The San Francisco call., 1895-11-03
MUST REPAVE THE BLOCK,
Contractor Clute Again Caught
Mapping in His Street
Work.
Says Ashworth's Chief Deputy Watched
the Progress of the Work, and
Approved It.

A. B. Clute began yesterday afternoon
tearing up the basalt- block pavement
which he had just laid in the block on
Jackson.
Mr.. Clute is another victim and once
more a victim (for this is not his first ex-
perience) to the peculiar and monumental
ineficiency-if not worse-of the Street
Department of this City and County.
Expert Elder, inspector for the Street
Committee OF the Board of Supervisors,
had condemned the work. He took up
portions of the pavement and called upon
the contractor to look at it for himself and
to say whether the work was done accord
ing to specifications, and the contractor
was compelled to admit it was not. That
meant that he would have to take it up
and do it over until it did fulfill the speci-
tications, and Of course that meant @ big
loss.
Clute, therefore, is a very disgusted man.
He charges his troubles entirely to the
Street Superintendent and declares that
the proper specifications were never given
him,
'There was a special inspector of the
Street Department standing over this job
all the time it was going on. If we were
not doing this work right why didn't he
say so?" asked the contractor. "Not only
that but Martin Keating, the chief outside
deputy superintendent, visited the work
every day and approved of it. [ expect to
always and if l haven't in the past it is
their fault. They have officially approved
of this work, reported under oath to the
Superintendent that it was done according
to specifications, and the Superintendent
has accepted it,
Clute says that in future he will act only
under Expert Elders directions-that he
will not be caught again. He has several
contracts on hand that have to be treated
In the same way. The Lyon-street job will
require, the repaving of the entire block.
He will be required to put two inches
more OF concrete on top OF what is now
laid, to make it the necessary five inches
deep and the one inch of cement wanted
on top Of that-which was wholly omitted
IN the streets.
1t appears that nearly all the basaIt paw
ing recently laid is more or less faulty and
may be ordered to be taken up. the Street
Department has not only allowed these
violations, but under oath reported that
they were all right. The contractor IS the
sufferer.
Expert Elder yesterday condemned a
Horace Jackson, and the contractor
promptly replaced it by better brick.
The street work now in progress is said
TO be all that is required of it.
AS result of these crusaoes on crooked
street work it is said that the contract
prlce, ike the price of milk, Is going or
has gone up. Bituminous paving, which
the contractors formerly took at 10 cents,
Is now. % cents, and basalt pavemcnts.
formerly Is cents, are now u and % cents.
The Street Committee of the Board OF
supervisors has inserted clause in private
contracts expressly shpulating that no
money shall be paid on the contract until
the work has the approval of the Board OF
supervisors and the Mayor. II In well
that taxpayers should understand that
1act-that they are not required 10 pay
upon the certificate of the Superintendent
OF streets. This stipulation is to be
Stamped upon every contract hereafter.
Many property-holders have paid thsif
money on these very contracts OF Gllts's
referred to that have been condemned aad
Will have to be done over.