The Marlboro democrat. [volume] (Bennettsville, S.C.) 1882-1908, 1905-11-10
BY Which Philadelphia Lost Over
Six Million Dollars On
STREET CONTRACTS.
Report of Major Cassins E. Gillette
Who Was Selected BY Mayor
Weaver to See How Much
Graft There Has Been in
the Quaker City.

Six million three hundred and thir-
ty thousand dollars has thus far been
lost outright to the taxpayers Of
Philadelphla through tho contracting
combination which has been engaged
Ia building the great filtration plant
and the two cu'evards, one In the
northeastern and the other in the.
southern district OF the eity accord
ing to the report just made public,
This conclusion has been reached
by Maj)r G tSsus E. Gillette, corps OF
engineers, u. S. A. and John Donald
MacLennan, experts employed by
| Mayor Weaver to make full inveSti
cation OF the contracts and the work
done. Mej) Gillette Is the ofli GER
who investigated the j)bbery In the
Savannah Harbor improvements and
procured the evidence by which ex.
Captain ODerlin M. Carter was con.
victod, and against which Greene and
Gaynor must shortly stand trial.
Ohm Donald MacLennan is an expc.
rienced engineer, who recently com
pleted the construction OF the gov.
urnment's filtration plant at Wash
ington.
John w. Hill, formerly chief of the
Bureau of Filtration, is now awaiting
trial on charges Of forgery, etc, in
connection with the filtration con
tracts. The contracting combination
WhicM is accused is constituted in the
main, OF Israel w Durham, Republi
can boss o Philadelphia, and aSsocia.
ted with United States Senator Pen.
rose, Of Pennsylvania and State
Senator James p McNich2l. Toese
two men, with ID. j. McNichol. q
brother OF the state senator, compose
the contracting ii ~ Of Daniel j. Nc
| Nichol 81 Go. Evidence brought out
1T HIPS preliminary hearing showed
that In this firm d. j :. McNichol owns
one-twenth interest, tho other
eleven twelfths being divided equally
| between Durham and James p. Nc
| NichOl,
| WORK COST CONTRACTORS $40 356, 600.
'Omittirg from construction all
,mall contracts, say, under $50, ,OOO,n
1he report says, we find for the ill
ration work and the two boulevards,
So constructed up to date, the city has
paid or pledged $l8, 761 74l. First
,lasS work under the spec ii ,atiuns
should not have cost Cver $l2 430, 600
Hhich includes an allowance OF 30
per cent, or 81 075, ,2O8 for legitimate
| contractors profits. The d ference
is SO 800, 600. In other worlds SIS 100
900 in round numbers has been paid
FOR work costing the contractors $40
356 600.
"Of the Sc, $50, 900 excessive cost
5here has gone TO the contractors who
worked under the name OF d j
McNichol $5, 065 1872, similarly &c
Ryan & Kelly SAB 500. and to Ware
Brothers $50 1913. or the $l8,76l l4l
here remains unpaid about $5GS 600
80 McN chol and $T5, 900 to Ryan &
Kelley.
Some Of these contracts are in
complete. The estimated cost Of
completion Of the existing filtration
contracts aG contrnct prices is about
81 685 900. A fair p'ran, allowing 20
ger cent profit, would be $l,2lS, 600
The d Terence the city will lose ii
these contracts are completed.
The price paid for the three quar-.
tcr3 OF a mile Of Northeast Boulevard
already constructed is 1852 348, on
Which there Was loss to the city OF
$273.2 PIT. There are nine and half
mileS more Of it laid out on the maps
If completed at contract prices the
additional c )St to the city would be
about So, 600 900, and the additional
loss at least 81, 250,000 On the
Southern Boulevard the amount paid
To date is $286 389 on which the loss
On the one and quarter miles built
mas teen $50, 1913. TO complete al
contract prices would cost $3.50 SIG,
ard the additional loss would be $85.
555. In other words, the total COS,
Of both boulevards as planned at con
tract prices wu)ld have been 81 636,
600 and the total loss to the city OF
$5200O0,
MUCH OF WORK NOT FIRST CLASS.
Much Of the work done by Ryan
ana Kelley and ID. j. McNichol Is not
hret class. The parts which show
prominently to the public are fairly
~eli done; the parts that can bo cx
amned with little trouble are dis
CinctIy second class and not TO the
Eecitlcations We, OF course, do not
KHoH the condition OF such portions
aS cnnnoG be seen without tearing up
The work, but wherever we have dug
INTO 1T we find it second class or
verse. The Southern Boulevard work
80 far AZ can bo seen Is good AS yet
only the rough work Of filling has
been done.'
The report says that the crushed
rock used in surfaclng the Northeast
Boulevard Is excellent material, but
the foundation rock was found TO be
OF very poor quality. The report
also saws that the investigators iounu
fault with much OF the mathrial ohat
entered into the construction OF filter
beds and also with the workman.
ship.
One Of 4he means by which exces.
I siVc profits were made possible. the
report says, was by not permitting
fair competition. The advertising
was wholly inadequate, scarcely more
than pretense. The report gives
an example OF the advertising for bids
FOR a $4,000, 900 contract. The notice
appeared In local papers only twenty
J tour days before the letting OF the
contract This was wholly made.
Quate, the report SAYS the work to no