The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1895-12-13
GAS EXPLOSION
Pretty Nearly Everyone Dis
pleased With the Street
Lighting Awards.
ECCENTRIcITIEs OF PRICE
Contracts Awarded by the Month,
But Figured at Yearly
Rates -Rumored Deals.
nr,o UvDN NOW
ECCENTRICITIES OF PRICE
OLD CERTIoRARI's TURN NOW

The award of the street lighting con-
tracts yesterday. will not go, particularly
thai of the 700 arc lights to the Peoples
Electric Light and Power Company OF
Newark and the Hudson County Electric
Light Company.
To begin with Mayor Wanser will not
have it. In the second place the awards
are not legal, not being in conformity
with the prices of the bidders. If Mayor
Wanser does not veto the awards. either
the Farrier Company or John E. Nc
Arthur will carry the case into the
courts.
The first alleged break or the Commits
sioners is that they awarded the con-
tracts Until December l. 1896. A few days
ago, Corporation Counsel Blair advised
them a contract for a full year could
not be entered into owing to the fact that
the present fiscal year is well under way.
He suggested an award by the month
at the prices the companies agreed to
furnish light at by the month. The
awards are made in all cases at the
prices the companies submitted for a
whole year. which are of course lower
than the monthly rate. Under the
monthly bids John E. Macarthur was low
for District NJ, which called for $40 arc
l12nIS. by the year the ISOPlc &Olh-
pany was low. In making the award the
Commissioners took the yearly bid Of the
Peoples Company, which was $50 per
lamp. divided it by twelve to ascertain
the monthly cost, and awarded the con-
tract at the price thus created by them
selves without the consent of the COM
Another feature of the awards is that
$40 arc lights are awarded, to the Peoo
PIES Company st $50 PEI To, Lamp a ana sge
Light Company at $40 per lamp. Just
why the largest slice of the contract
was given to the highest bidder is not
Under division A of the plan, 50 gas
lamps were called for. for that territory
is the number of lights in use there
now. In making the award the Com
missioners lump, the whole number 81
award the contract under the price SUD
mitted for the so lamps. north OF the
Erie Railroad; The award sIS n conseau of fbs
railroad and none anywhere else. Green
vile, under the award, would get no
gas lamps, but would get a few cleo
frdiec lights and LOCO oil lamps. One inter
esting feature of the gas award IS that
the price per lamp per year. $ls.59 Is
the award is supposed to be made, shows
the price for each lamp to pc on a SID
ing scale from s2l2 to sl-ls' according
The complete shutout of Horace Far
rier's Jersey City Company was an as
will find out how it is a company pay
ing about $50, coo taxes yearly to the city
is given no consideration and a foreign
corporation is given a big slice of pub
lie work. It is said upon excellent au-
thority that there would have been no
outside competition for the contracts
had not city officials solicited bids from
foreign corporations and the trolley cern-
panfes. This action was taken because
Of a well founded report that the Far
riers made a deal with active Robert
Elliott, of the Hudson County Electric
Light COMPANY, to agree on prices
to the city. The city officials knocked
thai dea1-if it ever existed-into a cooked
hat by soliciting outside competition.
The result is a general knockout and
there is weeping and wailing among the
directors of the local concerns.