New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1884-01-29
TIE LEGISL4TTE LYVESTTG 4TTONS.

The two legislative Investigating committees,
in the short time they were at work yesterday,
developed number Of important facts. Before
the Senate Committee, John Brady, enc of
Commissioner ThOmpsOn's unbalanced bid con-
tractors, testified that when he bid So a cubic
yard for excavating earth, the fair value of
which was about fifty cents, and one quarter of
a cent for rock worth two or three dollars, he
knew the department estimate was altogether
wrong. His knowledge, he said, was based on
a mere cursory examination of the ground.
And on such knowledge he secured a contract
on an estimate of $4,000, which under this
outrageous unbalanced bid system will cost the
city about 100000. But the estimate made
under Commissioner ThOmpsOn's direction cost
the city 4 considerable sum of money, and was
supposed to be the result of expert knowledge
and actual measurements. 1t did not occur to
Mr. Thompson, when he let the contract, that
there was anything suspicious in Mr.. Brady's
bid. His unsuspecting nature has proved an
improbable thing for the city, however it may
have served his friends.
Mr.. Keech, another witness, testified
that a job of painting in the Court
House, amounting to S4,449, was di-
vided into five orders; and thus the statute
requiring public letting for any job of work
the several parts of which involve an eXpen-
diture of $1,000" was evaded. How boldly
this was done is shown in the fact that Mr.
Thompson gave an order for painting one side
of room at 1897, and separate order amount
ing to 1896 for painting another side of the
same room, and so on until the entire space was
covered by orders. In another instance, ac-
cording to the testimony, he actually recalled
an order after it was issued and divided the
work covered by it into two orders, the total
cost of which was about 81, 300. Under this
same system of orders 81 81 more a ton was
paid for coal than the price paid on contracts
by other departments. The statute is explicit
in directing that any one job of work costing
over 81, 900 shall be done by contract, and 1t is
made a misdemeanOr to evade it,
The developments under these investigations
make it clear that Mr.. Thompson is not the only
official who apparently does not think it neces
sary to observe the strict requirements of the
law. Register Reilly testified before the As
sembly Committee yesterday that the records
of fees received by his predecessors, which the
law requires to be kept in his Office have been car
ried away Mr.. Reilly submitted what purpOrted
10 be "A record of all his fees for one month, but
on examination he admitted that separate ac-
counts were kept with some large law firms and
that these accounts were not included in the
amount he submitted to the committee. Hence
it was not ascertained what the esof the Office
amount to, even for one month, but that they
are very large is evident from Mr.. Reilly's I'M
willingness to acknowledge what he paid for his
election. 1t was more than $4,000, he said,
but how much more the committee could not
ascertain.
These Investigations are furnishing work for
the Grand Jury and the District-AttOrney, as
well as for the Legislature. The county officers
appear to think that they have right Of prop