The Windham County reformer. (Battleboro, Vt.) 1876-1897, 1880-03-26
Mr.. Harris and the Railroad.
HOW HE SETTLED" WITH IT, AND
CHEATED TT, AS USUAL.
Some OF Mr.. Thompson's Statements
Punctured.

The REFoRMER, for the past month,
has been trying to get the managers of
the narrow gauge railroad to explain
how they happened, before the recent
settlement" to have paid Messrs Harris
Bros. & Co., the former contractors,
$4,000. when according to their own
showing they had done only $l77, 900
of work. Was this not an unjust iiiabe
carele,sness with the peoples money!
The only reply they have vouchsafed has
beef II vigorous mud throwing at the
"D,vcnports." As the matter stood by
their own showing, even if he has
done as much work rs he pretends, be-
fore the settlement, Harris had the adj
vantage. Now we propose to show that
he has never done any such work. and
that the Statements" which have been
put out, are fabric of falsehoods, which
excite only the ridicule of men WHO I'M
derstand railroading.
Mr.. Thompson reports as showing the
magnanimily of Harris Brothers in their
settlement of contract for building the b.
& w. r. R.. that Harris Brothers & Co..
have paid out nearly $4,000 more
cash than they had received from the
Go. He reports as payments to as fol-
lows:
Cash, $4,000 90
For lumber supplies, &C., 1874 6g
Now add, as reed by H. B, & Co. from
settlement by them with the par
ties from whom they claim to have
purchased iron, say 1900 90
This may not be precisely correct, but
it is nearly SO, as acknowledged
by Mr. Thompson,
Which makes, Sl65,s74 60
Harris Bros. & Co. report to have paid
out $177,795X, included in which is
$50 $3.50, p aid by themselves on the
first three miles. ii. b. 4 Co. worked
themselves only to Station 139, which is
less than % miles, and nearly one mile
of this was earthwork, (as the work for
bridges, bridge masonry and trestle was
sub-let.
Allowing the grading on G. E. Dan
forth & Co.'S, contract to have amounted
to $2e, 900 (and this more than covers iD j.,
and taking Harris Brothers & Co. s state
ment of amounts paid other parties as
follows;
Paid c. +, Danforth IL Co., as above) $4,000 90
" David Hall, which includes cu.
ve1t money, 1888 so
II. w. Stone inclg cuv. money, t,5OO 00
" Butler Il Casey, 1l009 l6
Aver Il Co, " $3.50 90
Total amuont expended for grading
whole line, 2H miles excluded, $52,l92 16
Total length of line including sdings.
about S615 miles
Deduct amount done by Harris Bros
4 Co., ~ miles
Leaves done by sub-contractors, "a miles
This makes the cost of grading on the
main part of the line, including the great
rock cut around Ball mountain 1885,
per mile, and that of the Harris Brothers
on the above 2 1-2 miles $14, 1888 per
mile, or nearly 10 times as much Docs
any body believe any such stutfP That
Mr.. Thompson should put forth any such
statemen shows the exceeding abun
dance of his faith. in the guilibility of
human nature The fact undoubtedly
is that the cost of the bridging and ma
sonry which is also concluded in the
ed in this 1856, S32 so; or in other words
doubly chargcd for the sake of fooling the
people. But we do not believe that even
this will account for all the definiciencies.
Again it is reported that $26.467 10
has been paid for equipments, buildings
ties, spikes, &c. Now we have informa-
ton which we consider reliable, that
Harris has never furnished only about
$4,000 ties which. at an average price of
13c each, would come to $4680; the iron
spikes, delivered, say another $4,000;
and the cars, engines, $4,000 each in
all somewhere about SIG. $50. What
has the company got to show for the
rest of this $26 467 Top
Again Mr. Thompson and the organs
have KEEP; up II big hullabloo about Mr..
Harris generosity in giving up $4,000 or
$4,000 in claims for the extra work. All
the work beyond section 1879, Ms stated
above, was let 10 sub contractors. Did
he allow them anything for extra
workp Is it not then q little
in the shade to know of what these
"claims" consistp
Still again, and the most important
question of all. which should be imme-
diately answered, if possible: If the re-
turns of quantities made by the eng!-
neers of the Eastern division, whose sal
aries were paid by the company, or os-
tensibly so, were all honest, why were
all the books, cross sections. maps.
profiles, etc, spirited away to the Office of
The chief engineer in Buffalo, n. Y, and
inspection of the same refused