The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1890-06-13
STAR ROUTE CONTRACTS.
A Very Important Reform Estab-
lIshed by the Government.

uottOd tftS government.
very brief statement has been published
regarding case just settled In the United
States Court in Bangor, which is of great
Importance to the postal service in correct
ing an evil that bid fair to disorgauize the
star service of this country, and to u. S. At
torney Bird of this city, great credit is due
Ior the successful result Of the case. Under
the system Of competitive bidding, which
permits professional contractors to compete
with local bidders for star service, it hap
pened in great many cases that the margin
between the lowest bidder and the next
above him was limited to very few dollars.
Asthese professional bidders are frequent
ly awarded some hundreds of routes, 1t Of
ten happens that among them there will be
considerable number of what are termed
losing routes-that is, routes on which the
service must be performed by the contractor
at loss, or where no sub-contractor could
be obtained except for a sum In excess of
the price at which the contract had been
awarded. Under system which had grown
up In the department., professional contrac-
tors would fail to put the service on these
routes, and then come in with an offer of
compromise for ''actual damages"-that is,
the difference between their bid and the
next lowest bid. plus the cost of temporary
service pending the time when they abandon
the route or failed to put on the service and
the time when 1t was taken up by the bidder
next above them.
One of these contractors, Mr.. w. A. Stod-
dard. Of Camden, N. Y, had failed on some
of these routes, and after lapse of consid-
cradle time, when the service had been pro.
vided for by the department., came in with
the usual offer of compromise for actual
damages. This offer was at once rejected by
Second Assistant Postmaster General Whit
field. as were large number of others, made
aboutthe same time, by other falling con-
tractors. A great deal of unavailing pres
sure was brought to bear on the Second As
sistant. and when it was found impossible
to change his determination. an appeal was
taken to Postmaster General Wanamaker.
The latter, however, stood by his assistant
In the decision he had reached, and gave him
his cordial support In the new departure
which had been inaugurated. In addition to
the full sum of the bond which the statute
provides as liquidated damages for failure
to perform service afterward had been made
and contract entered into. Revised Statutes
1854, as amended by Act of August II, 1876,
provides an additional penalty of fine and
Imprisonment. Col. Whitfield Immediately
caused proceedings to be instituted at the
United States Court at Bangor, against w.
A. Stoddard, failing contractor, and the re-
suit Is the conviction above noted. The re-
suit is notable and unique, from the fact
that. as far as the records of the department
disclose, it is the first conviction ever had
under the cri ninal statute for failing to per-
form service. Civil action on the bond will
be instituted by the government to recover
liquidated damages, as provided by the Stat
utes.
The importance of the new departure will
be seen when 1t is borne in mind that in the
case Of W. A. Stoddard, against whom Grim.
inal action was brought. the actual DANA
ges" amount to about $4,000, while the DANA
ges provided for in che bond will fall little
short of $4,000 Mr.. Stoddard failed on
nearly hundred of his routes 1t should
be borne in mind that this failure occurred
afterward, and when Stoddard had entered
into contract, duly executed with bonds
men, whose efficiency is certified to by the
postmaster at the place where the bond is
executed. and after the usual oath had been
taken by him to perform the service in ac-
cordance with the term of his contract.
The competition among professional bid
ders and between them and the local bidders
has become so close as to reduce the margin
OF profit to very low figure. These failures,
If persisted In, would have utterly demo raj
lied and finally disorganized the star service
OF the country Col. Whitfield found almost
from the start disposition on the part of
garu lie TERMS OF Ineir contracts, but to ex-
ecute proposals and contracts in utter disre-
gard ofthe law and regulations. Very soon
after he assumed charge of the Office he set
aside nearly $4,000 worth of fraudulent
contracts. where it appeared that the names
OF contractors. sureties and witnesses were
in one handwriting and where subsequent
Investigation developed the fact that the
surety net only signed the contractors name
but actually took the oath for him and sub
scribed to the same. This spring, when the
award was made for the contracts to begin
on July l, 1890, about $4,000 worth of pro-
posals were set aside for informality in ex-
ecution, similar to the contracts above not
ed.
1t is believed that the prompt action taken
by the United States Court at Bangor and
the position of the department in refusing
compromises. will tend to break up entirely
the practice of failing to perform service in
accordance with the terms of the contract,
and that the setting aside of contracts and
proposals improperly executed will result in
convincing bidders and contractors that an
obligation formally entered into with the
government under seal, and executed under
the solemnity of an oath, is not a dead let
ter. but that it means something, and that
the department will henceforth insist upon
specific performance, or apply all the rene