Los Angeles herald., 1906-07-20
OVERCHARGE MADE
FOR FUEL OIL
CONTRACT PRICE is DOUBLED
OVER A YEAR
knowledge Of Rival Oil Broker Re-
suits in City Treasury Being Re-
imbursed by the Concern
Under Contract

The complicated bill-paying machin-
cry of the city government was jostled
almost to a semblance OF simplicity
yesterday when It was learned that the
city has been paying Doran, Brouse q
Price 75 cents q barrel for supplying
the city hall with fuel oil when this
company's contract calls for 37% cents
a barrel. This state of affairs has been
going on since May 1905.
When Doran, Brouse & Price were
notified that they had been overcharg-
ing the city they Immediately made res
titution by sending City Clerk Lelande
check for $416.S2, representing the
difference in the oil consumed between
the 75 and 37% cent prices. Mr.. Price,
a member of the oil firm, was busy all
day at the city hall explaining that
the overcharge was due to a clerical
error on the part of the firms book
keeper, and Charles Wilde, chief dep
uty to City Clerk Lelande, who made
the acquisitions for the OIL explained
that it was a clerical error on his part.
This error might have gone undis-
covered had it not been for c. e. Lapp,
an oil broker, who is a rival of the Do
ran, Brouse & Price concern, and he
might not have made the fact known
had Doran, Brouse e. Price kept con-
tract that he alleges he had with them.
Mr.. Lapp claims that Doran, Brouse &
Price had contracted to deliver him a
large quantity of oil the first of July,
and that owing to the great advance in
the price of oil over the contract price
they had failed to keep their agree
ment. This induced him to file suit
yesterday for $1,000 damages for alleged
forfeiture of contract.
After he had filed suit he told Will
lard Goodwin, clerk of council commit
hot hn oil
Brouse & Price twice the amount of
its contract price for oil for the city
hall.
Contract Examined
Mr.. Goodwin hurried with his infor-
nation to Chief Deputy Wilde and both
went over the bills and acquisitions.
The contract of this firm was pulled
out of the archives and compared with
the bills submitted and it was found
that Mr.. Lapps statement was correct.
The company each month had submit
ted bills for the amount of oil con-
sumed during the month at rs cents
a barrel.
In the meantime Goodwin called up
Mr.. Price and told him of the discrep-
ancy and requested him to bring a
check over to the city clerk for the
amount of the difference.
Wilde laid the case before City Clerk
Lelande and explained that Doran,
Brouse & Price had had the contract
for supplying oil for several years at
rs cents BARREL and that he had be-
come so accustomed to making out the
acquisitions at that price that when the
bills We're submitted for this amount he
forgot the new contract price and made
out acquisitions at rs cents.
Price and Lelande had a heated ar
gument over the affair when Mr.. Price
explained to the city clerk that his
bookkeeper had made the mistake.
Hereafter l will take care of these
acquisitions myself" said Mr.. Lelande
yesterday. Heretofore l have turned
them over to Wilde because | have had
so much work that often they would
accumulate on my desk for two weeks
at time. 1 am also going to write
the board of public works and ask them
when the next bids for oil are received
that Doran, Brouse & Price be not al
lowed to bid.
This is not the first time we have
had trouble with this firm. Twice it
was reported to me that they had tried
to put more oil in the tanks than the
tanks would hold, and once they sup
piled us with oil that resulted in the
becoming so clogged that it
became necessary to shut down two
days for repairs They paid for the re-
pairs, but not for the inconvenience
occaSioned."