The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1898-07-29

Last nlSnt tne award was MADE 10
George Mcdonald by councils, both
branches of which were in session.
Councils action ends the strife
among rival brick concerns, the Scran-
ton vitrihed brick being included in the
award. The lowest bidder was James
h. Reilly & Co.. but it was found that
their proposal was based upon a mis-
conception of the specifications and
ordinance and they were released at
their own request
The joint pavements committee,
however, could not ignore the Reilly
proposal in the face of the following
opinion of the city solicitor:
CITY SOLICITORS OPINION.
Scranton. Pa. July rs, 1898
Thomas O'Boyle, Esq, Chairman Paw
ing Committee
Dear Sir: Your committee has no au-
thority to permit Reilly & Co to with
draw their bid for paving North Main
| avenue and Providence road or to direct
the return of the certified chick accom-
panying the same.
1t is the duty of the committee to rec
ommend that the contract be awarded to
the lowest responsible bidder. This con-
templates that the bidder shall have pc
cuniary ability to make a good contract
as well as judgment and skill in it's exc
cution.
entirely within the province of councils
who may reject any or all bids as their
discretion may dictate.
| Yours very respectfully
NJ. A. Mckinley City Solicitor.
In view Of the foregoing the COM
mittee decided that Reilly & Co. were
not responsible and submitted to Sc
| lect council the following resolution
| which was adopted:
Resolved, BY the select council of the
| city of Scranton, the common council con-
curing, that the contract for the paving
| of Providence road from court street to
North Main avenue and North Main from
Providence road to the Dickson city line,
with the Scranton vitrified wire cut brick
| be and the same is hereby awarded TO
| George Macdonald at the prices named
| in his proposal, viz: Scranton vitriiied
wire cut brick, SLIP per square yard;
straight curb per lireal foot 80 cents; cir
| cular curb per lineal foot, IS cents;
straight curb with tile drain per lineal
| foot, co cents; circular curb with tile
| drain per lineal fot, 90 cents; sewer pipe,
| Pinch, per lineal foot, % cents; recev-
ers each, ST. The work to be done accord
| ing to plans and specifications and city
| ordinance. The contractor to give the ten
| year guarantee according to specfica-
| tions and to furnish a sample of the
| curb to the city engineers office before
the work is &C mmenced.
Common council concurred in the
award.
| The opposition of certain property
| owners along a part of the route to
| having the pavement laid before a
| sewer is built, has not been aban-
| doned. A committee recently select
ed to represent them will apply to
court for an injunction to restrain the
city from permitting the pavement
work. This was stated by members
of the committee who visited rhe
| Tribune editorial rooms after last
| nights meeting. On the committee
are o. " Palmer. George Brown, Pet
er Cerine, c. S. Lowry, Horace Twin
ing, John Zurflieh, Thomas Green,
John Keistling and Mr.. Lotus.
ALL KINDS OF TROUBLE.
All kinds of trouble arose in award
ing to Charles T. Holloway the con-
tract for chemical apparatus for
Columbia company and for a COM
bination hose and chemical wagon for
Relief company. The Holloway pro-
posals were S1,470 and $1,000, respec-
lively, for the combination and the
chemical apparatus, as against 81 ,40C
and $1175 bid by The Fire Extingush.
er (Babcock) Manufacturing company
of Chicago.
The joint fire department commit
tee presented two resolutions that the
awards be made to Holloway, each
resolution providing for "improve-
ments suggested by committee" Wher
the resolutions were read Mr.. McCanr
offered objections to their passage al
they did not provide awards to the
lowest bidder.
Mr.. Thomas, chairman of the fire
department committee, said the Hollo
way engines had been in use in the
city and were considered satisfactory
the qualities of the Babcock appara.
tus were not known to the members o.
the committee who favored the next
higher bid because the Holloway ap.
paratus would contain several new de-
vices.
Mr.. Mccain said he understood tina
the Babcock apparatus would have al
those improvements. The committee!
report and resolutions were adopted
on the following vote:
Ayes-Me ssrs. Ross, Finn, Thomas
Williams Wagner, Robinson. Schroeder
O'Boyle, Frable. McAndrew-lO.
Nays--Messrs. Kearney. James, Roche
Melvin. Shea, Mccain, Fellows. Coyne
Chlttenden-9
There was lively debate in common
council when the resolutions We're re
ceived for concurrence in that body
half-hour being required to adopt them
Messrs. Keller, calpin. Oliver an
Walker strenuously opposed thei
adoption, while Messrs. Zizlemann, +
Wenzel and Grier were as active i
supporting the 4.
SOME OBJECTIONS.
1t was claimed the awards shoult
not be made in the absence of writer
and specific informant as to what tn
improvements" meant; that the word
ing of the resolutions gave the manu-
facturer the privilege of doing the wor
at low cost unless the proposed "inl
provements' were specifically writer
) and, finally, that the contracts shoulc
be awarded to the Babcock company
as it was the lowest bidder, a respon
sible concern and had bid according [
specifications.
Mr.. Zizleman said the Improve
ments" chiefly consisted of a chang
| in the specifications providing for
device for speedy refilling of the chemi
} cal tanks. He and Messrs. E Wenze
; and Grier argued that the excellence c
the Holloway apparatus was known /
! the city and that the Babcock was no
J and that the Babcock bid was no
J strictly according to specifications.