The San Francisco call., 1898-04-07
NOW FOR THE PENALTY.

HAT rascality has marked the progress of the ferry depot since the structure above the
 foundation level has been amply demonstrated. That the money of the people voted for the ere'ton of the building has been wasted, that It has gone to favored contractors for inferior work or has stuck to the fingers of somebody who had the handling ot 1t, has been shown with such cearness there can be no denial The facts have been laid bare, the figures H. usratng the shamelessness with which the State has been robbed published in detail In the court of pub
 lie opinion the conviction of the robbers has already been accomplished. They openly accused, and they had no defense to offer.
 Anything like complete review of the facts hereto fore set forth would require much space, the original exploitation having consumed columns It may however be said in general way that every tractor whose work was of sufficient importance to be investigated seems to have attempted deliberately to defraud, and, with the connivance of the Harbor Commissioners and the supervising architect to have succeeded The very walls represent cheat while inside the depot is honeycombed with visible traces of obbery and crookedness
 C. F. Mccarthy had the masonry contract How he was permitted to put in Colusa stone and paid at the rate asked for Oregon stone has been repeatedly stated. 1t was to him clear and unmerted gain of $II,ooo How he was allowed to substitute brick worth $o per thousand for the specified article worth $5 has been told It is known also that he discarded white glazed tile for marble eliminated the arched tiling substituting expanded metal left out terra cotta, at saving of thousands to himself and instead of making reduction such the State could justly have demanded, was actually paid extra for having done cheap work after having signed contract to do good work. The loss of the commonwealth on ac- count Of this contractor has been S4s24I Throughout the list there runs similar record of broken trust, of trckery and double dealing The Bateans, for instance paid extra for their con sderaon in using Oregon pine for the interior finish after they had agreed to oak pine selling in open market then at S2o per thousand and oak at S12o per thousand. True they claim to have used more of the pine than they had intended to use of the oak but there IS reason to question this statement The Batenans paid extortionate prices for certain extras. getting in instances four times the price at which any outside would have been glad of chance to do the work. The plumbing the gal vanized iron, the steam heating have all been char acterized by similar disregard for honesty and of the terms of the several contracts This grows to be an old story; 1t becomes tale that is told
 The purpose in making this series of exposures was not merely to entertain readers, to harass unfah- fu officials or bring the community into disrepute for its toleraton of such papabe crime IL was to open to the proper investigating body the way to check the rascas to pave for the offenders if not way to the penltenary, at least to private life The pre- lminary work is done The facts are common prop erty. Upon the Grand Jury must rest the burden of treating the officials they deserve to be treated paper may hold up to condemnation perhaps to scorn. It can do nothing The machinery of the law IS not at its command.