Daily Arizona silver belt., 1910-02-25
Is a Bid Too Late for Con- sideration If It Is But
 a Few Minutes Late?
QUESTION DEBATED
 IN EVERY ASPECT
Question of Awarding Con- tract Bridge Postponed
 Until Monday


 and made things generally lively in the council chamber tor forty-fve minutes, bids for the construc ton of the pro posed wagon bridge across Pinal creek at Miners Union hall were opened by the city fathers last night.
 Four bids were submitted, three for concrete bridges, and the fourth. which was not accompanied by plans of certified check, for a steel struc- ture. No action was taken by the coun- cil in awarding a contract, as the bids were referred to the council as a com mittee of the whole, to be considered before any action is taken.
 The bids are as follows:
 Young Contracting company .$lS,000 Briggs Harmsen. .......... lO,923 Fl Paso Bridge Iron company [ ,429 Same (steel bridge) .........' 6,400
 The verbal scrap was started when Briggs < Harmsen asked to be allowed to submit their bid last night, by req son of the fact that they had been unable to file their bid before the final date specified in the advertisement for propositions, at noon Wednesday. They claimed that they were in the office of the city clerk at noon, but that the whistle blew before they had time to submit their bid and that City Clerk Welch would not permit the hling of the bid after that time. It was argued that a matter of few minutes would have made no difference in the filing and that as the result, the bid should be acce&ed at last night s session.
 w. M. Thomas, representing the Young Contracting company, or the Thomas Bridge system, as it IS also known, interposed Strenuous objections. He held that it was not treating the other bidders fairly to allow the fur ther submission of bids. He argued that J. V. Jenkins representing the Missouri Valley Bridge X Iron company would have bid for the work if he had been granted an extension of time and that other bids might also have been made if a longer time had been allowed.
 Both Harmsen and Briggs backed their stand with argument and insisted that the matter of a few minutes time, particularly as they were in the clerk s office at the time, should have made no difference in the legality of their bid and that it should have been accepted
 R. R. King of the Fl Paso Bridge & Iron company then interposed few remarks, to the effect that he could have submitted plans with his bid for steel bridge and made that bid legal, if he had been allowed few minutes extra time
 As the talk-fest continued, the feel hn lril a aroused and several verbal slaps were passed around the room. Thomas stated fatly that the letting of two bridge con tracts in this territory had not been on the square and that he hoped he would not have to consider Globe in l the same class as other communities in Arizona.
 Councilman Maurel, "Mayor of North Globe' did not take kindly to these remarks and if Mayor Kinney had not stopped an argument between Maurel and Thomas, something more serious than a wOrdy war might have occurred. But it didn't and vote was taken as to whether or not the Briggs Harmsen bid should be accepted. By vote of three to two, the coun- ell agreed to accept the bid. Council men McNeil and Van Slyck raised a strenuous howl regarding this action and after another shower of verbiage, it was decided that all bids should be rejected.
 The brige builders objected to this action, holding that it would do no good and would cause them an added expense in the placing of bids and the matter finally wound up where it start. ed, the Briggs -Harmsen bid admitted and all bids to be opened at once.
 After the opening of the bids, there was another long discussion among the council as to the fitness of the plans submitted and warmer discussion among the contractors regarding the bad features of the other man s plans and the remoteness of their system from "real" bridge building.
 It was worth the price of admission, from start to finish.
 Finally every one talked themselves out and the council decided to take up the matter, Monday night, at a session of the council as committee of the whole.
 King of the Fl Paso concern managed to recover sufficient breath before the close of the meeting to ask permission to withdraw his bid and take back his certified cheek. The city fathers frown- ed upon this request, however, and the bid was safely locked up with the others in the strong box.
 Thomas bid is apparently out of the range of possibility in the way, of price, and although its construction is admitted to be excellent, it will prob ably not be considered.
 The matter rests between the bids of Harmsen & Briggs and the Fl Paso Bridge X Iron company. Both are with in the limits of the city exchequer and it will be up to the council to determine which bridge is the best for the money and if any extras will be required in either set of plans. The method of ;e ;,,