The Brinkley argus., 1915-12-31
Janes EAg|e's Reply to Judge TTiCe's Circular

filed suit in the Federal Court ant would have a judgment before Judg, Trice had an opportunity to cancel hi! warrants. He also said that he wa! going to follow it up with a man damus, so you see he did just wha he said he would do. He further sai( he knew that it would hurt his com pany to get into litigation with the county, as they were new contractors in this State, and that if the Judge would have shown any spirit of treat ing them fair, that he felt quite sure that an extension of payment could have been arranged.
 He said, We built that court house according to plans and specifications and the county had it's own architect who, with the Judge and Commission CTS, received and accepted the build ing, and the officers moved in and took possession And now" he said for the county to try to take oul money away from us, that we will give them some trouble before they do it." How well he has succeeded you are quite familiar
 Now, firmly believe if Judge Trice and a representative body of buBmees men had gone before those peoPfe and explained conditions, and shown them the cause why we had failed to meet our payments, that satisfactory arrangements could have been made
 In my opinion, I think that Judge Holloway made a much better con. tract for the building of the court house than Judge Trice has in any contract he has made since he became Judge; 1 have understood that the contractors who built the court house valued our scrip at 65 cents on the dollar.
 Now, we will take one of Judge Trice's first contracts. He leased the county prisoners to a man in Jeffer- son county, who executed a straw bond; the Judge approved it; they worked our prisoners down there for six or eight months. The contractor nor his bohdsmen ever paid Monroe county one cent, nor one-haIf of the costs.
 Now, we will take up a few bridge contracts, and see if you think there was caution and economy practiced
 Repairs for Bayou Devue Bridge.
 The contract provided for the fol- lowing material:
 46 pieces 2x6x12, 11S pieces 2xSx12, l32 pieces 2X10x12, 157 pieces 2x12x12, 192 pieces 2x6x16, 192 pieces lx12x16. containing about 14,000 feet of oak lumber, worth about $500 per thousand, or $210.00; about 300 pounds of nails, worth about $10.0O; hauling lumber to bridge, worth about $90.0 Four men ought to take out rotten material and repair bridge in six days at an expense of about $30.00.
 Yet he paid MT. J. L. Ray $864. .OO.
 Repairing Lenox Bridge, keeviI
 Township.
 220 pieces 2x12x12, 3 pieces 3x12x16. pieces 8xSx10, pieces 6x8x10, 8 pieces 6x8x12, a total of 6,O4S feet of oak lumber, worth about $500 per delivered at the bridge, s1OS.00; 100 pounds of nails, worth about $3.00; two men, two days labor, $500.
 Yet he paid Willis Campbell S45o.oo for building this bridge
 Boat Gunnel and Franks Bridge.
 He let contract to the Lawrence ville Heading Company to repair Boat Gunnel bridge. to furnish llm- Der and do the work for $42O0 per thousand, and to repair Franks bridge for $40.00 per thousand
 In other words, he paid about $25.O per thousand to repair these bridges. Blackton Slough and Turtle Creek
 Bridges.
 S5 stringers 3x12x15, 19 cap sills Sx1Ox12, 34 piling, 254 flooring 34 pieces railing, 34 pieces hub boards 1x12x15, 76 posts 4x4x4, total of 12,700 feet.
 This lumber is worth about $15.0O per thousand (because the bridges are near the milD, $195.0O; about 300 pounds of nails, worth about $10.O0; labor, about $3O00
 Vet he paid MT. J. c. Weidman for this, $760.00.
 l will give you little history of the Lenox bridge, that MT. Willis repaired.
 In 1914 Judge Trice advertised to let this repair work out. Willis came to Clarendon intending to bid $300.00 Willis being pretty wise, he stood around all day and found out that no one else was going to bid on it, so he just raised his figures from $300.00 10 $450.00; there being only 5000 feet, the actual cost of material and abor was about $125.00. Willis, after repairing the bridge, had a right smart of trouble in getting the Com to accept it, but after so ong time Willis brought his bridge n on -'stretcher" and turned it over o the Judge, and received his $450.00 md left town, all smiles; but this summer Willis bridge fell down, but some of the kind neighbors got it some crutches and put it temporarily ,n it's feet again. Willis says that he sold that scrip for 65 cents on the iollar, so you see that Willis cleaned ID about $170.00 profit for being contractor two days.
 Who was to blame? Would you want man working for you to throw your money away like that? l don't are how honest man is, l don't want him to handle my money that way.
 How does this strike you for busi- less man?
 When the Judge called in the war ants for reissue, he entered into a ontract with some attorneys to give hem one-fourth of whatever amount hey saved the county. His attorneys aid there were $3,418.30 worth if warrants that the owners failed to He, and that one-fourth of same, mounting to $854.57 was due them.