The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1895-03-23
DEEPER IN THE MUD
Voorhees, Committee Ex-
tracts More Evidence of
Alleged Fraud.
MAJOR HURLEY'S OVERCHARGES
False Entries, Forced Balances
and Extravagant Prices
in Coal Accounts
Claimed.
Perjury Charged in the Testimony
OF Hurley's Clerks Who
Try to Shield Their
Master.
Special to the Jerscy citu Ne,rs.

crowded galleries and Hobbies greeted the
Voorhees, Investigating Committee when
continued its inquiry into the State
House expenditures this morning in the
Assembly chamber.
William Darcy, Michael Hurley's
'ookkeeper, produced a dilapidated
book. which he said was the cash book
Which the committee wanted. The cash
book from 1889 to 1892. which contains
The State House coal accounts. he said,
was not in existence. He found it one
lay nibbled by mice in such mutflated
condition that it could not be used. and
ne burned it. .
Mr.. Corbin called the committees at
;ention to the fact that the entry, dig
ging trenches. $780, was made in ink
which was plainly different from the
,ther entries on the page. and evidently
made recently, although it bore date of
1874. This was the only entry of the
extra money paid Hurley for his work
n tearing down the old Assembly cham
Der that can be found.
HURLEY GONTRADICTED.
Abram Swan and Ben Everett testi-
led that they bid for the work of tear
ng down the old chamber. The speci-
ications directed that all old material
should be left on the premises. The
specifications cannot be found. and Hur-
ey. an his last testimony, said that he
was to have the old material. and took
much of it away.
JUST PRECISELY DOUBLE.
James NJ. Seymour, of Newark, a con-
sulting engineer. who has had consider
,ble experience with this country and
Europe in heating and ventilatfng and
Telegraph building at tine Holland House,
1he basement work of the Manhattan
raiilding. Chatham Bank and other large
structures was the next witness He
sa.d that he had made a thorough ex-
apparatus in the Senate and Assembly
chamber. It would have cost him to
,ut in the Assembly chamber apparatus
s1e.7l0; adding the usual profit Of thirty
per ceH.., it would cost $4,000. The State
paid S26073 for the work
Witness could put in the Senate a sys-
tenn for $4,000. and make the usual thirty
per cent. 1t cost the State s266S5.
OUR SYSTEM OBSOLETE.
The system was an obsolete one. which
builders discarded some years ago. 1t
was not effective, and brought air into
the chamber when it ought to carry it
,ut. Radiators We're all leaky, and some
were useless Neither of the chambers
would be properly ventilated until radi-
cal changes had been made in the sys-
lem The present plan was failure,
ana any engineer who would put it In
ness.
John F. Spracklin, the present State
aoase use eng1neer s testified hs six out
Senate chamber were useless, and seven
teen out OF, forty in the Assembly.
He corroborated Engineer Seymours s
testimony as to uselessness of the pres
:, 70 PREVENT COLLISION.
anime Michael Hurley, John Fritz and
William Darcy. and he wished two to
otlner.
The committee made such an order.
and Captain Graham led Dareey and |
was then recalled.
He Identified his signature to the bills |
sna 1T saa alt hs sats hey
called for. Ford ordered the coal from |
him.
cross-exa minaaion as to the correctness
Of the bills, and he finally exclaimed
We're We're they?" asked Mr.. corbin.
Wen see about that" retorted Mr..
c0r0ln' desIeasYsISi eHNEKAL pnN1ALs.
long list Of questions like 'Why did you
aae It to ona os fyp p5ca d n9 as
poses?' who told you to add the amount
you did?" to all Of which Hurley made
Mr. Corb.n then asked another lot of |
questions. which Brought from the Major |
emphatic dendals that he ever paid any |
ppeias Or n made Them Ss any sss pTesenas
Here Mr.. Corbin requested that Daniel |
Haggerty. another prospective witness, to
PINNING THE MAJOR.
Mr.. Corbin then continued the same |
line of questions and PINNED the. Major !
down to the statement that his bill |
should not be erased, that he never put |
more coal in the bill than what he de- |
aae a aao no a tG ht looks to
had been gone over by an expert or any |
one else and had been altered,
d1rg 59hg g. ana M sadd o one 1e
him when to make out State House bills, |
but he did It every Monday. He made |
ra-e ut stubs which have been eaten by |
the mice.
The witness denied erIyphatically that |
anyone. directed him to put amounts in |
the bill that were not delivered Then |
Mr.: Corb.n submitted him to 9. long Est
of Investigations to make him deny most /
explicitly that Hurley nor amy one else |
told hLsm j to R put false weight asl n the bills,
fb fe 'ans amounts in IN ess tie books @ m . ra'se
Mr. Voorhees, asked him If he wished to
correct his statement or let It stand.
LET it stand. !" replied the witness de- |
aIfa. IN view of what we know that is
most remarka ble." replied Mr.. Voorhees,.
realized what he was doing in giving
such testimony, but he did not weaken;
'.How do you account then for the
erasures In the books?" asked Mr. Cor
n n s-t "a