The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-08-02
COMMISSION MAY
 DO WORK ITSELF 
 Does Not Like the Bids of
 Contractors TOO UNREASONABLE Monthly Pay Rolls Were Approved
UNREASONABLE
Monthly Pay Rolls Were Approved Yesterday and All the City Elm ployes Will Get Sal
 aries Today

The possibilities of war on the part of the commissioners against the street contractors of the city developed yester- day when that body, without hesitation' turned down bid after bid on some shsht work which the commission wanted per
 sor,,od in the neighborhood of Phelan street, Southside The estimates of the contractors TUT filling the street paralleling the proposeo park there with crude cinders was lar above what the commissioners peheVeo to he reasonable It terminated in the commission asking information of street Commissioner Frank Gafford Of the street dena rtment and he also said the plos were too high. The commission there- mon reouested MT. Gafford to find out ahout the proposition and the city would
 perform the work.
 The bids for filling with cinders 2OoO wards ranged up to 45 cents per square yard and it was claimed the Birmingham | Railway, Light and Power company sells the cinders for 10 cents per square yard' The cost of moving would be slight. IL | is claimed, and a huge profit per yaro would be received. The commissioners noted that not one single contractor was present when the bids were opened | The commissioners also noted the wide range of the bids and it was freely com
 mented upon. Commissioner Weatherly' after the bids had been opened, said frankly that the contractors simply did not want to perform the work or they would submit reasonable. bids. The Southsde work was started by c. w. Mills and J. H. Montgomery, two residents nearby, who wanted the fill ar ranged. They have worked up the mat ter and both said the bids offered yes- terday were entirely unreasonable. Street Commissioner Gafford also said he was inclined to believe the contractors were rather high
 The work in this particular instance will more than likely be done by the city or
 Birmingham and a small tax will be
 placed on the adjoining property or MT Montgomery and MT. Mills, while the park property assessment will be borne by the city. Hereafter it is said careful atten- ton will be baid to contracting work and if is believed that wherever possible the city of Birmingham will do the work it. self
 The commissioners held two sessions yesterday, and they were both filled to the brim with work. There was a host of details and small stuff but the two com l missioners strove to clean up the slate before President Culpepper Exum returns, which it is expected will be today. The officials authorized Dr. Nelson to charge $25 per month on his automo- bile up-keep to the city. He explained
 that he was forced to have a car and
 that he spent most of his time working
 for the city. He was given the appro-
 priation without the least hesitation by
 the commissioners. both of whom remarked
 that it was perfectly right that the
 charges should be paid.
 A resolution was passed refunding a
 charge of a few dollars to J. c. Hol-
 man, the police officer whose son was
 bitten by a mad dog and who was sent
 to Montgomery for treatment. Payrolls
 for the month were passed upon, which
 total something like S45,OOO. The police
 men, firemen, commissioners and all em-
 ployes will be paid their monthly salaries
 today.