The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1895-04-19
The water Bids, Formal and In
s Orm

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formal.
There haye been held four hearings
upon the water question within the last
two weeks. in the course of which the
two formal bidders under the city's speci-
fcationss and two outside irresponsible
parties hay. come before the municipal
officials and explained what they pro-
posed to do for the city. how they pro-
posed to do it and what they thought
1t would cost. sea'ss
On the surface, it is made to appear
that the non-formal bidders are able to
do much better BY the city, especially in
the matter of oststhanothese who have
made formal proposals and bound them
selves under heavy ~forfeits to make good
their ENGAGEMENTS. tits worth while in
qnir.ngg whether these informal estimates
are meant in good faith, and if they.
are. whether they are backed up by the
cool judgment which usually accompanies
financial responsibility 1t is also worth
tnquiring whether they are really cheaper
than the FORMAL offers or only super
ficially appear to be.
A flood of light is thrown upon the
subject by a little episode of the very
latest hearing before the Board of FL
nance. Nj. Reuben Simpson of the
Board asked Engineer Edlow w. Harri-
son, who was present in the interest of
= r,act anrfnra nrninafnr uvhothar if
he were allowed to bid now, he would
eonf1ne himself to the figures which he
had Just laid before the Board as his
estimate of the cost of a supply.
Mr.. Harrison replied that the members
Of the company were not lunatics. and
consequently would not tell anyone in
IN informal proposition What their price
would be.
In other words, Mr.. Harrison and his
colleagues and hackers dangle a lot of
attractive figures before the city Of
ficials as an inducement to reopen the
competition and let them come in with
Ass-kHi If they are allowed to come
re- they propose to abandon these infor-
NAL figures and put in a bid at what
ever they think will pay them.
These gentry lave a strange idea of
fair play. They think they would be
1~unatics to give any idea of their real
price, except in a forma bid, yet they
think it right and proper hat they should
have all the knowledge and informa-
ton afforded by the formal bids put in
in good faith by the formal bidders who
came UP to time in response to the city's
Invitation.
Taking the whole case as It remains
after the hearings, it would appear to
MS that the Woltman, Keith & Co.
proposition offered to the city precisely
mo advantage whatever. 1t proposes to
store the water at Boonton, thus bring
dng In every danger from sewage pollu.
ton which killed the old proposition of
Hodgkins, Moffett & Clark. 1t states no
financial estimate whatever, since Mr..
Harrison expressly says that the COM
pany in a formal bid will not stand by
the figures informally presented. Thus
the informal offer is simply a destruc-
tive attack upon the BONA fde bidders,
affoyd.ng nothing whatever in exchange.
The other Informal plan is that of Hugh
Reilly. This is backed up by Mr.. Cor
pelius G. yermeule. who undoubtedly
knows more about the watershed of the
State than any other living man. There
can be no doubt but from the engineer
ing point of view the plan is good, but
the financial scheme. with which, of
course. Mr.. yermeule has no concern,
money needed, according to Mr.. Reilly,
Is s7,5o9ooo. This makes the plan about
a million and a half more expensive than
either the Jersey City or the East Jer-
sey Gompanys,s bid In the first place. But.
further, yMr. Reilly proposes that the
city should furnish 5000, 900 of the cap
ital while he wouId undertake to raise
s2.5oo,oeo. This seems absolutely laugh
able as a business proposition. but Mr..
Reilly seems to mean it seriously. at
least he did down to the point of put
ting up a check for 5000 0 to back IT
as the specifications required.
Now we have had a fearful lot of
talk about this water matter, 1t is al
most to be feared that the whole bust
ness is drifting away into talk as it
did six years ago. The city has before
1t two good bids. If they are not per-
fectly satisfactory, they are both capa-
Bile OF development IN very easy fashion.
If the Jersey CITY company's shed does
not guarantee sufficient water, a sup
Elementary reservoir, say at Powerv.lle,
to be used only in drouth years, might
easily be grated upon the system. Ths
East Jersey Company's proposal to de-
liver the water at Belleville might be
changed into a plan to deliver at tbs
High Service level.
But the city now has two bona fd
BIDS, with capital behind them. 1t may
never again find itself n 50 good
position to dictate favorable terms, and
assuredly it viii be a public crime If thu
opportunity IS allowed to slip away with