National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1874-08-11
DISTRICT COMMISSION.
REPLY TO TIE TAXPAKER'S MEMO
RLAL.

WHAT THEY DEMANDED AND WHAT TIL
COMMISSION WILL Do-MR. DENAsoN
GIVES THEM A PLAIN TALKING To-oFFI
CIAL ORDERS on VARIOUS SUBJECTS.
Yesterday was the lcng-looked-for day OIL
which the representatives Of the Taxpayers
| Association should meet and discuss thei
grievances with the District Commissioners, o.
set forth in their communications of O few day
ago. At the hour named, Mr.. Jesse B. Wilson
with his confreres were admitted, and after Al
interchange Of courtesies, the paper Of the as
socistion was read. It states that 1t Is not thei
purpose to dictate offlciouslyto gentlemen of 81
well-known intelligence and large experiences
in public Office, but they simply claim greater
knowledge in regard to the special natter
with which they have of necessity been init
mately familiar for several years. For this res
son they trust that frank exposition Of theil
views will be kindly received, and express ar
earnest hope that this appeal to the cause Of
justiceof impartial gentlemen will relieve the
| taxpayers from the necessity Of appealing to G
judicial tribunal to settle differences Of opinion
honestly entertained. But in the discharge Of
their duty they ask to'be permitted to enter
their earnest protest against the continuance
|
made with the Board of Public Works, and In
support of their protest they submit the fol-
lowing reasons that TO them seem to be con-
I elusive:
1. The estimated cost Of the entire system Of
improvements to be made BY the Board of Pub
lie Works was 80, SIS, Se7. The said board have
expended and contracted to expend els, ST.
565.78.
9. The law said HUhat in no case shall the
boo ~ arfar Inf nOukrenk yvOrtr
or improvement, the cost Of which shall exceed
the amount estimated therefor in its aforesaid
plan, less twenty per cent. Of said estimates"
8. That said Board of Public Works shall
have no power to make contracts to bind said
District to the payment Of any sum Of money
except in pursuance of appropriations made by
law, and not until such appropriations shall
have been made.
1. The law further provided that the .aggre-
gate debt of the District should not exceed five
per cent of the valuation Of the property
therein, unless the proposition should first re-
ceive the sanction of the people by popular
vote, and in no event shall the aggregate debt
exceed SO, 900 900.
These contracts that your honorable body is
asked to continue are described BY the select
committee on page nine Of the report. The
board adopted an erroneous, and in its results
q vicious method of letting contracts for their
work, VIZ, "Without competition open to the
public, and that the method adopted resulted
In the payment Of an increased price over and
above what would have been paid If open, fair
and free competition had been invited"
They conclude by saying: ave trust that
you will avoid the vicious system inaugurated
BY the late District government and let the
work 10 the lowest bidder AFTER proper notice. ;"
After the paper had been read, Mr.. DenniSon
said: Gentlemen, we have read your paper
carefully; have you anything further 70 say In
relation TO the subjects under consideration"
Mr.. Wilson replied in the negative, stating
that the paper presented contained o full idea
Of the wishes and demands Of the associa-
ton.
Mr.. Dennison, in reply, said that the paper
referred to had been carefully drawn. He re-
minded them that they must assume that q
question Of 60 much gravity as the contracts oil
the Board Of Public Works could not escape
the Commissioners. II was the contracts Of
the Board Of Public Works that led 10 the In
yestigation before Congress; It would, there
fore, have been strange II they would not have
given this subject their most careful considers
ton. This he mentioned In order 70 say that
they had been IN no haste IN arriving at the
deliberate and unanimous conclusions that they
had. Your paper sets forth that there has
been large number Of unlawful contracts let
by the Board Of Public Works, and in summing
up you say that all of them are unlawful. You
will observe, also, that you have asked that all
the contracts be annulied on the ground that
they are illegal, and ought not 10 be recognized
by the Commissioners, that the prices are in
excess Of those which should prevail, and that
they should be Rewarded TO the lowest bid
ders. No contracts have been awarded and no
contracts will be by the Commissioners. When
the Commissioners entered upon the discharge
of their duties they found large number OF
contracts outstanding; they had no knowledge
of them nor of the contractors.
They had on the start 9 designated and CON-
peteut engineer, designated by Congress and
appointed by the President Of the United States.
This engineer had been requested TO examine
the contracts and the condition Of the work,
and for this purpose they had suspended them
all, in order to come to the proper conclusions
as TO which to proceed with and which to reject
under the provisions of the law. The engineer
had made report that there were III of them,
and that after an examination he recommended
the revocation Of the suspension on 81 of the
number, leaving so yet under the ban Of sus-
pension; also, that each contract in the mean
time should be specifically examined and re.
port made thereon separately.
The Commissioners decided that the sewer
contracts should be completed, as they had nc
authority to revoke them and thus incur lities-
ton for the District. The District needs these
sewers to relieve II from foul miasma, and &C
far as these contracts are concerned the decision
Of the Commissioners Is irreyocable. They have
Rewarded no contracts, and the legal status OIL
each of them stands precisely as 1t did when
they were made. They had revoked 81 Of them
by temporary suspension, which has, however
been removed, and the work which had beer
done and is to be done upon them must 60 be.
fore the board of audit in accordance with law,
and contractors must take the bonds provided
by Congress In payment. Should they adopt
the suggestions as Get forth in the resolutions,
Of re-awarding these contracts, they would
have TO pay the money in place Of tie bonds,
thereby imposing heavier tax on the people
of the District; it would thus be seen that the
Commissioners are better friends to the tax
payers than the association which they (the
comnirtee) represent. It had been q grave
question with the Commissioners when they
assumed their Offices how they could 90 on
with these contracts, not having the money To
pay them-Whether to go on and rely upon
money coming in from taxes. They called TO
their assistance the comptroller and Senator
Thurman, and after full canvass of the subject
the unanimous opinion was that they could
continue the existing contracts under the pro.
visions Of the act authorizing the issuing Of the
8 IS bonds in place Of money. You say in your
paper that the system Of letting contracts under
the late Board of Public Works was q vicious
one, and you have the hearty concurrence OF
the Commissioners in this expression, and as
al evidence Of this will say that on the
10th of July we had made an order to let all
contracts by bids, and there has not, nor will
there be, any departure from this order, which
has all the force of law with US. This then is
the law Of the present government, and In all
subsequent contracts It has been observed.
The almshouse supplies and the proposals for
repaVing the north side of Pennsylvania avenue
were cited as evidence OF this. The rule was,
therefore, in thorough sympathy with the ex.
pressions Of the resolutions submitted. You
ask us 70 revoke or suspend all contracts made
by the Board of Public Works, on the ground
that they are illegaEthe prices excessive
| The Congress Of the United States has decided
this question. You are aware OF the fact that
certain number Of gentlemen, terming them
selves memorialists, petitioned Congress to
arrest the improvements Of the District. Con-
gress had appointed gentlemen Of known in
tegrity to investigate the matters set forth
The committee had called before It many wit
ncsses TO enlighten them upon the grievances
complained Of. The report of that committee
with the testimony was before them.
The history of every contract had been en-.
tered into and considered. The presumption
was that this committee had discharged theil
duty faithfully, knowing, as they did, the orr,
| gin, history and defects Of each contract The
1