The Salt Lake herald-Republican. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1909-1918, 1909-10-15
DISCREPANCIES
IN MORAN'S JOB.
Council Committee Finds the
Contractors Reports Diff
fer From Inspectors.

That there will be a wide discrepancy
between the figures of P. ]. Moran and
the special committee from the city
council in connection with his $40. 900
concrete repair Job on the wooden stave
outlet pipe, was shown yesterday at the
first sitting of the special committee in
the council chamber. The committee
compared reports from J. J. Williams,
inspector for the board of works, d. p
Thomas, inspector for the city engi-
neer's office, and P. ]. Moran from the
start of work on April 20 until May g.,
and will meet again this morning at 9
o'clock to complete the work up to June
Is, when the costly repair work was
completed
No representative of P. J. Moran was
present, owing to the fact that the city
recorder did not notify them, according
to Mr. Moran last night. This morning
however Mr.. Moran or his representa-
tive, Frank Gowan, will be on hand.
Many Discrepancies.
In going over the reports for less than
a months work. the council committee
found a discrepancy of nearly 81 900.
without taking into consideration any
of the cement used on the job. The fig
ures of the inspectors were found to be
far away from those of the contractor.
The inspector, J. J. Williams. said he
had worked as long as Moran's men up
TO April 15 but when he found he would
get paid for working only eight hours
he went onto the job after MOTans men
and quit before they did, thus merely
guessing at the number of men they
had working, and the number of hours
they worked.
& II
along favored the Moran claim for S2O,-
900, regardless of the cost of the work
and the price that should be paid, at
tended the meeting for only a short
time. The committee was to work with
the mayor, but he left without investi-
eating as fully as expected by the
council.
The special committee consisted of T.
R. Black, L. d. Martin, F. S. Fern
strOm, G. H. RaybOuld, James D. Muir
doch and L. z. Hall, and for a time
Oliver HOdgsOn listened to the work
Mr., Murdoch followed the reports care
fully throughout, and will likely be
heard later in opposition to the Moran
claim and in regard to the inspection
system of the board of works and the
city engineers Office. George o. Cha
ney, chief assistant in the city engi-
neer's office, took part in the proceed
ings, reading the itemized bill from Mo-
ran showing the workings on the job
for each day.
Chiefly Guess Work.
There was no account of the cement
kept by either of the inspectors, and
this will have to be guessed at by the
special committee. Discrepancies oc-
CURED almost every day in regard to the
70 IF h. 81. Al
and other items. In nearly every in
stance the Moran claim was for nearly
a half more days work for Iaborers
than shown by the inspector of the
board of works, but the peculiar fea-
ture came when the inspector showed,
for May 4 and May 5, that thirteen more
men were at work than even claimed by
the contractor. This item attracted no
end of attention, indicating the incor-
reCtness of the inspectors tabulations.
It was suggested that the contractor
would hardly charge for less men than
he had at work on the job.
On one day Moran reported ffty-four
more men working eight hours than
the inspector showed, thirty on another,
thirty-five on another twenty-six on
another, twenty-One on another, and so
on down to three or four more than the
inspector found.
The item of laboTers alone showed a
of $50 days for the month,
or $780, That of teams showed a dis
crepancy of twenty-three, or S115 at s.
a day; foremen showed a difference of
forty-eight days, or approximately $3.50,
and machinists twenty days, or $50 at
81 a day. This does not include car
penters and plumbers, which will bring
the amount of the discrepancy to more
than $1,000 for. less than a month.