National Republican., 1884-03-29
HE COMES AGAIN.
Mr.. Klinglo Insists That the Citizens Memorial
is Truthful Paper,
Y
And That the Facts Stated Are Not
Ancient History
lie Analyses the Street Paving Contracts and
Draws Conclusions
A Document Which the Commissioners
VIII Surely Read.
liz COMES AGAIN.

Mr. J. p. Klinglc, ono of the writers Of the
memorial of tho committee of 100 " to con-
gress, makes the following reply to the crit-
cisms Of Commissioner West and others:
The memorial of the citizons' committee OF
one hundred, the draft OF which, as far as
completed, was published in THE REPUBLI.
CAN of the twenty-fourth instant, charges
that 'the present administration of the local
government is neither economical nor hon
est" Several exhibits were made which are
derived from the official reports made to con-
gress by the commissioners of the District Of
Columbia, Since the draft Of the memorial
was published the district officials have,
through the medium of various interviews
with certain representatives OF tho city
press, extended the record with such new
evidence as to their proceedings as will
streng hen the averments of the memorial
IL may not be Necessary, perhaps, to re-
model the memorial, but it is proper that the
citizens Of the District of Columbia shall
apply the evidence thus furnished to n
scrutiny Of the acts of officials who are set in
authority over them. Tho exhibits sub
nitted with tho memorial speak for them-
selves Tho utterances of the district Off
cials in relation to the exhibits are herewith
brought together in order that tho people of
the district may regard them in their duo
connection with the exhibits of the memorial.
First take Exhibits Nos. l and 2.
Mr.. Commissioner West, in the interview
published March "a, say that he was warned
against the the action set forth in this Ex-
hibit No. /. In tho Sunday Ga=ette of August
10, 1882 appeared the following:
The appropriation act for the present fiscal year.
approved July 1882, contains the following Item
"For work in sundry avenues and streets and re.
nlapnmRnt nnVpmnntS streets named n.
pendices + and annexed to the estimates of the
commissioners of the district for 1858 being sched
100000"
Schedule IF calls for work on five avenues and
twenty streets, aggregat!ng as follows:
Replace wood pavements, l0S,j0O square
yards, at S2.5O. S244 ,l25
Replace stone pavements, $500 square
yards at 500. 2l,OOO
Replace macadam pavements 5000 square
yards at $3.50. 0.........................".. 10000
at $3.50 NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.. aO,75O
Grading aud regulating new streets...... 10000
Laying sidewalks. ......................... 10000
Total as per schedule. sass, sos
As all the items of the schedule are included in
the appropriation the amount available for each
separate item is scaled down according to tho pro-
portion 1t may hold to the gross amount appro-
Replace wood pavemento, 1Os5OO square
yards, at 81 S2O5s2i
Replace stone pavements, S,4OO square
yards, at ......................... 1905
yards, at tS2O7.................. 1855
Laying new payements. $500 square
yards. .......,..."........~.... 17,43S
Grading and regulating new streets....... 2j293
Laying sidewalk s........................ l6 $50
Amount Appropriated, .............. s8oO,o.0
Under the terms of the above appropriation the
amount expended on any one avenue or street
cannot exceed a certain rate per square yard, to
include all incidenals. 10 replace wood pave
ments, for instance, the total cost cannot exceed
sLSs.7 per square yard; other pavements cannot
exceed S2 lO7 per square yard. inclusive of all in
cidentsls i'll each case. In each case IL can be
done for less with profit to contractors
The act Of June II, 1873, section 2. gives power
follows " PrOviied, hoWeuer, That the commits
sions shall have the right in their discretion, to
reject all of such proposals"
In the bids opened Yesterday for street improve.
nents, although congress has ordered and has
appropriated the money for l250 COO square yards
lOs55O square yardss sbeing for 1880 square yards
less than had been ordered by congress.
The lowest bid on Sl,926 square yards Of asphalt
pavement is S2,25 per square yard, and on Z ,20i
square yards of granite'block guttcring for same
is 80 cents per square yard for laying the blocks,
not including the cost OF the granite. The cost OF
this portion OF the work is therefore as follows:
81 ,926 SO. yds. asphalt s225........ $751; 1888 so
1904 50. yds. granite, 99c ........"... 7,l3l 96
$3.50 So. yds pavement st........... l9l 465 46
The cost of this work is therefore s2l3.S per
square yard us against Sl.s9.7 the amount appro-
pTlulCN. lnlo COst VI Sslo.o per hqluIe SdIu uOeS
not include cost of granite blocks or of any Incl
dentals.
The 'unanimous official approval of the com.
missloners' is necessary to the validity Of all con-
tracts.
Mr.. West says, ave. advertise for bids and
have to take the lowest bids"
From the above summary in the Gazette it
will be seen that, although congress had
ordered 132,200 square yards of pavement,
the amount for which proposals were adver-
tised was l00,550 square yards, 22,700 square
yards less than the amount Of work ordered
by congress, it being well established rule
that work ordered by schedule in a legsla-
tive enactment requires the performance of
all the work mentioned in such schedule
precisely the same as though each particular
item Of the schedule were embodied in the
legislative enactment.
The authorities OF the district when under
taking to put the act of congress into practical
execution arc not presumed to know W the
nature of the bids which may be submitted in
the proposals invited by their advertisement
Whilo the commissioners would not know
what would be the bids for the work they
advertised, they advertised for about "a per
cent. of the work, aud the contractors, know
ing the limit OF the appropriation were en-
abled to make bids and secure contracts at
higher prices than the prices estimated for
in tho schedule. Had the advertisement
been made for the whole amount scheduled
the advantage would have been on the other
side and the bids necessarily been kept
within the appropriation for the scheduled
quantity.
In the report of the engineer commissioner
for 1888, pages $3.50, it will be seen that
payments were made for extra work" Tho
schedule makes no allowance for such "extra
work" But, on the other hand, the general
schedule for aid classes of work distinctly
excludes extra work" Of every kind and de-
scription Estimates Of appropriations 1882
1888, pages 266-2G5.) The discretion conidcd
to the commissioners is of tho most absolute
king. "PrOridcd, hOwerer, That the COM
cretion, to reject all of such proposals" (Act
June IL, 1873, section o, paragraph 81 Nor
are they compelled to accept tho "lowest
bid" They shall accept the lowest "respon-
sible" bid. Paragraph 1.) Nor can the
individual discretion Of any commissioner be
controlled in the making and letting Of con-
tracts. Paragraph 81
Mr.. West says, as quoted above, "We
~ IL have TO take the lowest bids"
There is no qualification to this statement.
Mr.. West seems to think that when bids are
made there is no discretion other than to
accept and award contracts according to the
lowest bid. The action Of the commissioners
on these particular bids contradicts the
statement of Nr. West Among the proposals
invited under this advertisement was an
item for laying stone guttering along the
railway tracks on the streets to be paved
with asphalt tho stone blocks for the purpose
to be furnished by the district. The bid o
80 cents pOr square yard was not accepted,