The San Francisco call., 1896-10-30
CONTRACTOR FAY
BOBS UP AGAIN
His Intimate Relations
With Mr.. Phelan Dis
cussed.
Men Who Do Business With the
Street Department Are
Wary.
DO NOT LIKE THE pet" IDEA.
Colonel C. L. Taylor Is Gaining Some
Votes That Would Have Been
Democratic.
DO NOT LIKE THE "PET" IDEA.

The recent arrival of young Charley w.
Fay OF San Jose and his appearance in
the municipal campaign as the champion
of James d. Phelan, Junta nominee for
Mayor, is still subject OF spirited dis
cussion among contractors. Mr.. Fay is
managing Mr.. PheIan's campaign "for all
there is in it." and to- this work he is
bringing the same fipeness and shrewd-
ness that marked his operations in San
Jose, where he got every contract that he
went for.
The CALLS recent telegram from San
Jose and the article VIII hlchoaccompanied it
opened the eyes of the San Francisco busi-
ness men who have business with the
Street Department. They learned for
the first time what formidable rival, one
who is never satisfied except with
monopoly of all business in his line, had
dropped in on this community from the
bustling metropolis of Santa Clara County.
An attempt was made to make light OF
Mr.. Fay's prospective power in the muni-
cipal government, in the event of Mr.
Phelans election, by street contractor
yesterday. The gentleman was talking to
number of gentlemen in the same line
of business, and argued with apparent
good reason that Mr.. Fay is no brighter
who are about as shrewd as they make
them; and who, as the saying goes,
"know hawk from handsaw."
"But he doesn't have to be smart If he
has the Mayor with him." reasoned an ex-
perienced contractor, who knows consld-
erable of Mr.. Fay's persuasive methods.
s'If the proposed new charter should be
adopted, and if the people should be so
thoughtless sas to elect Mr.. Phelan, then
we would soon find that Mr.. Fay would be
master of the situation; for under the
new charter the Mayor would have al
most absolute control of the street-con-
tracing business of the City. Not di-
rectly, perhaps, but by the exercise of the
appointing power and the authority which
the charter gives him to suspend or re-
move municipal officers at will, he would
be the autocrat of the City, whose merest
whim would be law, and his pet, whoever
that happened TO be, would have dead
cilch-a leadpipe mortgage-on every
contract that he wanted. 1t is easy to guess
that Mr.. Fay would be the Mayors pet.
.Mr. Fay has shown that he wants
everything in sight by the fact that he mas
paved all the streets of San Jose for
which contracts were fet after his uppear-
aIce in that city with the backing of Mr..
Phelan.
..Mr. PheIan himself has admitted that
he Is very friendly with Mr.. Fay, and ex-
plalnS tudb MT. L dy D ldtAcI WOIASo lOi
Phelan senior many years ago, for which
reason he has backed Mr.. Fay in his busi-
ness of street contracting. Some say this
backing amounted to S100, 900, and it was
generally supposed among business men
that it was q sort of partnership, but as
Mr.. Phelan contradicts that of course it
was q mistake. However, it appears from
the circumstances that it is a sort of
blood-is-t thicker-than- water feeling that
draws them together, and there is no use
lodging the conclusion that Mr.. Fay
would at least be Mr.. Phelan's factotum in
Street Department affairs the moment
that Mr.. Phelan should happen to be
elected. He wouldn't need to exercise the
shrewdness with which he is credited in
order to capture and hold the immense
business of the City's Street Department
that is now distributed among so many
contractors under the present system that
gives all an equal chance.
II do not mean that Mr.. Phelan would
Intentionally be unfair to the rest of the
contractors, but Mr.. Fay is so smooth as q
connubiator that he would manage the
game dead to rights, taking all the best
jobs and contracts and leaving only the
dry bones to be picked by the outsiders"
The dissemination of opinions like these
has caused most OF the street contractors
to turn against Mr.. Phelan. Some of the
Democrats will throw their support to
Mr.. Dimond, the nominee of the Buckley
Democrats, but the greater majority Will
support Colonel G.. l.. Taylor, the regular
Republican nominee for Mayor, who, as
chairman of the Finance Committee of
th4 Board of Supervisors for the past two
wears, has shown a disposition to deal
fairly with all those who do business with
our municipal government.