Evening capital. (Annapolis, Md.) 1884-1910, 1895-05-31
tCommunicated1


The City Paving bY tho Government.
MEssRs. EDITORS Under the above
caption you published on Wednesday
the'following:
"The street committee, to whom was
referred the communication of Superin-
tendent Cooper, of the Naval Academy,
with reference to the contracts by the
Government to pave certain streets in
Annapolis, have not given up the mat.
ter, but have been diligently at work.
Mr.. Allen Mccullough, chairman of the
committee, has been in communication
with the authorities at Washington. and
expects to accomplish the object in view.
1t is the intention of the committee to
continue their efforts until the Govern
ment makes good their CONTRACTS with
the city,
Now am sure ycu would not do the
government authorities an injustice, yet
the above paragraph creates an erron-
eous impression, and that is that the
government is i'm falt in the matter Of
the delay in the paving OF King George
street.
The facts must be rehearsed for COM
plete understanding of the subject. The
Federal government has decided to the
street and the curbing and paving, alto
gether valued at $1,000. In addition, the
government has appropriated $4,000 to
pave parts of the beds Of Hanover, Wag-
ner and King George streets. Then the
government advertized for bids to do
the work, naming several kinds of ma
terial that would be acceptable, with the
order from Secretary Herbert, given in
the presence of Mr.. Mccullough and
myself not to accept any material that
was not acceptable to the authorities Of
the city of Annapolis. When the bids
were opened, the government selected
the bids-ef Mr.. Benz. f. Sweeten, of
FCamden, n. j., to do the work with
vitrified brick, and of Mr.. Owen Pat
terson, of Baltimore, to do the work in
obhlestones, as being within the speci-
fications and the appropriation, and ask
ed the city Of Annapolis to select which
of the two it preferred. The city au-
thorities signed paper recommending
that Mr.. George Jewell, of Annapolis,
be given the work to be done in rubble-
stone. The government returned an
swer that they wanted the city's choice
between the bids of Sweeton and Pat
terson. On this the Mayor called an
extra session OF the City Council to take
up the matter. The City Counsellor,
learning that the objection to Mr. Swee-
ton 's bid was that be did not propose to
lay the vitrified brick in concrete, wrote
him on the subject so as to be prepared
90 vote intelligently on the matter. Mr..
Sweeton replied that he would lay the
bricks in concrete. This telegram the
counsellor laid before the Council with
a resolution that this amended offer of
Mr.. Swceton be accepted. This was de-
feated by vote Of to l., the counsellor
alone supporting the resolution. The
Council then recalled its recommends
tion for rubble-stone.
The government is only obliged to
pave the street, and they are, in fact,
the sole judges of the material to be
used, for the ordnance of March 18th,
1866, under which the city asks for the
paving and on all of its legal claims
rest, mentions no specific material at
all to be used in the paving. The pres
ent delay in the paving is due alone to
the courtesy Of the government in wait
| ing to give effect to the wishes of the
city of Annapolis as TO the character Of
the material to be used in the work.
ELIHU 5. RILEY.
Annapolis, May 81, 1895.
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