Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1882-02-11
THE COURT-HOUSE QUESTION
AGAIN.


our Courthouse property as pub.
lished in your paper of January
21st, / then thought that | was
done with the subject, but upon
reading the card of Mr.. Polk G.
Johnson published in your issue OF
the 18th inst, / feel that justice to
myself requires from me reply to
that communication.
Mr.. johnson gives the contract
price and the exact cost of the
Episcopal church, and / do not pre-
tend to doubt the correctness of his
statement, for he was in a position
to know, and besides, l do not be-
lieve that he would positively state
anything as a fact that he did not
know to be true. But it must be
noted that whilst Mr.. johnson gives
the contract price, and not the Origi-
nal estimates, l gave IN my state
ment the original estimates alone !;
for until saw the published state
ment of Mr.. Johnson, l did not
know what the contract price was
My information upon the subject
was derived from the Hon. G. w.
Tyler, who did not name to me the
amount of the contract price, but
he did tell me that the "original
estimated cost of the building was
$4,000, and that its actual cost up
to that time, was over $4,000.
Now, whilst / do not doubt the
correctness of Mr.. Johnson's state
ment, as published; neither do 1
doubt the correctness of Judge
Tyler's statement to me, for he was
also in position to know, and /
do not believe that he would have
made statement in regard to the
matter that was not true. But as
some might possibly think that
these two statements conflict, it can
be very easily shown why they
should not.
An architect in making his esti-
mates may under some circumstan-
ces, and for reasons best known to
himself, under estimate the value
of work to such an extent that no
reliable contractors will bind them
selves to undertake it at his esti-
mates, as possibly was the case with
the Episcopal church building.
So upon the whole, have come
to the conclusion that no very seri-
Gus mistake" has been made by
any one, unless it was made by Mr..
Johnson himself, in not giving the
"original estimated cost" as we'll
as the contract" price of his build
ing, and thus have saved the
CHRONICLE the trouble of printing,
and the public the trouble of read
ing this uninteresting epistle.
AS regards my doing injustice to
any member of any building COM
mittee, it was certainly not my in
tention to do so. Neither did l
make the statement as regards the
difference between original esti-
mates and the actual cost of other
buildings, as an excuse for myself
and associate commissioners be-
cause of our Courthouse costing
over the contract price; or for the
purpose of shielding ourselves from
censure in any way on that account.
When / found that our Court
house would exceed in cost its
original estimates by several thou
sand dollars, determined for my
own satisfaction, to learn how it
was in this particular with several
other building well known to me,
which had been built within a rea-
sonable length of time. This lnfOr-
nation was not intended for publl-
cation, but when wrote my state
ment for the CHRONICLE l conclu-
ded that as it had been of some
interest to me, it might not be en-
tirely uninteresting to some of its
readers, and therefore included it in
that communication.
My information as regards the
original estimated cost of the Epis-
copal church was, as stated, obtain
ed from Judge G. w. Tyler. AS
regards the Presbyterian church,
from the Hon. ID. n. Kennedy,
who stated the actual cost was be-
tween $31 900 end $4,000, and 1
placed it at about S31 800. AS re-
CARDS the Tobacco Exchange from
Mr.. c. 6. Rosenpl@nter, architect.
AS regards the Hopkinsville Court
house from Mr.. Ben. S. Campbell,
an old and respected citizen of that
community. AS regards the Bow
ling Green Courthouse, from Mr..
S. NJ. Mattock, deputy county
court clerk. AS regards the amount
expended upon the State Capitol,
from Hon. Marshall 7. Polk, State
Treasurer. AS regards the Nash
vile Courthouse, from Hon. JnO.
G. Ferris, county Judge of David
son county. From all of the per-
sons named, excepting those resid-
ing in Clarksville, 1 have letters
which may be seen if desired.
l have been thus particular in re-
plying at length to the card of Mr..
johnson, because it was calculated
to place me in what I consider to
be a very undesirable position,
though as L would suppose, not so
intended by him. For if | had
made such a grand mistake. or
misrepresentation, as some might
term it, as regards the. cost of a
building here at home, where any
one with little Oh no trouble, could
learn what / had done, why might
/ not have done the same as re-
CARDS buildings some distance
away, if it had suited my interest,
or inclination to do so?
G. H. SLAUGHTER.
VI @ C:.oo x,,,;+;,o. +bo oHo.,o