The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1895-09-11
Mr. BROOME'
SENSE OF DUTY
Announces That He Will No
Longer Keep the Pub
lie in the Dark"
THE EXPERT BROKE HIM UP
Letters to the City Hall Com
missioners Which Show He
Knew of Rotten Work.
BUr\ALL MAY YET BE WELL
There Is s1l5,ooo Held Back From
the oontractors-When He
Certifes the Work Will
Be 0. K. You
May Bet.

Architect Lewis H. Broome has for
warded the following remarkable COM
munication to the City Hall Commits
sioners:-
To the Honorable City Hall Commission.
Gentlemen:-In response to your reso-
luton of September 4. 1895, referring 70
me the subject matter contained n HIS s
Honor. the Mayors, communication OF
on January 3 1894 contracts were en-
tered into between the Mayor and AL
dermen of jersey City and Patrick Con-
molly. Richard English, John Herman aii
and William w. Farrier. to complete all
piling and Gaping. mason work, earpen-
ter work and plumbing, steam and gas
fitting IN the - eraeF as an apoVe and snee
ifications as drawn by me and adopted
by your commission. The above work
TO be completed under the direction ana
to the entire satisfaction of the commits
sion and the architect on or before jan
Work was commenced by Patrick Con-
molly January 4. 1894, and progressed salts
factorily until the completion of his con-
tract which was done some SIX weeks
in advance of the contract time. oe-
leve his work to have been Wen done
the building in, all its parts stands as firm
as the day the walls were completed.
over one year ago.
Mr.. English commenced laying, brick
March l. 1894. and the work. under his
contract advanced satisfactorily with little
or no friction ,,; or trouble until the he time
terial and labor performed by him 1
conscientiousiy believe to be strictly in
: accordance with the terms of his con-
tract 10 70 this time. when ready Tor
srcof. Nothing was required on the part
lf Of the arpenterecontraetor MT hier-
@nan. but few window frames and CEN
tres. More detail work in the nature of
ping, capping. granite. Indiana lime
plumbing work had been done, and yet
ypiIr commission never heard or re-
cefved any complaints from any contrac-
tors or sJb-eontractors directly or indi-
rectly. OF their not having had the nee
essaiy proper working drawings or di-
their work As the work advanced
made daily visits to the building and
done that in my judgment was necessary
and in all cases such orders were re-
spected and obeyed. avoiding any neees-
sity to come before your commission with
complaints. And 1 challenge honest un-
Drejudiced iudment on any work I have
accepted as finished under the several
THE AWFUL KIERNAN.
While the roof work and cornice work
contract. complaints and friction COM
menced immedlat ately-constant, daily
refusals by Mr.. Kiernan to carry out
drawings and orders given by me, and
an utter Indifference to put on a sufTi-
Gent number of men and material to
advance the work as it should and
the building properly before cold wealth
er, thus allowing the mason contractor
the. winter months, and enabling the
building to be finished (as all fully ex-
pected) long before the contract time.
The result of Mr.. Kiernans refusal to
do the work properly, rapidly and re
spect drawings and orders given by me
to come before your Commission with
which UP to the present time l am free
to say have not been enforced in any
one particular; they have. been referred,
and deferred. until I had lost ali heart,
and so stated in several of my commune
cations to your Board.
I will submit in a later part Of this re-
port copies of several letters sent to
your Board bearing on the subject of
: glass. sash. flooring, sleepers. galvan-
electro bronze. third story ceiling arch
es in corridors. etc. All these questions
came carefully before your commission.
and yet no determined effort was made
to exact, or have carried out-My com
plants although in several important is
sues such as tile roof. electro bronze and
mony was had. and in each case my
drawings and position We're fully main
tanned. When the plans and speciffca-
tions were gone over previous to adver-
tising for estimates. I brought before
your Comnnt ssion samples Of the kind of
tile intended for the roof. that particu-
lar kind of tile was adopted by resolu-
ton and O. sample ordered placed on file
with the Clerk of the Conamission, and
" d
roof without my knowledge or consent,
which roof has been condemned by me.
from the day it was. started Mr. Kier-
nan never came before your Comnis-
sion in person or in writing with any re-
fusal to carry the work out according
to the sample tile filed but had decided
70 nIace slate 11non The roof under an
option he had by the terms of his con-
tract and I was surprised when I heard
he intended putting on a tile roof l
leave the question of how a different
tile was used and as to who made the
issues on the. tiles with the Commission.
The tile roof work as finished is poor
and llnworkmanlike. and so stated
from its start. and I will not accept or
certify to it as now finished. | nave
coTnunf Gated many times verbally and in
writing since January 3. 1895. on the
question of tile. roof, and yet it remains
there today. The question of electro saads,
Observation-Disclosures were finished Sep
ternber TO- 1894 as it was stated three
months would be required to place II in
vet no electric bronze is in sight-this is
a question of some seven thousand DOL
me received much time and talk, and
your Commission passed special resoiu-
tions empowering me TO have CERTAIN
refused to do / carried these orders tn
Mr.. Kiernan. and he declined to rosne9.
them. I communicated to your Iosrd
COMMISSION TO PLANE,
Your Commission passed resolutions
requiring me to give my opinion when
the building would or cc,:ld be completed
nv competent carpenter contractor.
with view of getting others to do the
work I answered that resolution l9ng
time ago. and therein stated i was i'm
tractor to complete the work in con-
tract time, vet nothing has as. been done M
factory way the work has heen going
On. The question of floor tiling. floor
eoncrete and glazed brick and iron has
been referred to and spoken Of several
fines by me with the assurance that
The work viii be done SO far as lays az,
Sontract 1T will be fair to say to the
tredit Of the contracting pile driver,