The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1894-05-27
4 FIGHT ON HAND
On the Street-Sweeping
Contract.
Supervisor Dundon to Lead the Fight
Against the Continuation of
the Present System.

There will be big fight at next Mon
DAVE meeting of the Board of Supervisors,
and 1t will be over bhe street-sweeping
contract which is to be let for two years.
This is one of the latest plums at the dis
posal of the board, the payments out OF
the city treasury reaching as high as $4,000
and $4,000 a month.
During the last two years the contract
has been held by the California Construc-
ton Company, which organized several
wears ago with a subscribed capital OF
$500, with the following directors. each
of whom subscribed $500 to the concern:
E. P. Gray, A. f. Low, George W. Taylor,
c. R. Eager, L. r. Graves.
Two years ago the company secured the
contract for sweeping streets at SIC 40 a
mile and according to the records of the
Treasurer it has been quite valuable
one.
AS an instance may be compared the
payments made by the city during 1892
when Max Pepper had the contract at
$50 Is a mile:
Peppers term-January, 1922 2 80; Feb
ruary, S2047; March, S2747 "a; April,
S4194 IS; May, $5071 80; June, S5665 rs;
July, 5000 81.
California Constructions term-Jan-
uary, 1898, S5543; February, $3.50 50 !;
March, S5I33 %; April, S7442 IS; May,
$7865 So; June. S7816 %; July, STAG %.
These figures are principally for the win
ter months, when the stree t-sweeDing bills
are supposed to be less than during the
summer months, when the trade winds
blow and scatter dust and dirt IN ali dlrec-
tions.
The amount of money involved in the
fight before the Board Of Supervisors can
be seen from these figures. The amount
of accepted streets during the two years
mentioned did not differ very materially,
aud yet the size Of the bills, with differ
ence of 81 greater in the previous term,
shows how fat a contract the street-sweep-
ing of he city is.
Another fact in connection with the
street-sweeping is, that Max Pepper owns
the only machines TO be used in sweeping
the streets 10 this city. He let them to the
California Construction Company for S125
month Any person or corporation
which bids for the understanding contract,
which amounts to about S150,000, will have
to calculate on securing Max Peppers
machines. If machines are used. or import
new ones from the East, which will be
very expensive.
This state of facts has induced some of
the Supervisors who are looking out for
an economical administration of municipal
affairs to devise a new scheme Of street
sweeping. This movement obtained new
impetus when Supervisor Denman stated
that the California CONSTRUCTION Company
had sublet at times portion of its con-
tract to certain persons at SO a mile for
hand sweeping of streets. Supervisor
Denman's statement, which he said was
made to him by one of the directors Of the
company. created considerable astonish-
nent. II was wondered how streets could
be swept by hand for So mile and yet the
contractors charged the city SIC 20.
Again, some weeks ago the Finance
Committee OF the Board Of Supervisors in
vestigated charges made against the Cali
fornia Construction Company. and sus.
tanned the accusations made against it OF
charging for streets which had not been
swept. In one case there were eight soma
blocks on Eddy street charged for which