The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1906-06-12
Board of Commissioners Pre-
sent a Chicago Firm With
$17,290.
UNDERTAKE TO HOLD
SECRET SESSION BOARD
Direct Steal Made of the PeO-
pies Money; Lowest Bid
Is Ignored.

The Board Of County Commissioners Of
Salt Lake county transacted n little piece
of business Monday that cost the tax
payers of the county Just SlI. 2aO in good
cold cash. II was In the awarding Of the
f25O.0co OF refundlng bonds to r. II. Rol-
Inns & Sons OF Chicago that the county
suffered the loss. Why the commission
ers made the award to this firm Is past
comprehension to any one who can figure
enough to know that twice two is four,
when bid was received from another
Arm Just as reliable as the Rollins COM
pany. which would have saved the coun-
ty just 81, go.
Seven Bids Opened.
When the board met at the morning
session to open the bids there were pres
ent besides the members of the board
and Clerk Eldredge, Paul W. Chapman.
representing N w. Harris & Co., Of Chi
cago: T. H. Reynolds, representing the
successful bidders, and John S. Watson,
representing Mason. Lewis & Co, of Chi
cago. When the bids were opened 1t was
found that there were seven bidders,
whose bids were as follows:
Premium.
Otis & Hough, Cleveland. ontlro Issue.
va per cent SIfLS
Mcdonald Mccoy company, Chicago, en-
tire issue, AZ per cent s,,.,,,..........,.. lo9l
E. H. Rollins & sons. Chicago. entire
issue, Az per cent ......,',........ $3.50
N. w. Harris & Co.. Chicago, entire Is
sue. ~ per cent ...,....,.................7 $50
Society for Savings, Cleveland entire is
sue, "a pcr cent str9ght ,--,ss-.....,.
State Board Land Commissioners. $4,000
Mason. Lewis & Co. Chicago. entire is
M sge: "a & per cent o;.. - tsss
Saso. coo for $3.50 Issue.
Bidders Make Grandstand Play
When these bids had been read Messrs
Chapman, Reynolds and Watson imme-
diately threw up their hands and said
that their companies had been beaten a
mile by the Society for Savings OF Cleve-
land, whose bid was for the entire Issue
at ~ per cent, Tho gentlemen simply
decided then and there that their work
was done hero and that they might as
we'll Take to the toll timbers
Costly Hour for Taxpayers.
After the bids had been read and tho
members of the board had done consider
able figuring, the. meeting was adjourned
for the noon hour to reconvcne at 2 p. M
1t was one of the most early noon hours
that the Board of County Commissioners
has ever taken, for when the board con-
vened In the afternoon the three repre-
sentatives OF the bond buyers were ready
and waiting and with vastly different cx-
pressions OF countenance than they had
when they left the commissioners room
In the morning
Was Somebody Seen3
There is not much doubt that during
this noon hour the very thing that The
Tribune predicted four weeks ago trans
pired. Tho Tribune predicted when the
board failed to receive any bids under the
previous advertising that the bond buy
ers would undoubtedly foym combine
and secure Az per cent interest from the
county. and the outcome OF the award
ing Of the bids Monday afternoon leaves
no doubt in the minds OF those who wit
messed the transaction that that is cx-
actly what happened
Three Buyers Hold Conference.
1t Is known that the three representa-
tives, OF supposedly rival concerns met
at one of the hotels and had a long and
earnest conversation during the noon
hour. Where the members OF the Board
of County Commissioners spent their noon
hour Is not known. but at any rate. when
the board met at 2 o'clock II was very