St. Paul daily globe., 1896-04-26

knowing wink, which the comptroller affects
when he wishes to overawe the worldlings
about him, replied:
ooh! I'll look after that
And the citizen of st. Paul who had taken
the precaution to inform Mr.. MeCardy of
the citys contingency, felt cheap to think
that he had dared suggest commonplace
matter to SO erudite fnancier; so watch
ful a custodian Of a city's Golfers.
Mr.. Stewart, however, plodded right along
with his little suit, and it was filed on the
fourth day of November, the same day, by
the way, on which Mr.. McCardy's friend
Morgan drew from the city treasury the
$2,726.75 which he received for the paving.
He proved to the United States circuit court
that he was the rightful owner of the
patents, and that the Morgan job was an
! infringement of his patents. The court was
faso regaled with scientific dissertations
showing that it would have been impracti-
cable for Mr.. Morgan's concern to have made
a profit at the contract price, if the pavement
had been the equivalent of the pavement
asked for in the specifications and made in
compliance with the patents. Instead how
ever, having rock facing of three -fourths Of
an inch, this facing was thin veneer only,
and at the first FROST the paving was badly
racked. These, of course, were not issues
between the plaintiff and the CITY, but were
merely cited to show that If the city had
its own grounds and paid him nothing, or at
the most much less than the price paid,
shown as it was, to have been exorbitant.
The city made no answer in the suit, posi-
bly, because it had none to make. Testimony
in the case was taken before Oscar B. Hills,
special master in chancery, and the Judgment
was entered In the court on the last day of
June, 1898, S2,054.S0, figuring for Stuart at his
usual rate Of profit, $110 on 1858 yards.
I-l -
corporation attorneys office. Leon T. Cham
berlain who is still an active politician on the
Republican side, and particularly in the cham
pionship Of his neighbor, Doran, seems not to
have known anything about the suit until the
Judgment was entered.
The rules Of practice In the United States
circuit court provide that when q case is
closed 1t cannot be reopened unless at the
term during which the judgment was entered.
These terms of court open on the first of jan
uary and of July, respectively, so that the
case could not be reopened except by stipula-
tion. This was done, and the case was pre-
sented to Judge Sanborn, but 1t was of no
avail, and in addition to reterating the former
judgment the court roundly scored the legal
department of the city for coming into court
when 1t had case, as 1t had not. Mr.. Stu
arts judgment, with the accrued interest,
now amounted to $2,242.93, so that the city,
through Mr.. McCardy's watchfulness, was COM
PEELED to pay over $1,000 for piece of arti-
fetal stone sidewalk that was only charged up
at 81, 72675, and which, according to the testi-
mony of experts, was really worth much less
than even that amount.
In the files in the Stuart suit at the Office of
the clerk of the federal court is small green
box, which might in its original shipment have
contained anything from rubber bands to
quinine pills. 1t is now burdened however
with section of the priceless pavement which
cost the city of st. Paul nearly So yard in
the start, to say nothing of the repairs it has
demanded since not an inconsiderable amount
either.
Not only that, but 1t appears that the city
paid for considerable more walk than was
actually laid, as shown by the evidence in the
trial.
This was a matter of only forty yards or
SO, and not enough to throw the city or the
park board into the hands of receiver, but
it was none the less important item in
the conservation of recources of city which
squabbles for months over paying patrolmen
a paltry $3.50 or perhaps S. less per month.
Is it not singular that this irregularity should
escape the never sleeping optic of snarling,
swapping watch dog, the city comptroller?
One more matter. When the utter help
lessness of the city revealed under the
fire of the Stuart suit, the city's legal de-
partment made an effort to ascertai3 where
was the bond which all city contractors are
required by law to give to idemnify the city
against such contingencies as this, us well as
against defects in the work done by them.
Assistant Corporation Attorney Phillips de-
elared tina; such bond had cscn dTawa up,