New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1891-11-02
BROOKLYN PAVING STEALS.
HOW THE RING FATTENS ON sPoILs.
CONTRACTS MADE TO BENEFIT ONLY BOSSES
AND POLITICAL HEEI.ERS


soue control OF the city Of Brooklyn this fall has asked
to be continued in power. Knowing that the people
are angered because Of past spolaon of the city, the
ring has forced amlable man, whose life ambition
was TO be congressman TO give up that place before
taking his seat, for the sake OF making him pose
respectable fgurehead behind whom the ring could
carry Its deals without openly antagonizing pub
lie sentiment
The ring made another bid the respectable vote
In its platform. 1t promised honest administra-
ton of public affairs and pledged itself to improved
street pavements.s The only way judge how these
promises would be redeemed is By examining the way
in which the promises have been treated In the
past.
Improved street pavements.' -Four years ago
Mayor Chaplin took Office promising the same thing.
Brooklyn, almost without murmur, turned over to
him and his leutenants - 100000 with which to pave
the streets. What has been the RESULT According 10
a newspaper which is now doing its best TO Keep the
Mclaughlin ring in power, over S1,oOO,ooo Oh the
81, 100000 expended was stolen.
New Workers. complain that they are defrauded IN
the laying OF pavements, and undoubtedly they are
but there Is a pretence Of enforcing good work In
Brooklyn the contracts are specially drawn with loop
holes allow fraud and make 1t impossible Tor an non
est Inspector, who by mischance may be put to
oversee piece Of ring work, TO do anything to"aru
compelling the contractors to put down really good
pavemens.
honesty in not allowing public officials to have any
interest in contracts sell materials 10 contractors
The advertisements In New York for bids for street
paving have a clause providing for this In Brooklyn
this is carefully omitted, with the result that the con-
struction Of public works of all kinds Is ring enter
prise and the oficeholders get their share Oh 'le
profits 1t might be remarked in passing that there
is prejudice in the public mind about speaking OF
highway robber as living the profit OF his cahhg'
The BROOKLYN contracts are so drawn that the I'M
perfect granite blocks thrown out from the New" iorA
contractors stock taken to Brooklyn ana Paiiou
off on that unfortunate city. stone block Is par
tcularly hard piece Of property TO trace IN us "auuef
ings for 10 the average observer one granite Pa'ne
stone is like another but there reputable men VINO
have said and believe that they could convince an u
preudiced Jury that quantities of stones rejected IN
Nev-York were foated to Brooklyn and unloaded at
smith-st.
This was made possible by loopboles in the con-
tracts. With the exception Of certac changes maze
with an obvious purpose the Brooklyn contracts are
exact copies of those made in Newfork some OF the
differences are herewith pointed out: In New YORK
the granite blocks are required to be sound, uniform
and durable the quality rs 20 hardness color
and grain and the use Of all oucrop, BRITTLE soft or
lamnated stone is prohibited. In Brooklyn 1t Is simply
specified that the blocks be similar to specimens IN
the engineers Office and equal in quality and hard
ness to granite from Milestone Point, Conn.,; Westerly
r. l.. and Cape Ann Mass. There soft, brittle
laminated and outcrOp stone to be found at those
places and accordingly there SOFT brittle, hminated
and outcrOp stone be found In large quantities. III
the Brooklyn streets.
In other provisions special opportunity for poor WORK
is given. New-YOrk contracts call for stones within
these limits of size: Length 5 TO II inches, width
z 10 s inches, depth TO inches. In Brooklyn the
blocks are allowed to be from 8 to IA inches long
This enables the contractors 10 put in less than three
quarters the number of blocks figured on at the normal
SIZE and often blocks twenty inches long to be
found. 1t is estimated that this point alone fully
$500 900 put into the pockets of the contractors
In other words put into circulation among the ring
These large blocks enrich the contractors, but do not
make good pavements They crack easily under heavy
jars and also destroy the crown of the street Con-
rsc tors also enabled TO put down us instead OF
$50 courses Of stone block. Other changes made
from the contract used a model are equally ad
vantageous 10 the contractor aud detrimental TO the
city Instead Of making the longitudinal joints lap two
inches they allowed to lap four inches thus de-
creasng the number Of points, destroying the elasticity
of the pavement and it is estimated shortening its Life
IS per cent.
The requirement in New-York that no ramming
shall be done within twenty-five feet of the face Of
the work is changed 10 twenty feet the requirement
that rammer be employed for two PAYERS is left
out; that the pavement be raked with sand once when
lay Ing and again when from 200 TO 260 feet is finished
Is altered so that the sand may be brushed the
stones and the second application made when il may
oe thought desirable Thus contractor Is the quicker
enabled 20 up badly rammed sand with stones.
and to conceal badly laid stones by filling the cevices
with sand and moreover, less sand Is used with a
brush Than with rake In Brooklyn, instead of com
rsetng foundation for pavements with 10000 pound
rollers, it is done with 80 pound Hampers. The re
suit is seen in the numerous holes In nearly new
pavements in all parts of the city. Instead Of using
clean sand, loan and sand from cellars are
often used and sometimes little of that. This
covered with large blocks mixed with understood
hcks ghicn. under pressure sink into the earth and
soon ruts and mudholes distgIre the pavement.
IT is said that In Fourth and Bushwick one
lOad OF sand was maze 10 do for block The ring |
howe -er. saved 100000 sand and large stone.
For all this work contractors obtained high rates |
they not compelled to relay old crosswalks and
cur stones put down ones at their expense
as in New FORK, but all that york under the |
head OF extras The pavcments were for the most
part laid in Washington, Bushwick, Fourth, Flushing
Hamilton johnson, Graham, Brooklyn. Classon and
Kn ,terbOcker aves. and In smith, Nassau Jay, Court
'nd fulton sts 1t was agreed that only main thor
ugEltres be paved. Yet knckerbocker and Brook |
Ign ares out near the city line, were paved at great
expense and neither Of them would be called main |
large amount OF property in Knckerbockerave and
CiO Treasurer IIasey CCrwln a large amount III |
soun.ly and short street Of one BLOCK of Bushwick
ave-. was pay ed. All the property on 1t belongeE 10
recent wealthy convert to the Democracy.
OF the companies from which stone was pur- |
chased the Brooklyn Granite Company" Of stony
Greek. New Haven County, Conn. The trustees OF that
company were: William II. Murtha, who during his |
lifetime was treasurer OF the Democratic General Com
mltfre, and brother OF James \. Murha, Deputy
onl s.Oner OF the Department Of City Works, which
l.l { e "'crs.ght Of the work George W. Rice and |
. .l.ze A. %erIgan. auctloneer In WillOughby st,
81, ~:.. fhCe Hugh Mclaughlin is generally 10 be ,
spa ncrllly, in fact, that " Kcrrigan'sS has be-
~. D. 9onyme OF DEMOCRATIC headquarters,'
aer arm furnishing paving stones was the = Con-
pecueat Valley Granite Company OF Deep River,
Conn The trustees Of that company were Theodore A
Madden. Thomas E. O'Brien and James +. Carey
James f. Carey is engineer Of the county farm al ST.
Johnland, which a recent Grand Jury denounced as
an ente prise carried for the purpose of deaudng
taxpayers. Thomss f.. OBren was formerly mem
per OF the Board o: Supervisors from the sixth Ward
He was indicted for passing fraudulent claims when
EARN {, Innttee Of that body.