The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1897-08-11

TGHTING BIDS ARE HUNG UP
MORE DISCUSSION ON THE SUBJECT
But the Commissioners Were Not
Prepared to Settle the Cues
ton Last Night.

inc the various bids for heating and
lighting the court house and county
Jail, pass upon the merits and dement's
of the machinery and plant the various
bidders propose to use, and will sub
nit their joint report in writing to the
joint court house and city hall COM
mission at a meeting of that body to
be held Thursday evening, Aug. II.
Such was the course decided upon at
the special meeting of the joint COM
mission held last night. The three eX-
perts are to be the city's electrician,
F. D. Varnam, and two others, one to
be chosen by the st. Paul Gas Light
company and the other by James Nc
Geary, the gas company's competitor
for the contract to heat and light the
court house and Jail.
Every member of rhe commission was
in attendance last evening, as were Mr..
Cutcheon, representing the st. Paul Gas
Light company; James McGeary and
his attorney, Mr.. Hallam; George H.
Finn, of the Edison Electric Light and
Power company, and W. B. Hale, inter-
ested in the bid of the Ridgeway En-
CINE and Dynamo company ....-
AT the outset Of the meeting Assem-
blyman DAILY, as chairman Of the SUBJ
committee appointed to consider the
bids, submitted the report of the COM
n1ittee, which recommended. that all
bids for dynanlos and engines be re-
jected and new bids be advertised for.
Mr.. DAILY moved that the report be
adopted.
Assemblyman Dix opposed the mo-
hat iSiY tnd
ties had informed him that the dyna-
mos and engines offered by the Ridge
way company were adequate and would
furnish abundant light for both build
ings Mr. Dix declared that he. was
prepared to vote to award the contract
to Mr.. McGeary, as he was satisfied
that it was the most economical con-
tract.
County Commissioner Moritz agreed
with Mr. Dix that McGeary's bid was
lower than that of the gas light COM
pany, not even taking into considera-
ton the fact that the plant to be in
stalled in case McGeary was awarded
the contract was to become the proper
ty of the city at the end of three years.
Chairman Doran suggested that the
whole matter be laid over until the
members Of the commission could ia
miliarize themselves with the facts.
Mr.. Hale said the Rtdgeway compa-
ny would guarantee that their plant
would light the 1900 incandescent
lamps in both buildings and furnish a
light of sixteen-candle power.
Mr.. Finn observed that the lamps re-
quired a light of twenty-four candle
vxyhi To f1Jp
nishing a sixteen-candle power for
$500 lamps.
Mr.. Cutcheon was then granted the
floor. Mr.. Cutcheon, in behalf of the
Gas Light company, said that he was
in possession of the written testimony
of a number of disinterested and COM
petent judges of lighting plants to the
effect that the Gas Light company was
better equipped to do the work than
its competitors. These judges were
also confident that the machinery CT
fered by the Ridgeway company was
not adequate to light the buildings
properly, for the reason that the en-
gines proposed were not reliable or
good. Mr.. Cutcheon in this connection
alluded to the probability that in the
future new elevators would be con-
structed in the court house, and that
the Ridgeway electric plant would be
inadequate to operate them.
Here Mr.. Dix with some show of
Impotence interrupted Mr.. Cutcheon
with the remark that new elevators
were not under consideration.
Mr.. Cutcheon paused a moment and
then said:
"As 1 take it this commission is not
a political body nor a private organ
ization controlled by partisan motives
in favor of one particular person or
company or another, but on the con-
trary a body representing the public
and pledged to protect the interests
of the people and not to allow any
feeling Or prejudice in favor of or
against one bidder or another to in
f1uence it's action
Mayor Doran looked annoyed The
word partisan" it appeared, dis
pleased his honor. Keeping his eyes
on the desk in front of him he adj
monished Mr.. Cutcheon that it was
"out of taste to talk of partisan mat
ters." He, Doran, knew of no partisan
interests at stake. All he desired was
to defer action until the commission
could learn the truth from disinterest-
ed outside parties.
Mr.. Cutcheon was a little surprised
at the mayors Incorporation of his
remarks, and informed Mr.. Doran that
he had not used the word partisan"
in political sense.
This closed the general discussion
and Mr.. DAILY renewed his motion to
adopt the subcommittee report. Mr..
Dix moved as a substitute that the
report Of the subcommittee, recon-
mending the rejection of the bids, be
not accepted and that information as