The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-07-06
A REJOINDER TO THE BOARD.
w. S. McCurdy Considers the Inter.
view with Clerk Herrick

w. S. McCurdy Considers the Inter
view with Clerk Herrick.
W. S. McCurdy, the agent of one of the
unsuccessful companies which bid on the
police patrol telegraph system, takes ex-
ceptions to statements in an interview with
Richard Herrick, secretary of the Board of
Safety, published yesterday. Mr.. McCurdy
says that while it is true some of the COM
panies did not bid on everything that the
Gamewell Company bid on, his company
bid on q good deal more. For one thing
the Gamewell Company only bid on con-
structing $50 miles, specifying that $50
mile would be charged for additional work
His company made no such limitation. An
other company bid $25 a mile, he says, on
additional work. Another point in favor of
his company, he says, was the fact that it
bid on No. IA wire to be insulated with
rubber while the GameweI bid on paper
insulated wire No. Is. His company did
bid on separate talking circuits, he says
Notwithstanding the assertion Of Mr.. Her
rick to the contrary. He admits that the
Gamewell Company has it's system in OPP
Grafton in more cities than any other. He
says that is because the IIameWell is the
oldest company. 1t has been in the field a
long time, whereas his and other companies
have only started forth in the last few
years
rs that any reason, he asks why we
should be turned down without being given
at least fair show? 1t is not often that
old companies are progressive. They sit
back, fold their hands and expect to do
business right along on the regulations
made years ago'when they had no cOmpeti-
tors. We have patented the latest improve
ments in this line, and have a great many
very valuable features not possessed by the
GameWell' Deslde being able 10 90 every
! thing that they do. am prepared to prove
all this an1 more if they will submit to a
comparative test. The only reason that the
matter was railroaded through was to get
it closed before we could get our apparatus
on the ground. very similar case existed
at Cleveland, O., but the board gave rs
time to get our apparatus on the ground
for q competitive test, and the result was
we beat them badly and got the contract"
AS to the assertion that the city electri-
clan indOrsed the GameWell, Mr. McCurdy
asserts that he has never seen any other
system.
What right has he or any other man to
decide against apparatus which they have
never seen and examined, when such de-
cision costsrth taxpayers of the city $4,000
With all due reSepct to Mr.. Hoderman,
really think he should endeaVor to gain
some little knowledge regarding signal sys-
TENS before making some of the sweeping
statements he does"
Mr.. McCurdy says that while it was
known that a system would be purchased
some time, no official notification given
until two weeks before the contract was
let. He says that Mr.. Herrick told him the
GameWeIl company would probably take
the board to Dayton to show its system in
operation, and it was Mr.. McCurdy's in
tention to take the city officials to Cleve-
land to show them the other system. He
says that two or three days delay would
have made this possible and would have
done no harm. He says Mr.. Herrick must
have been misinformed when he says w.
Chandlee, of the Gamewell, was not before
the board, as three of the rival agents saw
him go in the office. He says that it is also
untrue that the bids were read word by
word. They were read so fast no one could
understand the information contained in
them. He says the statement that Mr.
Dodge was formerly employed by the
Gamewell Company is a falsehood AN
offer was made him by the Gamewell people
while he was in this city, according TO Mr.
McCurdy.