Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1897-03-30


The majority of the Board of County
! Commissioners, and a majority Of the
| Committee on Court House and JAIL
appear determined, in defiance OF public
sentiment, of the custom OF the Board
and Of the prophecies generally to
spend public funds to the amount oil
about nine thousand dollars upon new
fittings and furnishings for the vaults
of the County Clerk and Circuit Clerk,
in the Court House.
Indeed, this has been the determine
ton from the first. the action of the
Board at its last regular meeting, the
protests of the late President Dobbins,
and one or TWO others, and the threat
| of injunction, TO the contrary notwith-
standing.
The very day the Board held its last
| regular meeting, plans were perfected
( to again bring the matter up, and 20
| secure a few bids, out OF Difference TO
/ public opinion
AZ the outset, the attention OF the
reader and taxpayer is invited to few
facts. One is, that it is the usual Gus
| tom for the Board to advertise for DiG5
/ for what is wanted for public use. 1t
! asks bids for road work, for stone, Tor
/ hauling, for work of construction, 1or
[ coal for the poor, for medical attend
ance and medicine for the prisoners III
| iail. and even for collins for the lndl-
/ gent poor. These things are advertised
! for there is ali open competition, ana
! the lowest and best bidder does the
work or furnishes the material needed.
In the matter at present under consld-
Grafton. esteemed by very many people
to be wholly unnecessary, no bid was
/ asked for. but the matter was worked
up to the point where it could be put
upon its passage without any pubic
ity whatever.
Another fact is, that the business OF
the Board. being public business, is usu-
ally and properly done openly, and any
one interested can find out what is go
ing on. No one knew of the existence
OF the plan 10 spend good many thou
sand dollars of the public funds until
the Committee on Court House and jail
had everything cooked and primed and
ready to be reported to the Board, and
that it came out then was not the fault
of the Committee Yesterday the Com
mittee again considered the matter IN
secret reSsion, ard bound each other
to secrecy, although they contem-
plated spending the money of the public,
and nearly two thousand dollars OF 1t
in such a manner that even the Finance
Committee of the Board could not have
say in the matter.
It's hard to keep these little matters
secret. however, and the Register pro-
poses to inform the taxpayers, as far as
possible. of just what is going on.
II will be remembered that when the
Board. at its last regular meeting re-
ferred the matter back to the Commit
tee. there was something very akin to
disgust on the part of a rev members.
That same day members OF the Board,
with an agent of vault fitting manu-
facturer. held a conference, and steps
were taken to have few bids.
The bids were accompanied by set
of plans for the fitting up of the vaults.
They called for a complete outfit, out
and-out. These plans were divided in
to sections. marked a b &c
and ID" This plainly indicated that
it was the deliberate intention to mt
out the whole of both vaults. If any
thing else was necessary in proof OF
this. il can be supplied by the fact that
there were two bids for the whole work,
and that there was an understanding.
as long ago as a month, between at
least one member of the Board and an
agent. that if the worst came to the
worst. part of the work would be done
this year and part next.
When the Committee met. yesterday az
ternoon. two representatives, of construc-
ton companies were present, and eX-
planned the plans and the bids to the
committee. The bids were as follows:
Bv W. Z. Hilderbrand. agent-Sections
c. and Cd" County Clerks vault (the
work contemplated to be put through at
this tlme). $l.76S; Barnes Safe and Lock
Co. 81 900: A. It. Andrews Co, $3.50.
County Clerks Vault-Barnes Safe and
Lock Co. A7e0; \. II. Andrews Co,
81 $50.
Circuit Clerks Vault-Barnes Safe and
Lock Co. $40; a. II. Andrews Co, 81
go
Sections &C" and -" are to go, one be-
tween the windows of the County Clerks
vault. and the other at the west end of
the vault. where the entrance is. and it
is the idea of the Committee to use for
this work q balance uneXpended and TO
the credit of the Committee from last
years appropriation. amounting to some
thing like 81. GOO and they expect to mus
ter enough votes at next Mondays ses-
sion Of the Board to put a resolution to
this effect through. An estimate for the
whole work. on the other hand. would
have to run the gauntlet of the Finance
Committee and there is every probability
that it wonld receive black eye from
that body at this time. but $1,000 has
been or will be put in the annual esti-
mate for Court House and Jail. for this
purpose and If it can be gotten through
the Committee will be that much further
along with the work The Committee es-
innate in detail will be about like this:
! Commitments ..... .....................S 5000
Repairs to Court House.............. 500
Engineer ................. ....,......... 900
Assistant &c. ........ .................. $40
/ JanitOr ................ .-.....'.'.'.'''.. ~
| Assistant ............ OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES. 66O
! JanitresS Observation-Disclosures. ...'....'.. ziO
/ File cases ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS. 200
Total ............... .Sll 800
Last year the appropriation was S11.OOO
/ which was larger than usual. because
/ $3.50 was expended on repairs to the
I Court House.
Tho eecrs+ session of the Committee adj