The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1907-01-14
CRAFT IN CITY
Contractor Gilmore Says He
Was Held Up.
City Engineer McCabe Forced
Him to Pay S2,625.
WAS BUILDING SEWER.
Wouldn't Take Checks But In
sisted on Cash.
Asks the Council to Make an
Investigation.
MEETING is CALLED.
Will Suspend McCabe Pending
the Inquiry.
Estimates That ExtOrtiOns
Amount to $4,000 a Year.
is CALLED.
viii Suspend McCabe Pending
the Inquiry.
Estimates That EXtOrtiOns
Amount to $4,000 a Year.

Extortion and graft amounting to S2O,-
coo annually is charged to James Nc
Cabe, city engineer, and William King
assistant city engineer by NJ. w. Gli-
more contractor, who has built Sow
ers, brick sidewalks and other pieces
of public work for the city.
Mr.. Gilmore makes specific charges Of
$2.625 in graft which was paid to the
city engineer during the construction Of
the Fifth ward sewer. He estimates the
yearly loss to the city by methods
adopted by McCabe at $4,000.
At a special called meeting OF the
council held at O'Clock this afternoon
these charges were gone into and pend
ing the proving of the charges Mr.. Nc
Cabe, it is stated, will be suspended
from his duties as city engineer.
The determination to hold the special
meeting of the council this afternoon
came as the result of an exa1nina zion
Of the First ward of NJ W. Gilmore by
Mayor w H. Davis and several men,
bers of the council Sunday morning.
4 had been working on this matter
for a long time but it was only here
of late that 1 could get anything in IA
tangible shape" said Jordan. "On the
18th of January / finally got a written
statement from Gilmore. 1 had been
getting little from him piece by piece
for a long time but l couldn't get him
to attach his name to anything until 1
got this letter. I didn't want to go off
half cooked and not-untiisI had some
thing to really show. have been
suspicious for some time that things
were not as they should be and I start
ed quietly to syyorlx..siThis is what / have
got to show for it. I believe that Mr..
MeCabe should be suspended while we
investigate this matter
Mr. Gilmore states to the mayor and
members of the council that he paid
over to McCabe in cash 81. 1925. Five
hundred dollars was paid over ct one
time to McCabe in his Office at the city
hall, later an additional $125 was paid
to him which was to go, 1t Is claimed,
to Assistant City Engineer William
King S expenses for trip to be taken
to Colorado. $4,000 was paid to AfcCabe
at the Eagles lodge in the 1avatory
The only witnesses to this latter pay
men of money were McCabe and Gil
more. according TO the testimony which
Gilmore offers to the investigating COM
mittee of the council.
Insisted on Cash.
Gilmore further states that he offer-
ed to make payment in the form Of
checks for the above sums but AIcCabS
refused to accept anything but the cash
Gilmore, however. has the dates of paw
ment in his possession for the payment
of the $1,000 and $780, checks which he
c2shed for those amounts bearing the
date on their face. After getting the
cash on these checks Gilmore proceeded
to make payment.
McCabe. however, was not satisfied
with this amount. it is said, and asked
and demanded $3,70O less the s2625I
which had already been paid. This
oemand, says Gilmore, was made upon
him at the corner of Eighteenth and
Kansas avenue where Gilmore was at
the time overlooking a portion of the
sewer construction. The demand was
refused.
At present Gilmore states that
$4S7.14 is still due him on the sewer
contract but the city engineer refuses
payment on this and Gilmore init
mates that McCabe is using this as a
club to make Gilmore come through
with more loot on the Fifth ward
sewer.
Gilmore states that McCabe has
made numerous requests upon him
ever since the Fifth ward sewer was
completed for further payments above
the $2,626 which he did pay.
The estimate called for As catch
basins and ~ mani oles for this sewer
The contractor actually put in place
40 catch basins and "a mannoIes but
the final estimate called for 80 catch
basins and IS manholes: The differ
ence between what was actually mt
in and the final estimate represents
$4S7.14, or the amount due, says Gil
more.
AS another instance of how things
were managed from the city enEi-
neer's office in the construction of the |
three ring brick cewer on East Fiji
IeSnI0 street the distance underneath
the railroad tracks where the sewer
cuts across the actual distance is said
to be 81 feet. while the engineers esti-
mate was 106 feet. The contract
price was $3.50 cents foot for this
stretch. The city under these figures
had S117 stolen. paying that much
more for something it was supposed to
get but didn't.
Still After Money !
In the Fourth ward sewer extension
q piece of contract work on which
Gilmore is now employed he states
that McCabe is following similar
methods by making the figures in his
estimate larger than actual conditions
warrant. Where the extension to con-
meet on to the main sewer sewer IS g. 2
feet. Gilmore says the depth given by |
McCabe would place the connection
beneath the main sewer. The differ
ence between the actual depth and the
estimated is to be charged up to the |
city in the excavation e=timates if the
procedure followed in other instances
governs here, says Gilmore
The system of eXtorting graft as |
laid out IN a letter of GiIrnore's to
Councilman Jordan dated SATURDAY.
seems to have been one of Juggling
with figures. BY placing in excessive |
figures in the estimates fro which the