New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1895-10-23
FAULTY PIERS AT HIGH PRICE
EXCESSIVE RATES FOR DREDGING PAID
BY THE OLD DOCK BOARD
TESTIMONY BEFORE TIE COMMISSIONERS OF Ac-
COUNTS wpErcHEp CONSTRUCTION


OF PIERS.
The investiga ton OF the Dock Department oy
the Commissioners OF Accounts was resumed yes
terday. From the testimony given by two W.T.
nesses. the fact was established that the cor
struciion OF piers had been extremely faulty. ana
that the Department had paid double the usual
price for dredging, which II appears was done !"
an entirely unsatisfactory manner.
william II. Ellis. dock builder and ship car
penter. was the first witness. He said that he
had been In the employ Of the Dock Department
between 1883 and 1892 as dock builder, foreman
and inspector. In 1891 he examined the pier at
West FIfty-ffth-st. and found It in poor conc'-
ton This was due he saiu 10 the use OF bad
timber. a natural outcome OF the defective sys-
tenn OF selecting lumber for the Nev-Y0rk piers
yellow pine timber that would cut s. are readily
WAS bought while the most durable timber con-
tanning sap was rejected. The witness said that
the city paid s32 thousand feet for this timber.
which was 80 IN excess of the regular price he
also mentioned other piers t0r which the cost had
been excessive
In cross-examiniag the witness Dslos McCurdy
sought to emphasize the fact that other W.T.
nesses had not considered the expenditure FOR
the docks excessive but he failed to shake the
posIt!yeness OF the witness as 10 unnecessary
expenditure. Mr.. Ellis said he came from Prince
Edwards Island and had been engaged in dock
work since his bOyhoOd
John o. Brien. a diver was the second witness.
He said he had been a diver for Twenty-Five
wears was now in the employ Of the DOCK De-
partment and had done some work AT the Dulh-
head wall between Thirty-second and Thirty
fourth sts Yesterday morning. This wall the
witness said. begun ten years ago. he saiu
he had examined the Thirty -trst-st wall, ana
found q concrete block cracked four or nve feet'
,lpn hath rio "a
put his arm In up TO the elbow.
The effect OF this was 10 leave a part Oh the
granite wall without support. causing the wall
10 bulge out into the river. The witness testlned
that he had found similar conditions In the bulk
head wall at Fifly-eighth and Ffty-ninth sts
and in other places, but could not get down 10
see the piles owing to the mud. he FOUND open
ings OF seven inches between the granite piocks.
The openings should not be mere than n inch.
O'Br.en also told OF the dredging or Pier NO ~
with a rented dredge. In ten days, ne sald, onEy
about forty square yards OF stone and mud were
raised at a cost to the city OF $3.50 day Inc
witness testified that he and his men TOOK UP
more stone daily than the dredge The stone
raised was used in filling in. James ID. Leary, the
Speedway contractor. was the owner or the
dredge An Inspector. whose name. O Brlen
thought. was Corpin. visited the pier every day
and remained there the greater part or the DAY
The total pay Of the witnesses gang DAY was
800 80 and they did more work than the drfdge
which cost $3.50 a day The usual price for "A
dredge day In this harbor. the witness said was
about SIPS. From what he saw a Pier NO IA, the
witness thought there was no necessity Tor the
dredge al all lie said Chief Engineer Green
TESTIMONY o. Brien said he had been discharged
because he lived in Brooklyn.
The investigator then adjourned until
Friday afternoon at O'Clock