The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1892-02-08
STRUCK The KEY NOTE.
"A. Taxpayer Gives His Views on the
/. New High School Sit
uation.
The Opinion Expressed That the
Architect and Superintendent
Are Most to Blame.
A Recommendation That the Points at
Issue Be Loft to Professional Men
for Adjudication.

you have struck the keynote in the school
song. by asking a few proper questions in
your last Issue:
''Ihe school trustees employed II superin-
tendent at a salary of $50 q month, to see
that the peoples interests were guarded.
Has he done his duty?"
.sThey employed an architect who will
receive $4,000 or more for his work. Has
he been faithful to his trust?"
Have the trustees seen that all the par
ties lived up to the agreement"
These are the questions which should be
answered in order to establish tho truth
about those costly extras. The report Of
the trustees shows that, in round figures,
$1,000 has been paid extra for the founda-
ton of the high school building. Whose
fault was this? The fault of the trustees,
who are not supposed to be building ex-
perts. or was it the fault of Paulscn. the
architect, who drew a plan which necassi-
tated this extra; Or was it Superintendent
Williams' fault, who did not detect this de-
fcienoy in the plan and recommended its
adoption? BY paying this money to the
contractors, who actually did the work,
have the trustees committed a dishonest
act? Have they defrauded the county OF
its money? Or have they been shamefully
imposed upon by interruptions architects?
Twenty-Five hundred dollars in round
figures, have been paid extra Cor a slate
roof; $500 for cresting; $l.700 for copper
c~ornice; $4,000 for changing ROOT plan;
$1,000 for laying rock in cement. I again
ask the question. who has caused theEe ex-
tras? Was it the fault of the trustees. that
the architect, knowing the building was to
be built within the fire limits. took advan-
tage of the ignorance Of the board in
building matters, and designed a light roof,
which could support only the weight of
shingles, which he specified for covering,
and which consequently caused the follow
ing extras: Slate $1,000, crossing $500. cop
per 81 LOO, roof construction $4,000, total
$4,000? Have the trustees defrauded the
county of this amount, or have they them
selves been shamefully imposed upon by
unprincipled professionals, who caused the
outlay of these extras!"
l would also ask whose fault it was that
$1,000 had to be spent extra for cement to
prevent the walls from caving in? Are the
trustees supposed to know more than an
architect; to doubt that the walls Of a
certain building are strong enough, when
the architect says they are? The walls are
about twenty inches thick, and the rock
was specified to be laid up in mortar with
out cement That this could not be done
if the building was to be substantial was
very soon discovered; cement had to he
used, whether specified and contracted for
or not, in order to make the building safe.
Was this extra $4,000 caused by the archi-
tect or the board of trustees?
All these extras nave been allowed, and,
] NC L n 1nrpfpv1 ND D.. y,ort1rr ,,oyI - %In n~~
tractors. Now, it remains to be proved
whether the contractors received only a fair
compensation for their extra work o,
whether these extras have been o~veresti
mated by the architect or superintendent
upon whose recommendation Or advice
they have been paid by the trustees. This
can easily be determined by appointing
some professional men to figure it out.
The trustees may justly be blamed TO
not having been more caiefui and for no
having peremptorily insisted upon thei:
rights set forth in their building contract
but they can certainly not be blamed fol
not having studied architecture before the,
were elected as trustees of the Helen,
school board, so that they could not be i'm
posed upon
Why was there no trouble in the erection
of the First ward school building? Becaus
the plans and specifications embraced
everything, except the heating. necessar,
to complete the building. It was let to tn
lowest bidder for $16,S00 in the presence o
all competitors. After the excavation wa
done the trustees decided to set the build.
ing five feet higher abovethe grade line thai
originally designed and finish up two NOR
rooms in tho basement. This caused al
extra of $1.70O making a total of $3.50
without heating, which was put into tn
building after the same had been nearl,
finished, at a cost Of $500. The buildin,
was ready for occupation Mt the prope
time and everything was settled s~atisfac
torily. TAXPAYER.