The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1911-06-09
INVESTIGATION OF
ENGINEERS OFFICE


Senator, states Attorney, and talented
advocate never entered more reluc-
family into a closing argument in any
cause than he did, last night, in sum-
ming up the McKenna investigation.
1t can scarcely be a secret now that
Mr.. Judson went into this case upon
the representation Of the young man
who was his client. and that the evil
dence as it was exhaustively presented
utterly failed to sustain the charges.
written by Mr.. Judson, undoubtedly
upon the representation of his client.
These charges included many speci-
fications of incompetency. 1t is at
this late day unnecessary to say to
= those who have patiently followed the
evidence, that not one single charge
of this nature was proved, half proved.
or even left in doubt.
Upon each and every specified ton
there was full proof to show the wis
dom and competence of the city en-
gineers department, although the ac-
cusati lions upon their face seemed al
most incontrovertible.
An instance in point is the Seaview
avenue sewer, which was constructed
so that its mouth was under water at
mean low tide. AS the evidence upon
this point was brought forward it
seemed impossible that there could be
any other conclusion than that the
city engineer had grossly blundered.
But the contrary was true. There
was Immediately produced a contract
between the city and certain property
holders, in which it appeared that, in
consideration of the right to cross
certain private land the Common
Council had agreed to put the mouth
of the sewer under water.
Mr.. Judscn in his summing up, was
making the best use he could of the
materials he had, but this use was
most of the time highly disingenuous
as where he insisted that the city
eng ineer authorized 1873 feet of addi-
tional sewer construction On Living
stone Place to enable a contractor to
al profit that. would arise from build
ing a greater length of sewer than
was originally intended
OF this charge, specified by Mr..
Judsons client and insisted upon by
Mr.. Judson in his argument, there is
not shadow of evidence. The evil
dence instead warrants the belief that
the charge is as malicious as it is
unfounded.
The evidence does show that the
Common Council authorized the sewer
to be extended as far the grade would
permit. That the grade permitted ex-
tension further than was originally
planned because the predecessors of
the city engineer had Numbered into
the error of making the initial grade
two feet shallower than it should
have been. The actual grade, as it
vas accurately established by the city
engineer, heightened the sewer some
what over the original plan, when it
was huilt in strict accordance with
the order of the Common Council.
ar. JYdson is equally unfortunate in
his summing up of the evidence re-
la:ing to certain changes in Grade
established for trolley car tracks the
contention being that the changes
were the fault Of the engineers de-
partment, and that the city paid for
their correction.
The truth of these charges as shown
ty the evidence, is that the employees
of the Connecticut Company. testified
that the changes required in Bridge
port in their grades were not more
than usual in the progress of such
work everywhere. 1t was also shown
specifically with respect to some of
these changes that they were occa-
stoned by plumbers IN original con-
struction long before the incumbency
&C the city engineer, were matters
that he could not have forseen. al
though of no great consequence, and
that they were promptly and effec-
lively remedied upon discovery.
As to the contention that these
changes inflicted great expense upon
the city, or any, that rests entirely
upon the assertion by Mr.. Judson that
a long line of witnesses were false
To their oaths as witnesses, in other
words committed perjury upon the
stand. s.
4 is only by imputing perjury to a