The San Francisco call., 1898-03-15
C0LNON CHILLED IN OPEN COURT Attorney Matt Sullivan Speaks Plainly of His
 BuSin eSs M ethOdS. MT. Stratton Comes In for a Share Of the Attorneys
 Cutting Remarks.
The Harbor Commissioners Accused of Favoritisr1a in No Un-
 certain Terms

Tn his argument before Judge Belcher yesterday Attorney Matt Sullivan vented his opinion on Harbor Commis- sioner Colnon and his associates for their dishonest methods in conducting business on the water front While on this subject, MT. Stratton, the boards legal adviser in the present proceed ing, received some of the attorneys at tention. MT. Sullivan told the court that Stratton had acted in dual capa- city when he advised the board to re- feet the Paraffine Paint Company's bid and advertise for new ones, as he was acting as attorney for Messrs. Shade & Dundon, who were interested in the San Francisco Timber Preserving Con- pany. a corporation which was bidding against the Paraf11ne Paint Company.
 Legal arguments as a rule become tiresome, owing to their technical scope, but througout the day MT. Sullivan held the attention of the court and vis- itors by his clear statement of the man. ner in which his clients had been treated.
 AL the outset NIT. SulllVd1 LOlO thC court that MT. Stratton was attorney for Dundon and also for Slade, and that these two constituted the firm of the San Francisco Timber Preserving Com pany; that Shade himself was the sole member of the s. E. Slade Lumber Company and Dundon was member of the firm of Darby Laydon & Co.,
 within a period of about year." said MT. Sullivan, "the S. B. Slade Lumber Company, Darby Laydon & Co. and the San Francisco Timber Preserv- ing Company have drawn from the treasury a large amount of money, amounting to something like $130,000 or $40 000. When the awarding of these contracts came up the Paraffine Paint Company was the lowest bidder, offer ing to do the work under all the pro- cesses for less than it had ever been done before. The board, instead of con- sulting it's regular attorney. Tirey L. Ford, who was admittedly well quail fled to attend to the matter, called upon MT. Stratton, who was the attorney of Dundon and Slade who were bidders"
 At this point MT. Sullivan called the courts attention to the testimony of Tirey L. Ford, who, although regu larly appointed and a paid attorney of the board, refused to represent 1t in the matter, as he had already refused to
 
 by the Healy, Tibbets Company, in which the board was charged with favoritism in dealing with the Timber Preserving Company. He then brought out the point that the Board of State Harhor Commissioners had no author ity to employ special counsel. Sec tions of the code and decisions Of the Supreme Court were read, showing that the board had no right whatever to employ special counsel. 'The law expressly provides that the regular se- lected attorney shall attend to all the legal business of the board, and that when necessary it may call upon the Attorney General who must gratuitous- ly render all services which the board requires; that the employment of MT. Stratton was illegal and that the large amounts paid to him by reason Of his special employment have been illegally paid, and that the board and their surieties on their official bonds are liable to be mulcted in damages; sthat their only reason for employing MT. Stratton was because he was or had been the attorney of S. E. Slade and Dundon, who constituted the San Francisco Lumber Company.
 "The law provides said Mir. Sulli- van, that the contract in a matter of this kind should be awarded to the lowest bidder, unless In the opinion or the board the bids are too high they must be rejected. The board rejected the bids not because they were too high, but because MT: Stratton had advised them to do so."
 MT. Sullivan then went on and quoted authorities to show the absurdity or MT. Stratton's advice when he directed the board to throw the bids out because they were not opened on the day as ad- vertised.
 He devoted the rest of the afternoon to picking out portions of MT. Strat- tons and Colnon's testimony showing that a condition of fraud, corruption and favoritism pervaded the adminis- tration of affairs on the water front un- der the present regime, charging par ticularly that MT. Colnon was the head and front of all the fraud and corrupt cautious or prudent business man or corporation would under any circum- stances ever put in a bid to do public work on the water front as long as the present practices are carried on.
 He particularly charged MT. Stratton with being responsible in a great meas ure for the prevailing evils on account of the peculiar dual capacity which he occupied as adviser of the board, un- lawfully selected by them and paid by them as special counsel in direct viola tion of the statutes of the State, and at the same time representing private in- terests that have admittedly been fn- strumental in f1lching from the State treasury 8 vast amount of money with out competing for business as the law required and through favoritism ex- tended by MT. Colnon to his clients.
 MT. Sullivan will conclude his argu- ment this morning when MT. Stratton will reply.