The Guthrie daily leader. [volume] (Guthrie, Okla.) 1893-1996, 1905-11-13
JUSTIFIES
ITS OWN ACTS
SALTWATER BOARD OF
REGENTS SAYS ALL
is SQUARE
OFFERS NO APOLOGIES
For Turning Down Kruger'S
Bid for ThatOf Campbell.
sneclnl 10 nalIg Leaegr.

Special to daily Leoegr.
saltwater, NOV la-There Is stn fric-
ton in the A and n. board over the
NORTH $4,000 contract and The alleged
controversy between Contractors Nahert
Kruger and A. o. Campbell Regent
BrodbaH "a investigating yet; Beard Of
Shawnee twitches. and Regent Wykon is
mad. In order to protect the COVER
nor. however. an "onicial" statement
has been given out. Campbell gets the
contract and Oklahoma City brokers get
the warrants. Acting, presumably on
the advice Of Attorney u. r. Flynn, Mr..
Campbell. OF course, got the contrac..
Crgeger being left TO munich discoutent.
Il Official" statement is as follows:
In the first place. It has no apology
TO make for rs action All or singular.
in the matter. The statement is given
to the press not because the action Of
the board in awarding this contract re-
quires defense. or justification. but be-
cause charges Of crookedness and sug-
gestions Of scandal absolutely unfounded
have been so widespread The lowest
bie9er was Mr.. Kruger. Of oklahoma
City. his bid being s622i4; the second
was Mr.. Campbell, Of Oklahoma City.
whose bid was $685. 500; the third was
Fielding q Sirough. Of Guthrie, Of S64 500
These bids We're made. with a number
Of others. at 1880 p. m. October 30. The
board Instantly recognized the prims ia
Gle right Of Mr.. Kruger 10 the con-
tract, but proceeded under the terms Of
the specifications to examine into the
question OF the experience and respon-
sibiity Of the three lowest bidders Mr..
Erueger, Mr. Campbell and Mr.. Field
ing were called Ia and carefully examined
on these points. This examination raised
50 serious doubt as 10 the sunciency Of
Mr. Kreueger's experience for "A contract
OF such magnitude that the board after
earnestly caYsassing the matter untl
after midnight. determined to eliminate
as far as possible all chance for mistake
BY going IN a body to Oklahoma City
the next day and investigating the work
and standing Of both bidders.
Now. as to the alleged revision OF
Mr. Campbell's bid from s6s.s0o 70 $s2. =
500. Al a regular meeting OF the board
on the previous day il developed that II
the contractor should be paid In war
rants, as the law provides. he could ne
gotiate these warrants d1r pgacdcally
one thousand dollars premium, and the
board determined that this premium
ought to go 10 the territory and not 10
the contractor II, therefore. decided
that whoever got the contract an ar
rangement should be effected II possible
whereby this premium should be saved
70 the territory. Accordingly after It was
decided te award the contract to Mr..
Campbell, the committee saw him and
effected an arrangement BY which, in
consideration Of the premium estimated
al one thousand dollars on the warrants
he agreed to accept SECS In warrants
instead Of s63, 500 in cash. This arrange
meme was made after the decision was
reached, and was in no sense an Induce
ment to award the contract. and In no
sense n revision OF Campbelrs FIRST bid.
II the contract had been awarded 10
any other bidder an effort would have
been made 70 effect the sumo agreement.
1T has been suggested that Mr.. Camp
bell was a pet OF the board or a pet
OF the administration--mean presum-
ably, the governor. Enough has been
said to show that 80 far as the board
was concerned the question OF favoritism
was vigorously excluded. So far as the
governor is concerned, II Is perhaps suf-
hcient 70 say that while he was slightly
acquainted with Mr.. Krueger he never
even met Mr.. Campbell until day before
yesterday The charge that Il was a
political deal is sufficiently answered by
the statement that Mr.. Kruger, the los
ing man Il a democrat though Of this
the board knew nothing and asked no
questions al the time OF the opening OF
the bids Al the hearing Saturday night