Evening capital journal. (Salem, Or.) 1888-1893, 1892-08-24
ooscInnrn rRoM lsr page.

have saved the city about $4,000
which is now to be added to its now
existing debt of 100000 or more.
The second reason why / stated
that I did not believe the ASSESS
ment could be colle3ted is as follows:
You substituted an altogether diff
ferent set of specifications, after the
contract was let and after the ordi.
nance was passed and the contract
ordered signed by the mayor and
recorder, which was several thous-
and dollars cheaper, although not a
cent was deducted from the contract
price for it. The specifications
under which you advertised for
bids required an upper and lower
course of gravel, one of coarse
gravel, the other of fine
gravel, and course of sand. The
coarse gravel was the first course
and was screened gravel not less
than one inch nor more than two
inches in diameter; the upper course
was find screened gravel not larger
than Z of an inch. Upon the course
of course gravel was to be spread
sand aud the sand rolled into all the
spaces between the gravel, then up
on this was spread course of fine
gravel so as to bring the street up to
grade. After the bids were taken
/ and after the first ordinance was
read second time, Mr.. Mason
agreed with the committee on
streets and public property that if
they would allow him TO use select.
ed gravel he would do the work
for $500 90 less, as it was very
expensive running the gravel
through screen while he could
take rakes of different sized
mesbes he could get the same
sized gravel as by running it through
a screen, and get it out great deal
faster by using rakes than by run
Ming it through screen, and there
was accordingly deducted Sll77.0l
from the property and $322.93 from
the city on the street intersections,
and the ordinance with this change
in it was passed and still required
the work to be done according to
the plans and specifications. except
it should be selected gravel uf the
same size as the screened gravel,
that is, the first course should be
selected gravel notless than one inch
nor more than two inches in dame
ter, the sand to be put in as before,
the upper course to be fine selected
gravel not larger than 1 of an inch
in diameter, this still required AS
good street to be made as though
you had used screened gravel. The
ordinance was passed with this un-
derstanding. But after the ordi-
nance was passed aud the contract
ordered signed, there was thing
done in the way of substituting
specifications which / seriously OBJ
jected to, because knew good
street could not be made under the
substituted specifications, and that
it wouldbe very cheap affair, be-
sides, the property owners had a
right to hearing before such
marked change should be allowed.
/ went to the chairman on streets
and public property, Alderman
Hunt, and he had the contract with
the regular specifications attached to
it, and he told me that the commit
tee had ordered another set of specl-
fications substituted for those, and
ordered me to detach from the con-
tract the old specifications and at
tach the substituted specifications to
the contract instead. / refused and
stated to him that the ordinance did
not authorize it, besides it would not
make a good street and gave him
my reasons, and the chairman of
the committee on streets and public
property stated he could not help it
that the committee had ordered
these specifications instead Of the
other one and that was the way 1t
would be. l then went to the record
er and mayor, who were to sign the
contract, and Informed them that
the committee on streets and public
property has substituted u new set
of specifications that was not con-
templated when the ordinance was
passed, and that they could not make
a good street under these specifica-
tions. The mayor and recorder had
the old and also the substituted spe-
cifcations before then, the old spe-
cifications were detached from the |
contract and the substituted ones
were attGvned to the contract, and | |
told them which the original spe-
cifications we're. and l pulled OF the
substituted specifications from the
contract and put the original ones
back on as they We're when the or
dinance was passed, but these substi-
tuted specifications We're again at
tached to the contract and signed up
with the contract. These substitut-
ed specifications required only one
course of gravel and did not limit
the size and did not require any
sand to bind the gravel. These spe-
cifications Were ordered drawn by
Alderman Moores few days pre-
vious to the time the bids were TAX
en-, and he and some other members