Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1876-04-11

50 me plan of said reports and containing In
formation rs to the apportion ment Of ex-
paDyipg the engineers report. As % the
statement of all expenditures on streets,
alleys, roads, sewers, bridges and pub
lie places improved or ia course of
Improvement since 1871, including q
period of three years and q half before
not included In the foregoing statements and
lists, The Com mfssioners have not at their
disposal the data requisite for the prepare
until the books, records and papers OF the
board OF audit are turned over TO them.
After this shall have been done, the labor OF
required for the examination of every
voucher and account of the late board OF
public works. If the committee think Ii i'm
portant TO have statement OF this kind, it
could be made ready, but probably not In
time for the present session OF Congress. The
whole subject Of special assessments for inn
provements, together with the reasons why
these assessments have not been made in ali
cases where the Improvements have been
made is explained In the text of the eugi-
neer,s report, accompanying this answer,
We are Informed by the engineer and the
deputy controller, having charge of the as
sessments, that for several months past
the work OF making and collecting assess
ments has he en- arrested by the cessation of
stat. ments from the board OF audit OF the ex-
penGitures made on the improvements on the
=
the members of the board OF audit have since
the passage by the House of Representatives,
III January last, OF the resolution of inveSIi-
CATION, regarded themselves as at liberty to
continue IN the performance of thedutIes OF
their Office touching this matter.
400. Do you claim that yol have authority
TO cause property adjoining streets, avenues
and sewers TO be assessed for its share of the
cost of the improvements made under your
direction, and IL so, have you made such as
seSSments, and on what streets or avenues?
hQQ o. "a tlna
property holders assessed So : cents III cash
ana the District one dollar in bonds. or do
you fiLd the cash value of the bond and as
seSs one third of that value against the ad-
joining property? In other words, is your
assessment against the property holders
bas ed upon the face value of the bonds, or
urOn their market v8lue?'
20. -4nSlCeT-The assessments for special
improvements for work done under the Com
missioners have been In strict conformity
with the established rules which have been
followed In the case of assessments made by
the board of public works. In some instances
work done under the Comm SsiOners and
work done under the board OF public works
both enter into the expenditures which go TO
make up the assessments. In no case have
the expenditures under the Commissioners
been the sole basis of the assessment. In
every case the assessment against the prop
erty-hoders is based upon the actual cost of
the Improvement expressed in dollars and
cents, whether paid in bonds or in cash. No
distinction whatever is made on account of
the medium OF payment. The one third
assessed against the property holders being
collected in currency or in eight per cent.
improvement bonds of the District, which
are by law receivable in payment OF these spe.
cial Improvement taxes. For full inform ma
ton upon this subject see text of engineers
report, under the head of Assessments,
referred to in answer to previous question:
In closing their answers TO the tnterrogato-
rles of your committee the undersigned would
not conceal their disappointment at the ex-
tent OF the expenditure for work payable In
) 90 bonds. In their last annual report they
referred 10 the fact as follows:
"The work and consequent expenditure,
chiefly in the fifty year bonds provided for
by the act of June 20, 1874, aud pursuant to
examination AID audit of the accounts by
the board OF audit, consisting OF the First
and Second Controllers of the United States
Treasury, exceed the expectations of the
commissioners, as indicated in their last
report, December, 1Si,) but the causes
therefor, growing cut of obligations for the
execution of existing legal contracts, the
protection or preservation OF improvements.
existing or commenced, and not yet com
pleted a thedate of said act and the enforce.
ment OF obligations of contractors for keep.
ing avenues and streets which they improved
In good repair. fully explain the reasons for
such increased work and expenditure"
The explanation of our want of informa-
ton of the magnitude OF the expenditure is
found in the practical workings of the Dis
trict government under the law of its organ
iZatiOn. which imposes upon the Commits
sioners little If any responsibility OF the eX-
ecutiOn OF the work they order, after its COM
initial TO the engineer, who is charged with
its control, subject only To their general su-
pervisiOn and direction =" and who reports
the measurements for settlement with con.
tractors, not TO the Commissioners for their
consideration and decision, but to the board
Of audit, between whom and them there Is no
official communication, and whose decisions
In respect of such measurements is not sub
ject TO their review, nor brought to their no.
lice in any way, and is final in settlement
with contractors. The anomaly is thus pre-
seDted of one party, the Commissioners, or
dering work to be done, and another party,
wholly Independent of II, the board of audit,
auditing the claims of the contractor
under such work, and finally settling
and paying them in certificates of indebted
ness executed and issued by that board
without any knowledge by the Commission
ers OF the amount of the claims nor of the
considerations on which the action of the
board in respect of such claims is basel.
Under these conditions IL was impossible for
the Commissioners to be advised of the cur
rent expenditures of the work they ordered,
or TO make any approximately accurate es-
innate of 1t, for which they were practically
without data, until Informed by the engi
neer in the summing up OF the years work
exhibited in his last annual report. And yet,
larger as was the expenditure than we ex-
pected, we have no reason to doubt that the
work was done at reasonable rates, and was,
with few ifany exceptions, judiciously un-
dertaken.
The necessity for the work, its character
and extent, done under the Commissioners,
cannot be appreciated by those not informed
d
Washington city, at the time Of our entering
upon our office. In his remarks in the Sen
ate. in February last, relating TO District
matters, Mr.. Edmunds said, "that as much
as believe the Commissioners OF the Dis
trict OF Columbia have gone too far in the
expenditure OF money, mot as in violation
OF law, but as matter OF expediency,) |
think we ought not to forget the condition in
which they found this District when Con-
gress put them into possession to administer
Its AFFAIRS. Miles and miles of streets were
torn up, sidewalks torn up, things stripped
and carried away, and there was an utter
state OF dilapidatiOn and ruin If things were
left in their then condition all over the city.
Anybody can readily see that when citizens
would be applying to them TO redress, as II
would be, the wrong that had been COM
mitted ON them by pulling up the streets
and turning everything upside down and
leaving them in that condition, they
went forward, and TO make what
they were doing useful, very likely, in
some instances, they went beyond the
strict letter of completing an existing
work, IN order 10 bring existing works into
connection with other streets that had been
finished. But with all the criticism that
rave pronounced upon the operations in this
District for several years, / feel bound in
candor TO say this, that | am now
saying, that we ought to have pref
ty charitable Judgment in respect to matters !
OF eNpediency in the conduct OF these gentle !
men who are commissioners, when we look |
at the condition OF things that they found |
themselves placed in, and the difficulties