The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-08-04
ABOUT THE RATHER TEST.
How the Monopoly Was
Created and Main
tanned.
The People Pay Enormous Per-
Centages Every Day to
Support 1t.

The Street Committee of the Board of
Supervisors-or those of them who were
present at the last meeting-will report at
the meeting of the board Tomorrow
against Mayor Sutro's request for the re-
peal OF that portion of the street paving
specifications requiring the rock used in
all manner of street paving to pass what
is known as the Rather test.
He says it is a monopoly-as THE CALL
has repeatedly said it was-and that he is
right about it there can be no doubt.
The ordinance establishing this mopop-
oily was passed originally in May of last
year, and was revived by the majority of
the present board-the Solid Eight-at the
time the bituminous rock monopoly ordi-
nance was passed.
The clause in the law referred to reads as
follows:
"AIl the rock used shall be hard rock
of igneous character and shall be such
rock only shall not lose by erosion
and fracture more than 20 per cent of it's
original weight upon testing the same
by what is known as the Rather test, tn
said test of rock to be made in the
Rather machine belonging to the City
and County by placing the said rock in
said machine and the same put in re-
voIying motion at the rate of not less
than twenty eight revolutions per min
ute for three consecutive hours. All
rock losing more than rs per cent of it's
original weight shall be rejected as
unfit for use.''
Now, the fact is there is no rock to be
had near the City that will stand this test
at least many contractors say so.
fvv0
quarries of blue rock which it is said will
stand it, and it is also said it was upon the
discovery of this fact that the Rather test
was invented. The idea was to bar out
other rock, and the idea has been carried
out to the letter.
The price of Gray Brothers blue rock
previous to the passage of this order was
81 % per load. Immediately afterward
the price went up to 81 IS per load and
there it stands to this day.
The difference is 90 cents load-think
of i'll Sixty cents of tax en- every load of
rock that goes into the paving of every
street in this City and County. And this
to support a monopoly; to boom the BUSH
ness of one firm and to drive all others out
of business entirely.
OF course Gray Bros. had their fair and
legitimate profit when the rock sold at
81 25 load.
When the Supervisors of city make a
law which increases the business of one
concern tenfold and enables them to in
crease the price of their commodity nearly
1919 per cent, no man supposes that they
do it for the benefit of that concern alone.
Nor does any man believe that it is done
for the good of the people or the streets,
for in that case the Supervisors would
have insisted on getting the rock at low
rates, lower rates than before, seeing the
immense increase in the demand for the
firms goods. No, there is but one expla-
nation, and that is that the Supervisors
who would do this would do it 10 benefit
themselves.
See what an immense thing it is-6O
cents for every load of rock that goes into
the street paving-all kinds of street paw
ing. basalt block, bituminous rock and
macadam.
That was the little joker incorporated by
the Solid Eight of the present board in
the specifications for street paving which
they prevailed upon Superintendent of
Streets Ashworth to father. They require
not only that basalt and bituminous rock
payements be laid on a concrete founda-
tion-this Gray Bros rock being used
but that macadam pavements be laid
with it.
Superintendent Ashworth himself says