New-York tribune., 1908-12-09
PUTS BLAME on METZ
COULD STOP THE LEAKS.
CoIer Says Trouble Is Mayors and
ControHcr,s Lack of AblIitN

-As-ffr:.- before the legislative committee tbat
is Investigating The condition Of New YORK city ;
e-arras Borough President Coler Of BROOKLYN as
serted Yesterday that the great trouble with the
citr-e government present was = lack 81 aol''@
on the nart OF the Mayor and CCntroller
H said the Controller rad it aDsolItelE "llIi"
his power TO curn pa merit OF eXorhtanJ prices lo'
s,,rrrfcs and that the office present was cut-
-7al,la or negligent in many otter fashions. One
great evil With the present system. he ssld. was
the method or selling bonds without specifying N
the bonds the purposes FOR which Iae p-'-eeiS
were to ne used. The Controller listened 20 M
colo, Min 2 sad ear away sort cf smile.
Every fund the city for any purpose must
Fe conssd dered = trust fund ne said. ne minute
you lose its identity you're gone n" matter no"
convenient it rnay - TO follow the present custom
It's convenient sometimes 20 kite checAs, ot0 i"1
results are disastrous.
Tn his time Controller. said FTes'oen' 0"'3''
the purpose or each bond was specified on us 'a'-
but Controller Grout abolished TINS } ne ie7''I'
was that bonds We're sold and the money put I'M"
2 sor- ~ .no+- or pool" he Withdrawn al the
discretion or the Controlsr-
The result is he said. that contractor
r7av not be able to get his payment. The book
l-aare- in the Controllers office telling him there
is no money in the fund Tor him. while another
vho-welL whose work may ne regarded as more
necessary. let US say. may have money put to the
credit Of the account on which he is drawing 1t
puts he contractors absolutely Al the mercy OF
the bookkeepers IN the department Of finance
Nr CoIer SAID he would admit that any con
tractors ever we're forced to take payment n
bonds as he did not wish 10 get into any con-
trove~sv with the Controller" He objected TO the
present Law. passed last year Al Controller Metzs
request. permitting the sale of bonds n private
sale + not sold a. public bidding il resulted. ne
said. in strange incidents and the complete loss Of
The identity Of bonds
'Nine-renrhs OF what Is wrong in the city gov
eminent now Is due lack O. executive ability
carrying ouc the present system said CoIer
further along The laws are al right. but
they're nor carried out"
Give rs some specific Instances. demanded
Senator Casslday. chairman of the committee.
Gladly said Coler and he pointed out that
when ne was Controller there had been central
purchasing bureau. The Controllers Office he said.
had absolute pCUer over excessive prices in any
bill" and bureau orga nzed and centralized
the Controllers office could 40 way with all the
existing trouble. He advocated the publishing Of
prices paid for work and supplies by the various
borough presidents thus putting them into com
petition before the public and "standardizing" their
purchases and payments.
There Is times as much rnisnanasement IN
the centralized offices Of the Mayor and Controller
as there Is in the borough presidents. in propor-
uon.' he said. There's been great deaI Of tes-i-
mony taken here about The loss Or money 10 the
city in condemnation proceedings. Two-thirds of
that css is cue 10 the lack OF ability on The
part OF tl~ CorposajIoE Counsel in lacking I'D The
judges and The men work The job" He said
he had favored condemnation court and al
ways had voted against private purchase although
lie didn't that II made much difference whether
the city lost money through private purchase OF
condemnation.
But there's been no examination made vet 20
see how the city gets biiked when il sells prop
e-ty-' he went IF there was an examination
mace Of the sa-e of buildings and the prices OBJ
tained by the Controllers once. ! think the com
mI'ree would Sc some mighty interesting nfor-
nation"
Then he gave illustration The Sc gle Of the
buildings al Nos -sz. - and 1856 Bridge street
Brooklyn III August They We're advertised AT
l auction. siIas Allen Condict OF No. 81 Park Row
ae SAID. attended The sale no. lS5 was Withdrawn
during the sale by the Controller Later II was
put up and several bids received among them
t'at "f 1he Empire House Wreclirg Company. for
Sl7Ho. which obtained the building That company
began 10 tear down the building but M Mahonev
from the Controllers Office appeared before
Magistrate Tighe. complaining tnat the company
had not put up the proper bond
counsel f7r ne company produced receipt from
the Cbntrouers Office for payment for the build
l7E. M Coier said. and vrecking permit from
me bureau Of buildings so the case vas dismissed
The next day three employees Of he cornrar- were
arrested. but eventually discharged
From The time Of the sale 10 the Empire com
panE. said the C5urroIle-. efforts had been made
u buy this building from that concern. ana finally
IT WIS transferred 70 Czlmon FIu~v-t-z with IN.
consent of the Controller. the price paid 70 the
company according 10 a who figured in the
transaction. being S,50o rra- that paid 10 the
city C9nGict and others had beer prepared the
Controller believed. psv 10 the citv for The
building more than the sl.7Ao received. Sc said
the sale was absolutely without warrant in Isw
Controller Metz said after tha hearing t-at this
transaction wss mistake OF Z man in his
Office. and hat Hurvttz could afford 70 usv more
for building rhar snvbodv else because ne
roud remove il intact 10 2 lot he owned where
others only wanted it for wredkinE purposes
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