The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1891-04-19
THAT JASPERITE AGAIN.

oAAy WIG Cay SITeeU LOrCo were aSdlI
ming the numerous holes In the Dougla.
avenue pavement with cinderx The EAGLE
mas given expression to the sentiment o.
this city touching that jasperite Job here
tofore and in such unmistakable language
that no one, not even an interested Official
could fail to understand. and only because
OF our duty to the public do we again
more reluctantly than otherwise, allude Il
1t, and now only because of the informa
ton that the contractor has been In tn,
| city several days interviewing members Of
the council 1t ought to be unnecessary
for the EAGLE to say that there can be nc
acceptance OF any character of the work
and no compromise whatever. 1t Is not Z
pavement of any class, let alone '.irs
| class" Cottonwood plank would
have lasted five times as Ions
and proved more substantial. Their,
was never an experiment devised
or tried that was not superior to the joi
which was to equal asphaltum for smooth
ness and rival granite in lasting qualitie.
A roadway of soft wood blocks, or o.
bricks, or Of pounded stone would hav,
been preferable. No talking with mem
bers of the council Is called for, no law
yers are wanted, no juries are necessary
The thing speaks for itself The loose
sand between the base and the surface per
mits its numerous holes to become SO dan
gerous as to necessitate filing with cinder
A blind man driven over the street would
become competent and reliable witness
OF its worthlessness- 1t would be g swim
die worse than an official steal or highway
robbery for the city government to accep,
or for the courts to force the property own
ers along that street to pay anything
The business men were damaged
IN their trade for wesks whar
1t was put down. and now another lik,
damage is inevitable in the time it will
consume in taking it up and replacing ii
with dirt or with another pavement The
property holders wanted good, first class,
No pavement, for which they were will
Ing to pay first class, No. l price; but
the business Of the street, and the property
of the street, would be better off had the
so-called pavement never gone down. The
, proposition Of the paving company was
not accepted on the faith Of the tax payers
nor upon their expert knowledge; but
simply on the understanding, promised
implied and set forth In the contract, that
they were to have substantial, first class
even more than that, superior pavement
The truth is that it commenced to give
east end of the avenue was completed
the other end was breaking Tito holes
The business men of the avenue
have already been Inconvenience and los,
enough. If the contractors have lost, it is
their own fault. 1t was their place tc
know what they were putting down was
just what they had represented and agreed
it should be. The people were warranted
in expecting good and substantial piece
of work, but the patentee and contractors
were not warranted in representing it as
such, much less warranting it. as few
months subsequent test has most fully
shown. When the failure became evident
and the EAGLE SO announced, warning the
city authorities not to do anything which
could be construed into an acceptance. the
patentee left his home in Minnesota and
came all the way down to say to Us and to
authorize US TO say to the people that not
one cent would be demanded until the
property holders were satisfied. Now
comes the contractor, in face of his wreck
of cement and sand and ground granite
which was to be pavement, demanding
payment. But for our faith in Mayor
Carey and the city council we would put
in some talk in this connection, the sequel
of which might make it unnecessarily I'm.
comfortable for the men whose impudence
is only equalled by the worthless rotten.
ness of their pavement.
What now is to be done the EAGLE will
not presume to dictate to the council. The
mayor and one-half of that body received
large per cent Of their votes from men
who had faith to believe that they would
protect the city in all honesty aud at al
hazards. Our city has been inconven-
fenced, the street railway put to an enor-
nous expense, and merchants to great
loss AS an individual, or even as an organ
speaking for the public, we would be will
ing to pay for the grading and allow fol-
the Teller base just what it would be
worth as base to any other responsible
paving company, providing however, that
as any acceptance of the work or pavement
contract.