Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-06-24
GARBAGE CONTRACT
Bids Received and Opened by the
Commissioners.
LOWEST BID THROWN OUT
It Was Not Accompanied by a
Certified Check.
FIVE OFFERS RECEIVED

contract covering four months of the five
year term.
Six proposals were received, one of which,
owing to a slight technicality, was thrown
out as informal the bidder, Mr.. James
Kerr, clerk Of the House of Representa-
tives, having failed to get a certificate of
deposit from the collector of taxes to ac-
company the bid. or certified check 1t
turned out to he the lowest bid received.
When the noon hour drew near. the board
room where the Commissioners open bids,
began to fill up. At ten minutes to the
hour apparently but one bid had been re-
ceived, and Commissioner Ross held that.
Five minutes later another bid was re-
ceived, and when Secretary Tindall was
called to make notes of the opening he
surprised every one by bringing in three
additional bids. Here indeed. was compe-
tition, thought the Commissioners. Just as
Commissioner Ross tore open the hrst Did
and began to read the proposition Of the
Merz Universal Extractor and Construction
- Company of New York. Mr.. s. w. Hastings,
representing Mr.. James Kerr, quickly ap-
preached the board table and laid his bid
before the Commis soners. 1t was just two
minutes past the hour, and one of the bid
ders entered objection to the considera-
tion of the bid. claiming 1t was informal on
account of its being late Nothing was
done then, and the bid went over for fu-
ture consideration.
Commissioner Ross went on reading the
bid of the Msrz Company. This company
lection and red ,.ion or cremation for $780,
coo per annum. Accompanying the bid was
letter setting forth that owing TO the
heavy demands upon all machine shops and
foundries, it would not guarantee the erec-
ton of works In less than six months after
the granting of the contract: that 1t would
commence the collection upon the first day
of November. 1895, with the provision that
the same might be disposed of up to the
1st day of January. 1896. in approximately
the same manner as is at present the case.
Mr.. Wnrheld's Bid.
The next bid opened was that of Joshua
N. Warfield, brother of the present con-
tractor. His bid was $4,000 per annum for
collection and reduction by the improved
Kansas method or any other system of re-
duction acceptable to the Commissioners,
the location Of the plant to be at the foot
OF south Capitol street; to be ready for
mitted another bid of s51 600 per annum
for collection and disposal of garbage by
cremation by the Dixon system, or other
system approved by the Commissioners.
Lower Bids.
The bid of the Baltimore Sanitary Com
pany. represented by C. A. Ball. engineer.
was next read. This company does not bid
en- the collection of garbage but submits
q bid of s16,333 per annum for the crema-
uon or garbage by means of the Ball sys-
b29236.
Then came surprise. Commissioner
Ross read the bid of Mr.. NJ. W. Adams,
agreeing to do the work by reduction for
t2,VO per annum the system and location
OF plant to be subject to agreement, and
the plant to be ready by November 1. 1893.
This was the lowest yet opened, and Man.
ager Bayly, who has had considerable ex-
perlence in garbage collection and disposal,
gravely shook his head and remarked: .It
can't be done for that"
The Columbia Supply Company's bid was
next read. This company was willing to
undertake the work. agreeing to dispose
OF the garbage either by reduction or Gre
nation, for $4,000.
Declared Informal.
This left all but one bid opened, that of
Mr.. James Kerr and Immediately the
question arose to its fcrmality. Mr.
Hastings. representing the company. de-
sired to make an explanation.
Gentlemen" he said "those glorious
Metropolitan horse cars are responsible for
the slight delay in the transmission Of our
car came along. There was no disposition
on our part to embarrass matters. We did
all In our power to get here on time"
another member of the company stated
that no advantage had been gained by this
company through the iateness of the pre-
sentation of the bid. The first bid, he
stated. had not been read when his bid was
presented. Commissioner Ross was dis
posed to receive the bid as formal,
but there objection from one
OF the bidders, who insisted the
question ,thsauo should have been disposed
was the practice CT the departments. Com
missioner Ross said he did rot believe in
such trivial technicalities. The object Of
naming certain hour was to have all bids
In. Certainly If after bid had been OPEN
ed and read another bid was presented, the
latter would not be received. The object
was to prevent any advantage 1t was
manifest that Mr.. Hastings had received
no advantage, for the figures in the first
bid had not been received. Commissioner
Truesdell, however, was disposed to ques-
tion the validity Of the bid, and Commits
sioner Ross put motion right there TO
determine what was to be done with the
matter.
Commissioner Powell voted with Com
missioner Ross to accept the bid, and Com
missioner Truesdell voted nc. Commission
er Ross thereupor decided the bid should
be received, and proceeded to read 1t. His
eye caught the sight of a check drawn by
Mr.. James Kerr for 5000 upon the First
National Bank of Patton. Pa. There was
no collectors receipt, ard the check was
not certified. This bid is informal" an
nounced Commissioner Ross. The check is
not certified to, and while personally /
have no doubt that it is all right, we have
insisted all along that these checks should
be certified Commissioner Truesdell said
he did not see why this technicality could
not be waived, since the other had. Com
missioner Ross then explained that the OBJ
feet OF these checks was to have sub
stantial evidence of good faith from the
proposed contractor. No motion was made
however, and the bid was declared infor-
NAL, although upon Commissioner Trues-
dells suggestion it was read
Mr.. Kerr submitted two bids. One was TO
90 the collection and dispose Of the gar
bage by cremation for $4,000; the other
was to do the collection and reduce the
garbage for $S5,333. Accompanying the bids
is a letter explanatory of the bids He
states he proposes to dispose of the gar
6age and dead animals by the use of two
Engel eremators, with a capacity of fifty
tons each, daily, which, he claims, will be
capable OF disposing of the entire collec-
tions of the city at two separate locations
namely, on James Creek canal southwest
and the other in the neighborhood of q
street and the Potomac river northwest
II ts stated that three months will be re-
quired to build either the reduction plant
or the crematory.
The Commissioners will take this entire
question under consideration during the
week and dispose of IT.