The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1895-07-25
CHAPTER NUMBER TWO
On the Canton Bridge Co. Investigation Down in
Guernsey Co.---Fow Business
is Done.

Germ is Interested, is oil Reneral lnpOrb'
ance, throwing incidental light on the
way county commissioners sometimes
discharge their duty.
SECOND ARTICLE.
An examination of the commissioners
journal discloses the fact that few of the
contracts entered into by the commits
soners are entered of record at all. This
practice of keeping the contracts of the
journal is contrary to the letter and spirit
of the law, for It is expressly provided
that the journal shall be "a full and com
plete record of the proceedings OF the
board" Nor is 1t a compliance with sec
tion s7s, which provides that "it shall be
essential to. the validity of every contract
entered into by the county commission
ers, or order made by them, that the
same has been asssented to at regular
or special session thereof, and entered In
the minutes of their proceedings by the
auditor.
The total amount paid out of the
bridge fund from March z, 1894, to Feb
ruary II. 1896, was s16 S90.49. OF this
sum, the Wrought Iron bridge company,
of Canton, received, during that time,
$7,032 ,97, being nearly 42 per cent of the
whole bridge funds expended
The first payments to the Wrought Iron
bridge company appear December 80,
1893 to the amount of 1,3S4.64. From
that time on this cmpany seems to have
had substantially monopoly Of the
bridge building business of the county.
In addition to the sums above stated,
this company received in 1894, $lS5, 80 for
bridge on the National road-mile 46,
which was paid out of the National road
fund; which makes a total payment to
this company during fourteen months
prior to February IL, 1895, of ss.625.11
Miskimins Bridge: The contract for
this bridge was awarded to the Wrought
Iron bridge company July ~, 1894.
The heading of the journal showing
who were present has been erased; but
the record under that date shows that the
board proceeded to open bids for an iron
bridge over Wills creek. There We're
twenty bids, the highest of which ap-
pears to be $4,9S0, made by James
Ritchie, ofCleveland, Ohio; and the low
est bid was SO, $50, by the Wrought Iron
bridge company. On the same day the
contract was awarded to the last named
company. The bids appear to have been
mace on plans on file in the auditors
office. @
On August g. 1894, an entry appears on
the journal as follows: 1.-THE commits
sioners made change in the width OF
the road way Of the above bridge from IA
to 10 feet, which change increases the
cost of the bridge $500, making the total
cost, So, go" Nothing appears on the
record to show whether the weight and
strength of the iron was increased to con-
form with the increased width of the
bridge. If competition had entered into
~ 1xyiy ynINI fp
have again asked for proposals from the
other nineteen bidders five of whose bids
were below the amount finally awarded
the contractor.
The law expressly requires that the sue
cessful bidder shall give bond for the
faithful performance of his contract In an
amount not to exceed 80 per cent. OF the
estimated cost of the work, and the com
missioners may require the sureties there
on to qualify that they are residents OF
Ohio, and are jointly worth more than
the amount of the bond above all liabili
ties and exemptions. And any officer
violating any provisions of the law Is
made liable to penalty of not exceeding
81, 900. Notwithstanding this provision
of the law, and the penalty, there was nc
bond filed by the Wrought Iron bridge
company for the performance Of this con
tract, and so far as we are advised, there
are no bonds filed by contractors in any
case
Virtue bridge Wheeling township
The contract for this bridge purports tC
have been made October 23, 1894, at Sl(
per foot; but it first appears on the jour
nal under date of November 8, 1894
There are no minutes In the journal oi
any session of the board on October 23
1894. We are able to gather from Other
records that the bridge is thirty-five feet
long which would make the contract
price with the Wrought Iron Bridge 20.
$3.50. The payments on this bridge ap
near, from the auditors and commission
er's journal, to be as follows:
George McFee, stonework. ... S343. 81
Jobn Raw. hauling cement 800
Wrought Iron Bridge Co., first
estimate Observation-Disclosures. 2OU. w
Balance Miskimin's, Virtue, Coch-
ran aud Iphrmary bridges a1 449. Al
1t will appear from the entry of th'
payment of the balance on this bridg'
that It Is utterly impossible to determine
the cost of this bridge from the ledger
on account of the mixing Of. the items
named. But we presume the contrac
price, $3.50, and the stone work, $780, "a
covers the cost OF bne DrluBe.
Yoker Greek bridge-The contract pric
for this bridge was s574, and the LETTING
thereof purports to have been made Marcl
2, 1894 but does not appear ON the jour
nal until November Q, 1894.
Wrought Iron Bridge Co., haul
ing bridge from Cumberland o. o.
Iron bridge Spencer township. -, 574.0
Estimate iron bridge. Spencer
township .,....,,..,.. 80. $50
Estimate iron bridge, Spencer
township ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS. 81
Lumber for Yoker Creek bridge, 800
Balance erecting Yoker Greek
and Steubenville bridges, ,..... 1876
Total for Wrought Bridge Co.,
as appears on auditors ledger s669 2
We are informed by one Of the commits
sioners that the cost of this bridge 10 onl
1914, as per contract, ana that AZ the EN-
OF the year a settlement was made wit
the bridge company, when the differene
between the whole amount paid out to, o