New-York tribune., 1875-11-15
TENTH CANAL REPORT.
THE FARCE OF A CONTRACT.

lHt IARtE Of a toNJbAOi
A CONTRACTOR BUILDS 81 WALL WHEN THE srATf
CALLS FOR 20 CENT wALL-$29,s04 EARNEr
on A S7,219 JOB.
The Governors Commission have made their tenth
| report, dealing with the work Of Flaglef& Reilly
at Fort Plain. The report is follows:
To the Honorable SAMUEL j. TILDRS, Gorenor Of "a.
| STATE Of Ne,c- York:
On the 9th Of October. 1874, contract was signed
with Flagler Reilly for removing wall benches and
substituting slope and vertical wall from lock No. 32 at
Fort Plain west 100 chains, the towngpath side OF
the Erie Canal" For the work to be done under this
tract Messrs Flager Reilly to receive the Of
$7219 80 Though about naf the work still remains 10
be done S29,s0i % had been estimated 10 the contract
the 1st OF june 1879 The contract provided for
1000 cubic yards Of slope wall at 90 cents yard which
would have 10 $500 and only $50 cubic yards 81
vertical wall at 50 a yard. which wouldhave amounted
to only 81 100 Up Juue last only 447 yards Of the 20
cent wall built and 3,l06 yards OF The - wall had
been built az expense OF S5j30, abont double the
OF the original contract for the completion Of the
whole work. and the work in point OF fact scarcely half
done.
This 3i06 yards Of vertical wall has all esti-
mated 60 the contractors FOR wall founded plane
at right angles with its battered face, while the fact s,
ascertalned from personal Inspection and by open
ing the wall in several places that II not only all
laid horizontal at the base, but failed altogether to have
the thickness credited IN the estimates. We found "
fraud upon the state to the amount OF $34l5.
The State is charged with 927 cubic yards OF lining
Si7 So, though lining Of gravel such the contract
required, used the work. The State is also
charged with 2,l37 cubic yards OF pudding. Sl06S So
No pudding found By behind any part Of the wall
tore down; excavation other preparation for
Introducing was be the places where the wall
in process OF construction where inspected IL IN
April; no account made in the estimates Of the earth
excavation, that had need to be made for inserting the
puddle walls and, finally John C. IIersoy, the engineer
who supervised the execution OF this contract testdes
that the nearest approach to pudding that occurred on
this contract working the earth with crowbars after
tho wall and the filing behind it completed For
these reasons not to speak ~ the presumrtOns arising
from the general character of the rest Of the work, We
have doubt that the charge for puddle ndefensble
The computations upon which earth excavation was
estimated TO the contractor that the earth was
excayated behind tho walls on a slope Of 45 degrees.
There 5,47j cubic yards thus estimated costing the
state 81 ,3li. Our own observations, made along the
line OF the work while in progress enable MS to say that
very nconsiderabe portion OF earth was cXcayated be
hind the plane Of the wall and that most OF this
charge is There is allowance OF 1914
cubic yards Of ebankmen for which the contractor
ceiyed si,9sS 10. Ii is not pretended that any
made except TO replace earth that. in point Of
fact was not disturbed, and if the excavation had
actually been made. the contractor had no claim TO be
paid for replacing IT, The excavation OF the wall
benches furnished ample material within 200 feet for
filing the spaces behind the wall. and the contract
pressly prohibited any allowance account Of embank
nent for materials excayatcd in the canal prism and
paid for excavation when not necessarily removed 200
feet line parallel with the canal Tho state has
ccived no credit for he old slope wall stone thought 1t
appears that large quantity have been used in the
work.
Like all have inspected thus far, the vertical wall
Quilt under this contract is very far below the specifea
tions and should never have been accepted Both in
workmanship and quality of material used IL Is very in
ferio and promises to be OF continual expense
to the State for repairs. In judgment very large
portion the work done under this contract unnec
cssary and IN noxs uablc extravaganza the part Of
the officers who advised it, In The 1r Place, vertical
wall was needed 1T ali; bnt had no been built than
the contract called for and had the stpudiOns OF the
contract as the amounts and kind Of work been Oh
served the proposed substitution OF slope and vertical
wall might effected for the entire stretch Of the
canal covered by the contract, for the at which IL
was let As il is -four times that amount OF money
has already been spent, and about half remains be
done.
The officers under whose authority this work let
were Canal Commissioners Alexander Barley James
Jackson, r and X. W stroud. II prosecuted under
the supervision Of Adm Thayer Canal Commissioner;
John f. Yates, Division Engineer; : l. Babcocl, Real
dent Engineers John Hersey, assistant Archibald Me
Laughin, assistant
Annexed will he found LIST. a statement OF the
The work alleged have been done and the money al
lowed for It up 10 June ], 1879.
join BIGELOw, A. Z. ORR,
II TAN RfrEp