect which
ever way they will have, excavation or en-
bsnkmenii A. They can be paid for but on,
way, as q matter OF course. The contract II
plain enough, ANYBODY who will read II cat
understandit
q. understand you to say that In case tn,
excavation In X street shalt amount to q it'll,
| more than the embsnkment In the other thre,
streets they will be obliged to grade for moth
Ingt A. No, sir; not unless the earth 10 pu
J there II is for the ommissioner OF the war
to determine where the earth 10 to be put. II
| 10 to give orders to the contractors where /,
! deposit the earth, II they are allowed to de
, posit that earth In other streets II was tn
.IA d
! the contract 10 required to give orders to tn
contractor as to where the surplus earth 10 l.
2 be deposited. II he does not theJ can deposl
II 10 other streets. where they please. IL wa
the com missioncr's business. Whether he d.
4 il or not do not know. II was his duty to
0 there on the ground, to direct the contractor
. posit that excavation, II there was a surplu,
or II he did not do that, then he did not poi
q form his duty.
/ q. suppose that the cmbankment and tn
n excavation INN street are exactly equal; sur
posing, also, that the embauk ment and IN
n excavation on X streets are also exactly tn
Q street, and they should choose to be paid fo
d excavations, would they receive anything fC
the ENHANCEMENT which they would have :
a put into q street, getting the dirt from III
same souroet A, That question would depen
altogether upon the Instruction Of the con
missioner 70 the contractor. ltisthe eommi
l. to deposit any earth.
q. supposing there was no surplus dit
7. whatever to be carried out OF either NJ sire,
II or X street. That would nccessltate grsdin
or HIling up q street with dirt TO be obtsins
4, from some source, but not from those tw
a streets, because none could come from then
Now, then, II grading that street up with di
p obtained from other source, would they, und,
!. the contract, be entitled to pay for II Ye
10 sir; under some circumstances should thin
they would. For instance, from North Ga
itoI street to Boundary street, on X street,
nearly mile. Itis about twelve squares.
10 not to be supposed that the contracto
.ynulh nth Nnrth ffAnlt
/. street to that end OF the line. The contract
10 might or might not then go to the com
N sioner or the co m N ISIS ouer to him, aud say
5, him: Take this surplus earth that you ha'
Ia here at North Capitol street or at First stree
and deposit II 10 q street,n Whatever he d
posted 10 q street, he would have to depos
re there, under the contract, without pay; al
Al then, IL he had to all out X street or had
20 on and al at the end Of the line, he wou
have to furnish himself with earth elsewhei
as go iuto Massachusetts, avenue or some Of 4
le avenues that cross the street. ] have be
m told they took earth out Of that street A.
~ other streets to MI 10 X streets; l do not kno
~ the fact myself.
II, q. Then, under your supposition, that on
IN create a necessity for obtaining dirt to MI
n. the deficiency In the further end Of X sire,
which you say he would have to obtain fro
near Massachusetts avenue or somewhe
else. Would he be entitled to pay for the di
that he would have to obtain from some 9th
- source to I'LL the deficiency In X street, OcS