The San Francisco call., 1895-07-19
Superintendent AshWorth Pre-
pares Specifications Against
His Judgment.
PEOPLE PLEAD IN VAIN FOR
RELIEF.
They Are Told a Former Board
Created the Evil and They
Must Stand 1t.

When any legislative DOQy Dy 1tS own
lction creates monopoly in commodities
constantly in use by the people whom
hev we're elected to serve it is good
ime for these people to go around asking
pertinent questions.
Indeed, the course of precedent runs so
distinctly in one direction in such cases
hat people seldom devote much time in
lsking questions-they have right to yell
'Fraud'' on general principles.
The Solid Eight of the Board of Super
risors in their brief six months of
ervice as lawmakers for the City and
County have distinguished themselves in
his regard.
They have placed the bituminous rock
industry in exclusive hands so far as this
City is concerned, and given the Southern
Pacific the sole privilege of hauling it.
When disposing of franchises on Church
1reet and over all the roads leading TO
.ngleside, they word the advertisement so
hat none but the Market-street Company
an secure any of them-although the law
directly requires that the bidding be open
md fair. When street contracts are
Gwarded the Street Superintendent is
lirected by resolution ''to enter into pri-
Tate contract" with some certain favored
,ontractor-no bids being called for.
But it does not stop there. There is a
Wheel within this street-contractingw wheel.
Il is called the "Rattler test"
Some time ago, it will be remembered,
he majority of the board passed an order
treating a monopoly of the bituminous
'ock industry in favor of the Santa Cruz
mines. Mayor Sutro vetoed that order.
As there are only eight in the board solid
or monopoly right along, uninterruptedly,
10 attempt was made to pass the order
,ver the veto.
But when a little time had passed and
he storm of public opinion which had
seen provoked by the attempt to fasten
his great incubus upon the people had
suieted down, Mr.. Hughes moved, in the
interest of good paving, he said, that the
superintendent OF Streets be requested to
prepare specifications which should stand
Is the law in that matter-as the standard
@ which contractors must work.
After another respectable lapse of time,
such as might be deemed sufficient to en-
lble public officer to perform such an
important piece of work, Mr.. Ashworth
lied his report. The fact is, the work was
III done before Mr. Ashworth was dele
,ated TO do it. The report was nothing more
han the old vetoed order-the famous BIZ
luminous rock monopoly order-with one
r two words changed in it, not affecting
IS former purpose and intent one particle.
But this is not recounting of the familiar
81 hot 20 =
necessary to make clear another monopoly
outrage that it enfolded. A part of those
pecifcations was the following:
All the rock used shall be hard rock
" igneous character, and shall be
inch rock only as shall not lose by ero-
ion and fracture more than 25 per cent
If its original weight upon testing the
Iame by what is known as the Rather
est, the said test of rock to be made in
he Rather machine belonging to this
City and County by placing the said rock
said machine, and the same put in
revolving motion at the rate of not less
han twenty eight revolutions per min
Ite for three consecutive hours. All
'Ock losing more than IS per cent of its
original weight shall be rejected as unfit
or use.
The machine is indeed very properly
,amed the Rather test. 1t is a rattler.
There are just two quarries in this vicin-
ty-or were at that time-the rock of
which will stand this test. They are
Iwned by Gray Brothers.
Who are Gray BrothersP 1t is not any
member of the Solid Eight who asks this
question, you may be sure. Gray Brothers
ire contractors, and they have monop-
by, absolutely fixed by order of the ma
ority Of I'll oard of Supervisors. 1t is
lot likely tDAU such very valuable privi-
ege was granted and is maintained by the
majority of the Board of Supervisors to
he exclusive benefit of a single business
irm and the members OF that firm remain
wholly unknown to the members of this
majority of the board.
1t will be said by the Solid Eight, in ex-
enuation, that the Rather test was an
invention in monopoly, discovered, ex-
plotted and brought into vogue by the
ormer board. That is an argument that
vas made in the Street Committee yester-
lay in excuse for the Van Ness avenue
ob-that it was inaugurated by the pre-
eding board.
Are we then to be forever cursed with
Ill the evil that earlier Solid Fights and
Mines have done? Why do we have elec-
ions and turn men out of officer Very,
rery many spicy and with all deplorable
iales might be told of 'the former board''
but the evil they have done is done. Moth
ng that might be written now would
.hange their record, and one Solid Eight
1t a time is quite sufficient.
So far as the Van Ness avenue job is
concerned, the former board did let con
ract to ]. T. McCrossan, but it was open
20 bids, and his bid was IA cents. That does
lot alter the fact that this board did not
all for bids, and that a dozen frst-class
contractors would be glad to get the work