Los Angeles herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1900-1911, 1906-02-21
CITY CLERK WILL
ACT IMMEDIATELY
THREAT OF MANDAMUS SUIT
BRINGS RESULTS
Acting Under Advice Of Assistant City
Attorney, Bids for Twelfth street
Improvement viii Now Be
Advertised For

Threatened with mandamus suit to
compel him to advertise for bids for
improving Twelfth street, city Clerk
Lelande. acting under the advice of
Assistant City Attorney Goudge, yes
terday addressed a letter to Attorney
Luther Brown and his client, Edward
Harrington, who had threatened the
mandamus proceedings. stating that
without waiting for the courts to pass
on the question he would forthwith adj
vertise for bids in The Los Angeles
Herald.
The Improvement of Twelfth street
is to be done under the Vrooman act
and by orders of the city attorney. All
work under this act has been held up
by every city department, pending the
settlement of the deadlock over the
board of works.
The city attorney had advised the
city clerk not to advertise for bids He
had advised the council that 1t had no
power to award bids. lie had sug-
gested to the mayor that 1t would be
better for him to withhold his signature
from awards of contracts until the
board of works was settled.
This action was brought about by
communication sent City Clerk Lelande
Monday by Attorney Brown, stating
ceedings in the interests of his client,
Edwin Harrington, to compel him to
advertise for bids for the Twelfth
street work. Mr.. Harrington Is a prop
erty owner on Twelfth street, and it is
declared a number of street contrac-
tors dubbed together, made Mr.. Har-
rington their sCapegoat and procured
the services of Attorney Brown in an
effort to break the deadlock over the
board of works, or at least unite the
proceedings for street improvements.
When this decision of the city attor-
ney was made known at the city hall
yesterday those councilmen who knew
of the case felt jubilant over what APP
peared to them to be the entering
wedge that would finally cut the Cor
dian knot that binds up public i'm
provements.
mot So" said Assistant City Attor-
ney G6udge yesterday. II instructed
the city clerk to advertise for bids be-
cause in this case it seemed the city's
interests were so remote and there was
extreme danger of the courts hearing
the case on other than its simple
merits, and that the interests Of the
city would not thereby be subserved.
Il probably would not have made this
ruling on some other cases. But If
there are some who are so anxious to
have bids asked for they shall be graft
fed in this one instance, at least 1t
can go no further.
when 1t reaches the council we will
advise that body that it has no right
to award the contract, as we have in
the past and nothing more than the
simple advertisement for bids can come
of it. If the council should be man
damused and compelled to award the
contract and a third mandamus be-
gun against the mayor to compel him
to sign the award of contract, and the
entire process be declared Illegal by
the courts, no one would suffer but the
contractors who accepted the work
under such conditions. Under the
Vrooman act the city is exempt from
damages for anything that goes wrong
in the contracts