The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1899-03-10

hAA1tA q . 1 0S9 al e eli ~ SAAh~
ION the subject of samples, 1t Is very
evident to your committee that some per-
son or persons interested in this matter
deliberately changed the samples. The
change of samples was clearly not acci-
dental. Had the Clerk Of this Board not
retained his samples in such a manner as
to clearly identify them. the scheme OF
substitution of samples of higher grade
for the ones actually bid upon, would have
involved the county in considerable dlii-
Guilty, and perhaps. have resulted IN the
| Board being compelled to reject the con-
tract. WHO changed the ampies your
has not been able to learn, not
shaving the power to subpoena witnesses
ana put them under oath; but IN so far as
its examination goes, 1t is satisfied that
the change in the samples was not made
in the Clerks Offices Whether the
Clerks office to the storehouse 1T is UNI
able to state. but in justice to the teams
from fep; y the IL Primer time ne .o i saf the Clerks Office
until he delivered the az snake
Hill to Mr.. Judge, the Assistant store
| keeper, there was no one on his ne
| did not leave his wagon, and he delivered
the goods in the same condition THAT ne
| received them, together with the keys OF
that he did not open the envelope. Mr..
O'Neill states that the showcase was
placed on barrels at a point ABOUT nIteen
feet from the door OF the oilce; nat ne me
showcase kept in the safe; that both he
and Mr.. Judge, his assistant, had keys TO
the safe; that when the GOODS We're ae-
tors. it was the custom to opel the snow
case. AXE out the sample n compare 1t
with the goods delivered, and having done
so. return the sample to the
and lock it and put the keys back IN the
safe. Mr.. O'Neill states that from the time
the showcase containing the samples OF
dry goods were delivered at the storehouse
until the first delivery of goods by turst
Bros. about five days elapsed, during
which time the showcase was not opened
by him. During this time other contrac-
tors were in and about the storehouse,
some of them compared the samples WITH
the goods delivered by F'urst Bros. and
during the time of this examination \
comparison there was delivered at the
storehouse by Mr.. Ignatius Noonan, a
sample of Indian Head u. 3. Muslin,
Yer Peak jean" Whether these goods
were delivered to the ~storekeeper after the
showcase was opened or before, is a mat
tr of some doubt. But the fact plainly
appears to this committee that the alieged
samples of muslin and jean upon Whlen
Mr.. O'Neill rejected tue gooas pl ,, uasa
which the bidding was had,
1.-THE also had before the
samples of ~suspenders.
1.-The sample of suspenders produced py
the Clerk was not disputed by MT.
Furst as being the sample. The, sus,,
penders supplied have the same brand
and appeared to be the same in every
particular, manufactured by the same
Manufactured but the web is lighter and
seemed a good deal inferior. When the
sample was shown to Mr.. Furst he ex-
planned that his buyer who examined this
article. did not take a sample, there be-
ing but one pair of suspenders and My
took the brand on the sample and the
goods furnished were according to the
brand. but not up to the quality in our
Judgment. Mr.. Furst cut a sample OF the
suspender from the sample in the posses
sion of the clerk and agreed to have the
c,,cnanHarS furnished pYqct1V in Accord
ance with the sample.
"a question also arose as to the rubber
sheeting. The specifications called for
rubber Sheeting forty-eight inches wide.
Mr.. Richardson made an investigation on
this subject, and found that there is
not standard rubber sheeting forty-eight
ing forty-eight wide an order would have
to be furnished for the same and 1t might
take months to supply it; that the stand
ard rubber sheeting IS thirty-six. forty
five and ffty-four inches wide, that the
samples in the case was forty-two inches
wide, but Furst Bros. were Informed that
they should not be guided by the width
of the sample, that it was there only to
indicate quality. The rubber sheeting fur
nished was forty-five inches wide, and the
quality appeared to be fully equal to
the quality of the sample. In furnishing
a forty-fve inch wide sheet, your COM
mittee is satisfied that the width is
sufficient for all purposes for which such
sheeting is required, that it would be
mucn cheaper I0r q DlQQer TO Duy the
ffty-four inch rubber sheeting than TO
make a special contract for the delivery
of forty-eight inch sheeting and is,
therefore, satisfied that the rubber sheet
ing as supplied is in reasonable complf-
ance with the contract, and the same
should be accepted as such.
A to the difficulty with s. Smith.
Mr.. Smith was the shoe contractor, and
claims that the samples of Shoes upon
which he bid were not the samples of
shoes that the storekeeper had, when
he rejected his goods of shoes
There was produced before the com
mittee one illustrations: a high grade
brogan, stamped Rice & Hutchins. Mr..
Smith says that the sample he bid on in
not Rice & Hutchins.' Mr.. Charles c.
Kelly his attorney, says that he went
with Mr.. Smith to the Clerks Office at
the time he had made the examination
brogan in the case was .WardelP and not
Rice & Hutchins.' Whether these
unable 10 determine; but by reason of the
discredit cast upon the samples as they
appeared at Snake Hill. your committee
to supply the goods according to the
samples at max Hill, and therefore
recommends hat the award Of the con-
tract to nim be r%escinded, with his con-
sent, and, if necessary, a new bidding
had on the shoe specification.
Your committee begs leave further to
ttpOll liI III Vi JoA6iiCAL LAC pICSCllt
difficulties of the Board have been created
solely by the fact that this Board changed
the system of bidding, from the old plan,
which awarded to contractors would be
ridiculously low on some article (which
he had reason to suppose would never be
required) and exceedingly high on other
articles, which might be required in large
quantities, to the new plan, which pro-
vides that any person might bid on any or
all of the items, according to his dis
erection, and that the Board would award
the contract to every bidder or the items
upon which he was lowest, treating the
bid as to each item as a separate and
distinct contract. This plan necessarily
insures honest bidding, persisted in, and
bidders given to understand hat this
Board will not pay for material any more
than a private individual will, such diff
culties will be at an end and the county
will save considerable money.
We would recommend that hereafter.
when biddings are invited, that bidders
be required to deposit with their bids
either cash or a certified check in an
amount equal to not less thar ten per
cent. of their bid.
I'VE would also recommend that in the
case of the Kelly contract that the county
supply the goods bid for by Mr.. Kelly
at market prices, and that the attorney
of this Board be thereupon directed to
suit against Mr.. Kelly and his
bondsmen for any difference hat may
exist between the amount of his bid and
the sum which the county is compelled
to pay by reason of his refusal to per-
form the contract, the attorney to be the
Judge of the appropriate remedy.
During the session of the committee