Omaha daily bee., 1907-04-03
a MoNuMnNT or eRArE
Extraordinary Loot IN Furniuhinl
PennayIvanta's Capitol.

EXTRAORDINARY Loot In Furniuhing
PennsyIvania's Capitol.
The Investigation conducted by a state
commission into the charges OF fraud and
theft IN the cost Of FURNISHING" the new
capitol Of Pennsylvania has progressed far
enough TO give clear idea OF the mag
nltude Of the swindie PerpotrsteA on the
state. The testimony addbced shows fraud
In materials, fraud In, measurements and
collision between contractors and the state
commission.
As originally planned the capitol building
was completed for the sum Of 100000 the
price limit fixed by the legislature. The
capitol building commission then ceased to
exist. A permanent committee, known as
the capitol building and grounds commit
tee, consisting Of the governor, attorney
general and state treasurer, took hold and
proceeded TO finish the building There
was si1,o00,OOO Of idle money I'm the treas
ury. What better use could II be put to
than that OF decorating ana furnishing the
building in a manner behtting the wealth
and Importance Of the state. There ls
nothing too good for Pennsylvania" ex-
claimed the governor. Elaborate plans were
made for furnishings Of all kinds and bids
invited. The committee adopted a resolu-
ton to bulk the Job. Bidders were not |
aware Of the ruling. Consequently scores |
OF contractors who submitted bids on parts |
OF the work did not discover the game |
until their bids were thrown out and the |
contract awarded to John II. Sandersou, |
who submitted the only bid for all the work. |
Sanderson's contract was an extraor- |
binary one in many particulars. For in
stance, II called for payment for the mon
umentai art bronze" eiectroliers at 90 much |
per pound. and for mahogany furniture at |
30 much per cubic foot.
Pennsylvania capitol has in conse- |
quence, an immense number OF the most |
mammoth bronze pendent and standing |
electric caRdelabra in the world-pald for |
by the pound. And It has gigantic chairs, /
tables, desks, and rostea-paid for by the |
cubic foot. There are in the capitol tall |
clothes poles standing on wide bases which |
being worth perhaps $50, measure up $500. |
There are tall-back chairs to which this |
method gives a value six times too great. \
There are empty telephone booths which |
cost the state 5000 apiece-enough to buy /
a house such as thousands of Pennsyi- |
vanians would think good enough for a |
home.
The work was done by sub-contractors, !
not by John II. Sanderson The sub-con- !
foot. They were paid on a business basis |
They made a good profit.
The commissions experts have shown |
that while Sanderson paid $4,000 for q GER
tain group Of furnishings he was enabled. !
through the unique system of per foot"
and per pound" measurements and
weights. to charge the state 1855. $780, CO. It
was shown, too, that painting and decorat-
ing s1S2sS feet OF walls and ceilings cost
the state $3.50, 47S.16, while 1t should have
cost only S1e4.4735s.
Other exposures of the manner In which
Sanderson piled up profits on the capitol
Job until they reached millions OF dollars
were brought to light by the investigators.
One of these was the fact that rostrums
for the senate and house caucus rooms,
which were supposed to have been built
of mahogany were really made OF putty,
| painted and veneered so as to resemble
mahogany. This, of course, resulted In a
big profit. A sub-contractor built the ros-
| trums and charged sanderson 5000. while
the states bill was sS5,144, and he got the
money, too.
sanderson received for painting and dec
Grating certain walls S7sS, s7S.1e. What Il
cost him to have 1t done is not yet in evil
dence, but the fact is in that decorating
! firm of the highest class had offered to do
II for S164,47S5s.
sanderson was paid for many thousand
| feet OF parduetry flooring S1.27h a foot.
Fritz & Larue. who did the work, got 90
| cents a foot.
There is a mahogany" rostrum in the
senate caucus room, another in the house
caucus room. They are monstrously big
they were paid for on the per foot plan,
and It is only natural that they should be
monstrously big. Containing about 5000
feet OF mahogany" sanderson received
for them from the state S9O74s.sO He paid
the firm OF A. wilt q Son 5000 to make
them and put them in place.
The gilded capitals of pilasters in the
lower corridors beautiful to the eye, are
It has been discovered. OF plaster OF paris.
A considerable amount of ''bronze" orna-
ment is painted composition. Some of the
leather" covered chairs are really panta-
sote.
The capitol is lighted electrically by $500
bronze chandeliers, brackets and standards.
For these S225s.955.ss was paid sanderson.
Some single fixtures cost $4,000 each They
were charged and paid for by the pound.
sanderson had agreed to make them for
Sass per pound. Since II lie nnanifestly un-
fair 20 art to put II on so sordid and ma
terial a basis, Mr.. Sanderson adjusted the
wrong by loading his chandeliers. making
them not only enormous In size, but solid
throughout.
1t was further developed that the "mer-
curisl gold finish required by the contract
had been omitted-a saving OF 20 per cent.
A subcontractor testified that he set up
a boOtblack stand in the senate lavatory
and charged the sanderson company s1B
for the work and materials. The books
in the state auditors ONCE show that the
state paid the company Si,6ls for the stand.
The same witness swore that be fur
nished the desks for the senate chamber
for S65 each and those for the house Of
representatives for from so to S75 each, The
state paid the Sanderson company S264 90
for every senate desk and t2S5.7S apiece for
/ the house desks.
The mahogany case In the senate barber
shop was purchased by the sanderson COM
pany for 1926 and the state paid the COM
pany s.. 256.sO for It. For certain other fur
nishings and work bill for $s.1B was rem
, dered the company by the subcontractOr.
The records show the price paid by the