, 1877-01-28

j. ........ So, 745. 0:
sorcrcharges corrected.
e Paid: T. Hoc.y
By Theodore Guenther.
l, "JoE WAS MIGHTY cQTE.n
q said Clark street plumber to whom TRIBUNE
l reporter had shown the above bill. HE played
] it mighty sharp. The prices he charges here
are generally just about what other plumbers
in favor of Joe's pocket. This difference would
not be detected By any other than a practical
plumber, bur, when you put the items all to-
gethe5 and add them up, it makes docs profit
tion Of the bill be deducts 10 per cent, but even
with that deduction there's clear profit of Is
per cent The same thing is true of the
charges s1 Tor E, the tees and the wastc-pipe.'
HoW about that charge for the half-circ1e
Italian marble slabs and backs, which Hogan
claims we're very expensive, because he had to
take n square block Of marble and saw ont
enough to make it tit the ventilatiug-snaft?n
NIhat charge is about right, md for that
reason. But following that come the charges
tor traps and screws. Now, where Joe charges
sl.5o TOR one-and-a a-hall-inch P trap and screw,
most plumbers would have been glad to furnish
an13'+ anem At sl;s9. a two-inch $ trap and screw
charges $.50. For the tlye-nch trap and screw
hc charges SC, when he ought to charge no more
| than s. Then he charges So for two-and-a-
| half-inch s trap, while almost any other
man would have put It in at $3.50 For cmI. fopr-
inch trap he's get down 81, instead Of s.. |
which would he very fair price. 4 one-and-a- |
nali.lnch trap and screw is put in at S., while
IL ongnt not to cost more than s1.5o. By just
sucn little tricks as that Joe has managed to Get !
IN MS work at prices which would not excite the I
suspicion OF the Commissioners, who probah1v
don't know anrthing about plumbing, but Which
~ tooA & lltlc hkG stretching it when plumber
gets hold OF the bill and goes through it,,'
"How ABOUT TIE CHARGES ron rIMEen
mats where the puzzle comes in You will
notice 1 that this bill charges up a351 days time
The 1Gr 1re piun9efs a a and 1eIpefs at $3.50 day.
15th Of May to the sth Of July inclusive, pe-
r1od oi about seven weeks. Now, il tlcy OILY
did the work laid out in this bill, that charge
16r 11e3 1me ,s.1 Is about three times great as
Hogan is quite capable-quite capable. You
vii notice, too, that he puts in the sasfttersot
st.o0 day, and the labor at s., making total
e. 1;ars M dos TIE two OF $3.50 Now, tile
as they really are, should ~ in F,
together IT Just 81 daF,-which would Tnakea {
considerable difference in the whole amomnt i
usthef down, tnd charge Of Sass for two
world ever before heard OF . plumber charoinT
the county for his tools! He had no rieht ,,f7;le7
The sun to run them in. An honest man would !
nave furnished 1T all his tools and would not have
tue collar and plug for the bath-tub. and thc =
:ast-ron but for the tubs, should come With the =
tuts, and should not be charged extra The i i
han1iaeiuters he Iot IT. expect to furnish them with
hat l ever hearl OF, except Joe Horan wn,,ld
'harge Tor resin OF soldcr-pots He wonld ev1
Pert to furnish them, and be glad to do it. too.
snaout ;9 charging the county for them; but, as T
20 sa'u nelGfe, doc IS quite capable Of figuring
- ereryinng no matter how small it appears. l.
ad me little things are the ones that make IN |
ne olg sums They are what tells in the Ionr
4n. IN 90 much as to prices. But the steal. i o.
nefe Is any, comes in under the
CHARGES FOR QUANTITY tt
What they did with all that stuff out tbera -
;oull puzzle the sharpest kind of
nH i%m3eF !; con,d to say: 49, It is hard to see y
nd Of course that only makes it SO much noEc or, II
e!p!e11hg "hen you figure up the time. For.
it wasn't all furnished, the time allowcJ is IT.,
70 70. mnch: or the men must have stood around
uu ssa s ~ nanas IN tclr pockets to fill up time
~ and IN some instances the profit goes nm nv
gu as 5o and eren IS per cent? ~ Bu
f1nu sucll IS Inc commentary pronounced by -.
nonest y, plumber on Joe's little bill Of S. II
o.o7' ~
The reader will observe two oyercharocs IN +ba
u. Inc 1lrst occurs in the item Of brass strain
$ AZ ~ 80 cents apiece. Four OF them are CHARGED
IT. a. 1e nr, T4mttee p Ute IN going over the bill found
Is corrected accordingly. The same is true Of llk
7 =, caasse Tor the brass safcty-ehains Now. ms
alle Tue committee was SO careful over tlese fig
~ np1tattsett snaIl Items. why did not the | vii
empers dlVe deeper and bring up sometime 49,
cat. e01 'o"4eJ WIS sci
Inc affidavit attached to this bill is made ont ho1
I'll Joseph Hogan in the role of afIiunt: and SAX
me sum OF S3r 1886 the original sum Of the pre
! before the orerchargcs were corrected. hit en-
not signed BY Lieb, or any other Notary puh. sae
- otiors @ Nhoin the usual oath is supposed to
ANOTHER ELL. ma
GLOWING is another bill Of March 1. 1871 i'm;
e nsurcs In the lelt-hand column show what tbo
should have charged for the items in onese 49, s
n: e~AA'7 - 4ues@ clnt
D.. I60 Hx5 inch elbows at Sc,... s,o ca VI
= ~ .ss~t9 ; ELBOWS at sc.--..--.... 40 90 Pta
c IL, MA. -iuch elbows ut 11c .''' -. ~ ~ ~
golIl-inch elbows at, I7c . ~ 10
= 1lAxlA Inch elbows at Or = = - rest
- 1haxlH Inch elbows nj :c,c '''' 9'p3 ~,
, :A HI41 q inch tees at l0c Il e -
l3B 1zx541h Inch toes Mt 1oc ~ 9 sit1t
= Exta1al-inch tees at lac ''" - co 20 Boo
&c - 3lxtzxss-nch tees at lie ' f'99 f'9999 ,.at
* AIEx1:-inch tees at 13c ''''' ~ - ~ ~ eeas
" A1Ax7s-inch tees at lie '''' ~ - - 20 conf
-5co9 A14xH-inch tees ut 74c ''''' 11:1S nj y
sc 3hlzl-iuch tees at o0c '."'''. Ley 60 ~
= 211lSlS Inch tees at 3Ic..:." ~ ~ CON