The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1893-11-11
A VOLUMINoUs DOCUMENT.
Laws Claimed to Be Openly
Violated.
EXTRAvAGANCE IN SUPPLIES
Thousands of Dollars Worth of Goods
Bought in the "Open Market"
Without Competition.

The long expected report OF Expert
Horace d. Dunn on the affairs of th:
School Department was fled with Mayor
Ebert yesterday afternoon.
About three months ago there was con
siderable contention among the SchOo
Directors, and various charges of FRAUD
and corruption were made, especially IL
the matter of supplies and repairs. IN
fluenced by these charges, Mayor Ellert ap
pointed Expert Dunn to go through The
books. bills, papers and vouchers OF the
School Department for the whole fisca
year. Expert Dunn occupied about ninety
days on his job, and yesterday fled witt
the Mayor his report consisting of 10000
words of typewriter matter and tabu'
lated statement equally long,
The report covers very wide field, goes
into the salary demands, special fees,
whitening con tracts, stationery accounts,
repairs on school buildings, purchase OF
o paints and oils, coal contracts and mlscel-
laneUuS bills.
Special reports are made on each segre-
cation mentioned. under the following
heads: Salary of George Beanst0n, as clerk
of committees; statement of fees paid to
Charles |. Ravens. architect; demand OF
William Cronan, sundry repairs lrregu-
larities OF demands; demand statement OF
Cunningham, Curtiss & WEIGH; Bass
Hueter Paint Company; Rapid Safety Fill
ter Company; principals. teachers sala-
ries; coal purchases; whitening and palnt-
ing; miscellaneous items.
Under the head of Secretary Beanston.s
extra salary of $50 as clerk of commit
tees, nothing new is developed to add to
what has already been published on the
subject. The expert claims that $1,000 has
in this way been paid Beanston illegally
out of the school fund, and that it can be
collected from his Dondsmen by the city.
Under the second head, as regards fees
paid by the Board of Education to Charles
l. Ravens, architect, for professional
services during the fiscal year 1928, the
expert says that the payment of fees to the
architect on the repainting of school build
ingS was per cent on S2931 s., or S146 So
which repairs should have been made IN
der the supervision of the head carpenter.
The third segregation of the report re-
lates to a demand In favor OF William
Cronan for the sum of SSH 10 for re pairs
upon sunGry school buildings. Tbe.eXpert
says this demand was unapproved for a
period of six months, and that it was not
certified as correct by the head carpenter
because there were large excuses in the
amount of the material used. Dunn says
the demand was passed by the Board OF
Education with memorandum IN pencil in
place Of the head carpenters signature,
which reads: Carr refused 80 sign req"
Under the next head of Irregularities of
demands the expert cites the demands Of
John 2. Culley and P. T. Ward for lead
pipe, where cents a pound was allowed
in one case and 10 cents in another, while
the market rate was 61a cents. Other
variations from market prices in the de-
mands were also IN the cases OF oakum.
calking lead and solder.
The subdivision dealing with the pur-
chases made by the Board of Education of
Messrs. Cunningham, Curtiss d WEIGH,
both by contract and open purchas e, ="
during the fiscal year follows. The total
amount of these purchases was S11.596 79,
of which $500 20 was made under con-
tract, and S6304 09 was by "open pur-
chase" Purchases Of books in the open
market" of Cunningham, Curtiss q WEIGH,
between October % and November Z, 1892
amounted TO S2654 81, and on June 49,
1898, to the sum of S1670 &c. 1.-The pur-
chase of such large amounts of books"
says the expert, within such limited
time, without advertising for bids, can
only be considered as a deliberate violation
Of statute law"
1.-THE books purchased in the so-called
open market consist of publications for
schools and library use. On inquiry OF
the firm that gave prices on the books pur-
chased, l was informed that although a
member OF the firm had often requested
the director that ordered the books for an
opportunity 60 give prices to supply the
same, that no application was made for
such purchase or bid TO supply the books. 3"
. Under the head of oils and paints, paid
for by the School Department to the Bass
Hueter Paint Company, the expert notices
the following variations In prices at va
rious times: Lltbarge, per pound, 10, 10,
8, 10 and ~ cents; i8Ed oil, per gallon. 50
cents, 81 and 81 10; burnt lumber in oil,
per pound, 20, 10 and 20 cents; burnt ST.
emma in oil, per pound, %, 20 and Is
cents; Venetian red i'll oil, per pound, 20,
I211s, 10 and Is cents; black asphaltum var
niSn and stain. per gallon. 81 90 and 81 %;
raw sienna In oil, per pound, 10 and 20
cents.
These prices are cited to show the dan
ger of purchasing in the ''open market"
1t is further shown that chrome green,
contracted for at 10 cents pound. was
charged demand 302O at 20 cents per
pound. Other instances are ALSO cited.
The next subdivision deals with the con-
tract with the Rapid Safety Filter Com
pany, and the expert says that as the filters
are not used in the schools foT two months
during the year the board could make a
saving of $500 annually by not paying bills
curing vacation time, which would not be
done If they were for the private use of
the School Directors.
The coal used during the year occupies
considerable attention on the part of the
expert, and he says that the consump-
ton of coal used in the various schools
shows great inequalities that ought to have
attracted those furnishing supplies. A
few of these inequalities are as follows:
Paci6c-avenue Schools classes, tons 1920
pounds, average per class 58 of ton.
Whittier School-20 classes, 10 tons 1850
pounds, average per class 40 of ton.
ala q
tons 2140 pounds, average per class .95 of a
ton.
Haight School-12 classes, IL tons 1850
pounds, average per class ton.
Boys High School-15 classes, ID tons 205C
pounds, average per class "a of ton.
Girls High School-Hall and 15 classes 60
tons ITO pounds, average per class tons.
Winfield Scott School, classes, 8 tons 26C
pounds, average per class 2.30 tons.
Monroe School, classes tons $50 p0unds
average per class 1.80 tons.
North Cosmopolitan School-12 classes, 81
tons 40 pounds. average per class pa tons.
Lincoln Grammar School (alsO used as q