The Caldwell watchman. (Columbia, La.) 1885-1946, 1914-10-09
Career Of Engineer Who Has
Shown New Workers How
Graft Can Be Minimized.
ICE BILL GAVE HIM IDEA
Making Good on His First Contract,
He Now Has Scores of Office
Buildings in His
Charge.
BY RICHARD SPILLANE.

ME. compton was near the end
his resources. For six months-an
that was the period in which he ha
been in New York-he had not mad
dollar His office was so small tina
one Of his friends used to say he di
not dare to breathe hard while in
tor fear Of straining the walls.
At first Compton had been proud 0
that office, but it had come to be
nightmare The rent bill worried him
So did the water bill, the towel bill
and the ice bill. He was an electrical
engineer, and a good one. He hat
expected to get enough business tt
pay expenses, at least for the frs
year, but was finding it hard to breal
into the crowded New York field
AS he brooded over his failure he
scrutinized the months bills. Twenty
i've dollars seemed a lot to pay fol
that tiny office, but there was no es
cape. Ice at 81 a month appeared
high. Having nothing better to do he
figured what ice was costing him per
ton. Some days the lump he got
weighed four pounds, and sometimes
hVe. Sometimes he got none. Ac.
cording to his figures he was paying
$40 ton for ice.
Spofford, who was bit of a pessi-
mist, called to see Compton and
Compton, full of his woes, told him of
the ice outrage.
well, what are you kicking about"
Spofrord asked. Don't you know
there Is as much graft in an office
building as there is in a Tammany
1ob? The ice man has to pay tribute
to the superintendent or the janitor.
So do the towel man and the spring
water man. So does the man who does
the lettering on the office doors. But
that is petty. The big graft is in the
basement. The engineer gets rake-off
on every ton of coal and every barrel
or iubricating oil and every job of re-
pairs, whether to an elevator, or the
boiler or anything else. If had the
graft that is collected in the office
buildings Of New York, I'd be multi
millionaire in al few years."
Then He Got Busy.
For a week or ten days after Spof.
lords visit, Compton was so busy that
he wondered how the time passed so
quickly. He visited coal men, oil
men, elevator men, electric light and
power people and a host of others.
lie found means of getting into the
engine room Of various skyscrapers,
and everywhere he went he asked a
lot of questions
+
Every letter, marked personal or
other, that was directed to Peter
Tomlinson at his Office was opened bv
Rogers, his private secretary. Out of
an average of forty or fifty day, Mr..
Tomlinson was bothered with the
reading Of only few.
Who's this fellow Compton," asked
MT. Tomlinson, testify, as he glanced
over the communications laid before
MIN by his secretary one morning,
1 90 not know, except what he saws
In the letter" Rogers said. He is
one OF our tenants, and seems to be
a graduate of some good engineering
schools from the list he furnishes"
Mr.. Tomlinson read the letter again
1t asked for an interview of ten min.
utes, and the writer promised he
would show how Mr.. Tomlinson could
save $4,000 year in the management
or one of his Office buildings. That
was all, except the references Rogers
mentioned.
Timely Elevator Accident.
BAH" exclaimed Tomlinson. "The
town Is full Of men who cannot earn
their salt, but who want to instruct
successful men how to conduct their
affairs. Don't bother me with these
pesky fellows any more" And he
threw Compton's letter In the waste
basket.
That afternoon an elevator In one
OF Iomllnson's buildings dropped a
story. There were only few per.
sons In 1t, but one Of those nersons
was Mr.. Tomlinson; so the affair was
serious, although no bones were hro.
ken and no one suffered, except from
shock. At Mr.. Tomlinson's reouest
Rogers fished Compton's letter out Of
the waste basket and wrote to him
Compton called the next morning
Mr.. Tomlinson was DESTROYS Of
why that elevator slipped |
Compton promised to make an eyami. |
nation and report, but ventured the
assertion that primarily there was |
axity Of inspection No such acct.
lent was possible with proper inspec-
ion. Then he took up the matter he
lad proposed.
He began at the beginning. He
old the story of the ice bill. Then |
le explained what he had been doing
or a week or ten days.
Points Out Some Leaks.
In the building in which have
ny office" he said, there is about
5000 a year graft. The graft itself
'ould not be so bad but for the fact
nat 1t leads to ineficiency. Graft