Omaha daily bee., 1903-02-16
OPENS DOOR TO CORRUPTION
Charles wooster Points Out ObIec-
lions to Proposed New
bridge Law.

OA WV w - 49,
Editor Of The Bee: with your kind per-
mission l wish to submit some facts and
observations for the consideration Of mem
bers of the legislature and your readers
generally pertaining to proposed changes
In the bridge law Of this state, as in
dicated in house roll 112 and senate file
10, now pending before. the legislature.
These bills. as l understand. we're in
troduced at the instance Of the state as
ISOLATION Of county commissioners and
supervisors. a voluntary organization un-
known to the law. They have a legisla-
tive committee, or set Of lobbyists. at
Lincoln working In f~urtherance Of their
pet schemes. BY what motives these com
missloners and supervisors are actuated
is a very pertinent inquiry. Are they
working, as they allege, in the interest
OF the taxpayers, or are they working In
the interest Of their W pockets and
political %fortunes? II the former then,
possibly, they may pc entitled to some
consideration for theft expenditure Of time
and other peoples money. (The county
boards pay the expenses Of their repre-
sentatives TO their state meetings out
OF the county treasury, Notwithstanding
they have no warrant in law for so doing.)
But Of the latter, II as I believe. they are
WI II " ltdlntI Aut1T WI HteAbs tutu
members Of the legislature should be on
their guard and the taxpayers should pro.
test.
No matter what other changes in the
law are involved In the pending measures
these commissioners and supervisors are
particularly DESTROYS OF having the law
changed so as to permit themselves to do
any bridge work costing not more than
$500. whereas now the law requires that
for any Job costing 800 or more they shall
advertise for bids and have the work done
by contract. They say contractors go In
q combine, or conspire together, to keep
up the price Of bridge work, and that they
can do II cheaper themselves, thereby saw
ing money to the taxpayers and giving
work TO their own people instead OF out
siders. II may be true they could do 1t
cheaper. but would they do It cheaper?
The law assumes that county officers, like
other people. may be dishonest and cor
rupt and has wisely provided that mo
county oficer shall In any manner, either
directly or indirectly be pecuniarily In
terested in or receive the benefit of any
contracts executed by the county for fur
nishing supplies, or other purposes;
neither shall any once furnish any, sup
plies on order Of the county board with
Out contract anu ybAs uOlhllnbNhuuiub
these provisions Of the law, at least for
some Ave or six years past, our county
board OF supervisors have persistently and
continuously ignored the law in regard to
advertising for bids and have done the
work themselves, the bridges in almost
every case. and there have been many Of
them building bridges of late years being
one Of our chief industries) . costing over
500, and in some cases as high as $1,000.
The board buys lumber and piles by the
carload and then each supervisor helps
himself and builds bridges in his own
district personally, ordering other ma
terial from local dealers and employing
help at his discretion, the county board
allowing ali bills. This, as. will at once
be seen, opens wide the doors to jobbery
and corruption. But even 10 there were
no corruption still the supervisors make
a good thing out of 1t. For instance our
county records show that during the year
1909 our local supervisors drew $166 from
the bridge fund, whereas II they had not
been violating the law. 1t is safe to say
he would not have got $40. And then,
too, these supervisors used to Increased
patronage, thus unIawfully obtained to
influence voters to keep themselves In
ONCE. As 1t has been in this county l
presume IL mas Deen in otheT couhties' anu
as In this county supervisors have been
threatened with criminal prosecution. so I
presume they may have been threatened
in other counties, and hence this pressure
on the legislature to so amend the law as to
permit county commissioners and super
vlsors to do lawfully what they have here
tofore been doing %unlawfully.
Gentlemen OF the legislature, we elected
you to attend 70 all matters OF legislation
ana we did not elect county commissioners
and supervisors to be your confidential
advisors. Don't you see wha is the mat
ter with these fellows. Change the bridge
law II in your opinion It may be mater
tally improved. but don't change the 500
limit or do away with any of the other
safeguards now hedging about our county
ofncers, but rather. make theh stronger.
CHARLES WOOSTER.