The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1912-07-21
HOUSE REPORT
CR|TIC|sEs TAYLOR
Former Supervising Architect of
Treasury Assailed by Cline
Committee.
BOARD OF AWARDS HIT, TOO

James Knox Taylor. who recently re-
signed the ONCE Of Supervising Architect
of the Treasury Department, is harshly
criticised in report Of the House Com
mittee on Expenditures on Public Build
ings and given to the public yesterday
through its transmission by the chairman
Of the committee, Representative Cline
Of Indiana.
The report Is regarded by many men,
bers of the House as the severest of the
reports on various departments and func-
tons Of the government that have yet
been made by the committees under the
Democratic organization made In April,
1911. Its conclusions are. in part, a
recommendation that the office be made
a bureau.
Against the board of awards, which
passes on contracts for public buildings.
the committee presented some scathing
statements. 1t declared the board has
acted In a high-handed manner and cites
testimony Of C. E Kemper. a member
Of the board Ito show the possibilities
under the actual workings of this 'sys-
tenn There is no well grounded reason
for this practice from an economical
standpoint 1t opens the door to the most
pernicious and most fraudulent system OF
favoritism. Fair, open, and uncovered
contract bidding does not need the shelter
creates. There Is no precedent in any
line Of commercial bidding for the use
of an unlimited system of alternates. The
individual or corporation does just as
the government should do, 1t decides on
the character of the material to be used
and the manner Of furnishing and asks
for bids accordingly.
System Is Wrong.
1.-The system OF alternate bidding pre-
cipitates the construction of public
buildings into the hands Of a few
contractors, and completely eliminates
the local man. The whole subject or
bidding comes back to this proposition
that the agencies Employed in the su-
pervising architects office, both in the |
drafting section and In the computing |
section, should be sufficiently skilled to
determine whether or not a building |
shall be of brick, marble, sandstone or |
granite, and when the contractor bidsi
upon that proposition, with absolutely |
definite specifications, all men bidding |
will know just what bids are going to |
be considered. Under the alternate sys- |
TEN no man knows which OF his bids
straight bid may be studiously manipu- |
lated through the intricate series OF al
ternates to the profit OF competitor.
These bids should be opened to the in
spection of every bidder. Publicity is
the proper test to drive out the very
possibility of fraud.
THE system, taken as a whole. Of dis
posing of the business In the office Of the
architect, resulting, first, in
restricting the number of members of the
board of award: second, the failure to
public buildings. and. third,
the method of selecting contractors by the
alternating system Of bidding, could
easily be constructed into a combination
system. not productive of the best re-
suits for the government All three OF
the features of the work are open to serf-
Gus criticism. Operated Jointly, they may
furnish some foundation for the charges
that have been associated with the public
building business. There ought not to
exist any opportunity and there is no
necessity for the existence of any oppor- I
tunity for any charges.
1.-The government is the legatee of this ,
developed after fifteen years of
continuous service of Mr.. James Knox &
Taylor as supervising architect. who con-
fesses in his examination that the oppor-
tunity does exist for fraud, II the gov I
srnment was unfortunate enough to get
such a man at the head Of the business.
Mr.. Taylor cannot escape blame for the I
severe faults Of this
system. which prevailed during his serv-
&c as supervising architect"
New Plans Not Needed.
The supervising architects Office, in its
work of fifteen years, has overlooked an
important feature Of "standardizing" pub 4
ic buildings, the committee report de- d
.lares. There is no need for new plans ,
md specifications for every new Federal I
building. 1t asserts. r
a1
long, doing the same kind of work over
nd over again 1t does not need a train
d mechanic or skillful architect to
now that very much of the work done =
long this line is positively unnecessary !
nd entails useless and uncalled-for ex- e
ense upon the government, both in time r
nd money. 1t is said that the Office Is
ow standardizing. It is making the
lerest feint at this reform. It is now M
arrying on its rolls ninety-two drafts Il
Zen and architects to supply this par Z
cular line of work in constructing the II
ublc buildings provided for in the last a
ct" n n
The committee stated that in the last F
an years the Treasury has spent money Of
Dr. III public buildings, and that there
re now before the Committee on Public
buildings and Grounds requests for 75O fe
lore, calling for an appropriation of 2!
2, 600 900. OF
Mr.. Cline hints that the country has +.
one mad on the subject of erecting pub r
C buildings. His report describes the
rowth of public buildings as a mania, D
lie cause Of which the committee does =
OF care to inquire into" Further, the
spor says: I'VE are also aware that
,me Of the suggestions which we shall
AXE may not meet with a 1ordial recep-
on"
The report charges the Senate with ex- H
'avagance In passing public building =,
ws and charging that little villages of
BOO and 5000 population have been given ~
lblic buildings which have been ex- W
avagant in cost and expensive to main 81
in