The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1905-07-11

+ the Patrol House unCSr lue SdL-S ~.
This voucher was not approved by tae
Finance Committee, nor was II AUDIT
ed. nor was ii receipted. nor docs tas
voucher show any number for itSeI,
nor any number for city warrant. II
/ presents no evidence of having Deen
paid but / think the strenuous cam
+ paign of this date was POSSIBLY re-
sronsible for these omissions.
Exhibit No. IA is for the Board OF
Public Works for March, 1905. The
! record bid of A. Mcdonald Meyer
shows choice white oats at 4Sc per
bushe. and choice No. l hay at toc
per hundred. The bill rendered shows
1 forty bales of hay at the uniform price
OF $100-S40.00, making an overcaarge
] Of S14.90 over the the contract price
/ Twenty sacks Of oats at S2.40, making
an overcharge of $500 for oats over
i the contract price The voucher was
not approved by the Finance Commit
tee and was not aucfted by the Comp
troller. II is not numbered, does not
contain the warrant number, and is
not receipted for payment.
\ Exhibit No. Is is for the Patrol
i House and Fire Department for the
month of April. 1905. These bills
show an oyercharge of $4.35 over the
i bid for oats and uniform charge OF
S1.00 a bale for hay for twenty-nine
bales, making an overcharge OF $9.5z
on hay. These bills were paid without
being o, KID and without the approval
of the chairman of the Board of Public
Safety and the chairman of the FL
nance Committee.
4 Exhibit No. 16 is for the Patrol
House for May, 1905. The bid of A.
Mcdonald Meyer is for choice white
oats at 44c per bushel and for No. 1
!! Timothy hay at soc per hundred The
bill is for six sacks of oats at $2.35.
an overcharge of 90c and eight bales
of hay $40, an overcharge of $2.Sz.
: The bill is not o. KID. The voucher
was not approved by the Finance Com
mittee but was audited and paid
4 Exhibit No. II is for the Fire De.
partment for May, 1905, under the
same bid as Exhibit No. Is. The bill
is for n sacks of oats at $240, an over
charge of 1920. 1t will be noted that
! &C more per sack for oats delivered to
the Fire Department than for oats de-
livered to the Patrol House. The bill
shows twenty-four bales of hay for
which the charge Of $3.50 is made,
making an oYercharge OF $7.78 over
the contract price. The voucher is
not approved by the Finance Commit
tee for payment, is audited by the
Comptroller, and receipted by Mr.,
Meyer.
Exhibit No. IS is for the Patrol
J, House for April, 1905. 1t was omitted
in its proper place in this report. The
bid of A. Mcdonald Meyer was for
choice white oats at 45c a bushel and
No. Timothy hay at S5c per hundred.
The bill rendered shows twenty sacks
OF oats at $2.40 a sack, an overcharge
of $500. and thirty bales of hay at
$4,000, making an overcharge of
1888 over the contract price. This
i voucher was not approved by the
Board Of Public Works nor by the Fl.
nance COmmlttee and has no number
of voucher nor warrant, but is receipt.
ed by Mr.. Meyer.
:. | have a few additional vouchers
making about the same showing.
] which have not had time to arrange,
j and which are not submitted.
/ very strenuous efforts have been
made to explain these bills and bids
before the Board OF Public Works and
the Council 1t has been repeatedly
stated that the hay furnished the city
by Mr.. Meyer under the bids was not
i good enough, so the mayor ordered
that choice" hay be furnished and a
4 higher price beJphid. Unfortunately
for this explanation the bids were
often made for choice hay, hence the
I explanation falls to the ground. Even
IL the bids were not made for choice
hay 1t would appear very peculiar and
extraordinary that the Boards of Pub
! lie Safety and Public Works should
accept month after month and year
after year bids for feed they could
not use. What could possibly be the
reason for accepting bids for a certain
article at a certain price and then &C.
4 cepting something else at a higher
price? Again, what could have been
4 the object of bidding on oats at so
much per bushel and rendering a bill
at so much per sack? And bidding on
| hay at so much per hundred weight
and rendering a bill for so much per
! bale, when it is a fact that bales of
hay vary all the way from 55 TO 100
pounds? There must have been some
purpose in, making bills on an entirely
| different basis.
In an interview published in The
Pensacola Journal, June 26 1905. /
find the following statement attribut-
ed to Mr.. John Burns, who had been
City Street Superintendent for the
| previous two years, during which time
this feed robbery was being carried
on. The following is the paragraph
referred to:
Mr.. Burns stated yesterday after.
noon that upon more than one occd-
sion he had weighed grain and hay
and found short weights and had re-
ported 1t 10 The Bo3ria OF Public Works,
but that the latter had paid but little
attention 10 him and had paid these
bills after he HAD presented proof that
the amount had not been delivered"
l have talked with Ex-Chairman' w.
Fl. Hutchinson OF the Board Of Public
! Works and he Informs me that he had
/ TcOpatp0i- tried 20 got the ROard