Telegram-herald. ([Grand Rapids, Mich.) 18??-1892, 1891-04-18
MUST HAVE THE Cash
Before the Work on the Court
House IL Started Up.
THE CONTRACT ILLEGAL AND INVALID
Manager Morton kxpssias is Detail Why
the Construction Company Has ks-
fasss Push the sWerk-Whafs W
ts bs Done Aeeat 81.

The total amount of work done on
the new county court house ia the last
ninety days is scSrely noticeable. wltn-
IN the dark snc gloomy structure one
or two men, possibly three. iilt about
IN the shadows carrying in their arms
or upon their hacks pieces of wood or
iron, which they lsy down in one place
only 10 pick them up 10 Law down ia
another The next Gay. The whole pEo-
ceedlngs are IN the nature OF broad
| bnriesQue, bnt the real tun of the busi-
ness lies IN the fact tnat tie county Is
paying for it-and paying dear for IL.
too. The workmen have put together a
email section OF tue iron stairway, tnt
TINS would not have been done had NOT
Deacon Looms fallen through an opell-
ing from above and dlslocaied his liver.
The galvanized lTon coping and hoods
| Tor the tower are also stored an the
man hallway. Doren's grounds remain
Just where he plsccd them two fDoaths
ago There Is a cherries, haunted at
mo>phere about the place that suggests
spools. hohgohiins aud sprites az every
tufn in the unfinished corridors Ma
body Is there TO welcome you, nobody
can tell you what's being done, nobody
| works and nobody Is getting ANYTHING
out al IL financially except the baddiag
committee and superintendent, AL ot
whom draw their per diem aud salaries
with remarkable regularity, and indlt-
ference 10 the fact that 40 value IS rem
dered the county therefor.
why the Delay u Continued.
Mr.. Morton, the af,able manager of
the Western Construction Company,
WAS seated IN his dingy office yester-
day afternoon labor ously indlrng n
letter TO ms chief.
"Why don't you 60 on and finish iiY''
| inquired a reporter. referring 10 the tug
calamity Just 10 the north OF where he
sat.
I'VE want TO be sure we will get our
pay before We proceed" Was hls re-
PLY.
whats the trouble with the payyp
II do not speak for the company, un-
dcrstand, as | dropped out of Il Is sec
| retary some time ago. and am now its
representative here--hlgh private, so TO
speak. | am advised by competent
| legal gentlemen that the contract we
have with the county is not good. That
ls TO say, neither the county nor the
company could enforce IT'S provisions as
against each other IN a court Of law.
This is very serious question, and one
that requires the exercise of great eau
ton Oh our part. In n nutshell We do
no: desire TO go ahead until we are as
| sured that our money is forthcoming.
| The reason the contract is faulty ls very
simple. In the fast place the people
authorized the building of a court
house TO cost $50. 900. The supervisors
4 regardless of tins limitation awarded
the contract to US at Siso.00o- Lawyers
| tell us now that the board went beyond
its authority and that the contract tor
that reason, and others. is Invalid"
win Try TO Mend Matters.
"What's 10 be doney' "Hard Ques-
ton 10 answer, young man. Already
our contracts and changes viii foot up
TO $4,000 Add TO this the architects
fees, expenses of committee and board
and believe the court house will eat
up $4,000. as II now stands. The
building committee clam To- have
plenty of money. but we prefer Ia see
II. They have promised 10 take from
other funds, or a fund. 10 reimburse
the building fund, but that has not
been done. Ii would be unwise ADD
unbusincssIike for my company 10 60
ahead without positive assurances that
the money is available. We have paid
all our subcontractors as agreed and
the whole question now hinges on the
money for completing the work. II
the contract WAS good and valid we
could 60 ahead and finish the work
and collect our pay, but the contract
is bad and we cannot Afford 10 run the
chances, and what - more, ! DO not
think the company will run them.
| Mr.. DIckerson, to be sure, is an uD-
willing contractor. The embarrass-
ment and failure of his partners in the
company WAS wholly unexpected and
this Job was thrown upon him when IN
fact he never anticipated having any
thing TO do with it. lie bas offered 10
surrender the contract and assign TO
the board all his sub-contracts IL they
will finish the building. In doing ths
he asks TO be relieved from al further
liability.
Meeting of the Supervisors.
"The board will meet on the 27th IN
slant TO take some kind Of action. /
am advised that they propose to set
over from some one or more of the
county funds a sufficient amount 20
fnlrh the building. 1t this Is not done,
then understand that they propose 20
annul the contract. III the former
acton - taken, and the money placed
at our disposal, we viii go ahead and
finish the court house. II the contract
- perempiorily appulled, why, ] pre-
sumo the board will 20 ahead ON its
own notion"
Then you are indifferent ss 10
| which acton q taken 7'
"No two questions about that"
"Sou would be glad 20 get out Of
your contract p
'No two questions about that either"
WAS your contract too low
81 think il was. The erpsDd itures al
ready made are sufficient 30 indicate that
the new court house will cost very
much more than the original syproprIa-