St. Paul daily globe., 1893-08-12
AUDITOR BURNS VEXED
a COMMITTEE REPORT EKc!TES HIM
TO HARSH LANGUAGE.
QUEER STATIONERY CONTRACT

Ject of the Auditors Attack
Expert Printer Koch Explains
Where the Defect hies-Coun-
ty Officials to Blame on the
Contractors Showing.
A tornado swept through the board
of county commissioners at its meeting
last night.
Commissioner LavaIlee was in the
chair in the absence of the mayor, and
| when the report of the committee Oh
printing was called for in the regular
order handed the clerk the report Of
th4t committee, signed by himself as
| its chairman.
The clerk of the board is County
| Auditor Burns, and when he read "a
resolution accompanying the report that
provides for annulling the stationery
contract, and requiring lie county Of
| ficals to make acquisitions on the board
for supplies to be bid on every two
weeks. the auditors face put on very
| severe look and naughty oath escaped
| HIM, which was followed by several
other CALCULATIONS mingled with oathS.
| Mr.. Burns managed to make the board
understand, while addressing Mr.. La
vallee, that he had stood all the rub
| bing in'' he was going to.
Mr.. Lavallee observed that he was not
addressing Mr.. Burns, but had simply
! handed in a report of the committee Oh
printing.
Mr. Burns, with an oath and starting
! fiercely, retorteu: Il am talking 20 you,
and L want you to understand it. L
won't stand this. | want it stopped
| right here, d-n YOU"
Mr.Lavallee replied by saying that he
was attending 70 his business uy hand
| ing in a report that had been agreed
| upon.
rne auditor then took occasion to give
| additional force TO his former remarks
| iii way that made several red faces
around The board circle, and was enter
| tanning to a considerable gathering III
| the LOBBY.
4 Peculiar Contract.
p. ID. Scanneil, Publisher of the Her
| aid. L am the stationery contractor. It is
not my business to hunt up the orders
| for stationery. The officers should hunt
ME up and make their orders. | lur-
niSh wnat is ordered. fhe expert print
ter was ask d for statement, and Mr..
Koch stated that Mr.. Scannell was not
| to blame if the officers OF tue county Or
dtred goods that are not on
the list mentioned in the CON
tract. The fact came out at tIiS
point that goods are sDeclfied in the
! contract at certain prlct which, for
| example, may be specified at cent or d
| few cents. but that in place OF goods
! being ordered corresponding to the
Trade number mentioned IN tile contract
an article that is very nearly the same
III character but OF different number
Is ordered, which the contractor fur
| niSheS- at commercial rates, which MAY
| be a dollar Or two OF three dollars i'll
| place OF Il few cents.
Mr. Koch inStancpd the case of pens
and scratch blocks. In one case pens
are put in the contract at one cent Il
| gross, and the scratch blocks are bid on
! at SIX cents. The number called for is
! not the class of goods ordered, but i'll
| their place pens of nearly the same
! style are ordered that cost from one to
cost several dollars.
County Officers TO Blame.
In response to a question from Mir.
Scannell it was stated by Mr.. Koch that
the former is not to blame for the goods
ordered.
Mr.. nayallee stated that the board had
already adopted Il resolution to prevent
| the county officers from ordering any
goods except through a committee of
the board. He stated further that ii the
contractor will live up to his contract
and not furnish any goods on the order
of the officials unless the orders go
through the board, he would not urge
the revoking of the contract, which lie
claimed the board right to do.
| Mr.. ScaHnell made anotuer speech, in
which he claimed he was living up to
his contract.
Commissioner Hanna-lt has come
down To this. You are not to furnish
any more goOuS on the order of the
Offices. You must get your orders from
this board, otherwise you VIII have to
look to the offices for your pay.
After this the storm quieted down and
the board proceeded 10 the conSidera-
ton OF other business.
The resolution as to printing, passed
| at 4 former meeting, was amended in a
/
claims reported a number of bills,
which were ordered paid. Michael Lux
was awarded the contract for improving
| the Rice street road. Jacob Lauer was
| given the contract tor grading the kOh-
Ter road at his bid of S5l5.
Bids were opened for grading on the
Mississippi street road.
MIR. McCarrOn made vigorous pro
| test TO this Improvement on the ground
that there is no money In the treasury.
Several members insisted that this was
all error on the part OF Commissioner
| McCarrOn.
In the general discussion that fol
lowed MIR. McCarron looked up from d
resolution he was writing to observe
that the chairman did not know what
he was talking about.
The members of the board, including
the chairman. laughed at this sally
while the chair announced that it would
be good idea TO have Sergeant-at
arms to attend the board meetings.
Commissioner DAILY put i'll resolu-
ton at this point winch recited the fac
that the city had let the Third street
paving contract to foreigner who EN-
pluyS foreign Ia Dor, and that the con
tractor on the Mississippi street roaC
should forfeit his contract in case ht
employs any labor out of Ramsey
county. This resolution was adopted
and the contract was awarded to Will
lam q. Mulligan at SIS per thousand fol
lumber, 13$4 cents per square yard fol
clayng. Is cents Tor grading per square
yard, and y cent additional for haulins
dirt more than LOCO feet.
The recommendation of the commit
tee TO transfer s., 500 from the Long Lake
road to the Barlow road district wa.