New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1895-07-12

AN UNFORTUNATE DELAY IN AWARDING
THE CONTRACT.
THE BIDDERS DIRECTED TO HAVE THEIR CON-
pUrArIoNs MADE By ExPERTs-rHE PoLdri-

purArIoNs MADE BY ExPERTs-THE PoL1rI-
CAL ASPECT or THE CASE
- r,,v II fsneciar-The Controller. the
At,orrev General and the Secretary Of State met
this morning to consider the matter OF the Hes's's
five printIng award This subject mas Dee" oeio'.
them since May /, when the pds were opene.
pursuant to previous advertising II was tnen iou"u
that John L. Miholland, OF New fork' wa" tue ~
est bidder, The Argus Company. OF Albany now
ovsr dsnuted Mr. Milhoiland's bid. claiming con-
.,ruction of the law which required the exclusion
NJ certain extra bills printed for the senate anu
Assembly These bills had been ordered unoer :
concurrent resolution. passed In 1897, ana TIE OH.
had been regularly furnished IN lSsz i'ss s"u ~.
and had been as regularly paid for In fact Al Ins
,,us the bids we're opened an Item IN the ouppv
hill then pendng legaized the printing OF tne o''s
for 1894 and provided for the payment THEREFOR.
r. ,ho printing OF these extra bills the "Argus'
company's bid was 81 per hundred; MI Mhno'ianu
was lS cents for the same amount AZ '"'s We"
r,ain,v An advantage to the State OF d cents On
aach one hundred and would In the aggregate bene-
q, tho Static TO the amount Of many tnousahas Oh
dollars. the State Board decided Una. sucn p,'i'
should be included in the estimate. FACTOR "h'cn
would necessarily result In giving MT Mhhoiaho
tho contract Upon the passage by the boaru Oh
resoution to the effect that such DIS shou'o "
Included I'm the basis Of computation, the argus
Comnany secured a mandamus. and Judge Landon'
of the Supreme Court. rendered decision sus'aa-
ing the mandamus
In his opinion Judge Iandon held that the con-
current resolution not a law and that the o'.'s
in question were not lawfully ordered ana cou'u
No, therefore be considered In any estimate Inc
decision was based upon technical grouhds anu
while probably supported by authority, was II" "
suit prejudicial the State An appeal was eonss-
ouently advised by the Attorney-Generai, anu '.'
question wen; Immediately to the court OF Appea''
Without giving any written opinion and upon the
grounds stated by Judge Landon this Court sus-
tanned the mandamus excluding the cohsioe'""0"
of the extra bills In question 49,
7, seeoed unfortunate that the courts were oolgeo
70 take this technical and restricted view OF Inc
powers of the Printing Board. The high o'nc'Al.
constituting IL WERE thereby. in regard to the point
raised robbed OF all discretion and made mercy
clerical and ministerial officers, in this instance
greatly TO the disadvantage OF the state. 49,.
II was evident that these bills were required
and had for years been furnished. and tnat tney no.
always been and always would De Pa'd ioi' 49,
numbers run rto the hundreds OF thousah'S eN
unon each one hundred, as between the bids OF 'he
..Argus'' Company and Mr.. Milho.land, the state
would be a manifest loser. The increase 'ol ',,u
Legislature required by the new Constitution win
necessarily call for an increased number OF extra
bills; and fair judges compute tnat shou" '"e
Argus Company. by means Of the technical CON
structon of this act obtain the contract the otats
would nav between $4,000 and 10000 more for sucn
printing than 1t would have paid II the ac'io" VI '"~
Board had remained unquestioned
Al its meeting this morning the Board rescindeo
the resolution including in their estimate the extra
bills but decided that nothing could be consdereo
except the amount OF printed matter ana copies
snecialv referred to In the Legislative Printing
ac, itself Being DESTROYS of affordng no ground
for criticism the Board also requested the ARGUS
Company and Mr. Mhol!and to nave tner coinpc.a-
t,ons made by experts and presented Tor consnera'
lion at the next meeting or the Board On J~y =,
To this Mr. Mllholland promptly acceded. as ne IS
confident that. under any fair computation ne
the lowest bidder. 49,. p..s g..
probably justified the delay In letting the contract
for this important work Is unfortunate Extets,se
organizations must be made before any contractor
can properly take charge OF the vast amount OF
printing required by the state departments anu .no
Lssaure Every days delay Is Of S Sss state al ' as
respects prompt and good work shouu ms
hndrances to the letting OF this contract result IN
delaying It's award until October when tne soh'rsrI
is supposed go into effect IL will be almost I'M
possible for either the Argus Company or Mr.
Mlhoiiand to prepare adequately for executing sucn
Shrewd observers think that there Is more demo:
cratic poltics in the datory tactics OF the Argrs
San,nanv than appears on casua. observation me
Lyon printing establishment FOUNDER arr" Yin I'd
said still largely controlled by Senators M, du
Nurnhy is known TO have an Intimate connec.ion
With Re ARGUS" establishment, in which ex-Oov-
ernor Flower Anthony Brady and others are iargey
interested The Lyon estaosh ara ~ the CONTRACT
is awarded TO the Argus Company II VIII PROD
ably continue to DO IT. n ,ns p9fs until nj too ate
Mr. LYON may succeed in holding the work for
another year and the state be Obliged 70 pay MN
such price desires. irrespective OF contract as
he is the only in Albany having present lacii,
ties for accomplishing the necessary work shou.a
the November election charge ns NAV pSone 70 haws
friends In court who will through Technically"
enable him to obtain or retain his present .ucrauve
the material Interests OF the local Democratic ma
chine