New Britain herald. [microfilm reel] (New Britain, Conn.) 1890-1976, 1918-01-29

= through the center of barn upstairs
with railing and matched plank par
| titiOnS on each side or feet h1Gh
to form bays on each side for bay.
Town houses or homes are sup
posed to be for the use of such per
sons as are unable, due to mental OF
physical incapacity, to care for
themselves and have no friends or
] relatives to care for them.
1t is supposed that some Of their
inmates will be able to do some work
and that it is better for their healtn
to have them do it. Whatever is done
tends to lessen the cost of the up
keep Of tho institution, but none are
anywhere near seIf~sustaining or are
not expected to be. Whatever IS dOhe
in homes upkeep and care Do\ ollu
what it's inmates do must be PAID Tor
by the city, town or borough ana IL
they have a plant that requires nlrln8
help in addition to what is necessary
for the care of its inmates and the
manufacture or raising Of products Tor
sale, or for public use, is thereby to
some extent competing with pauper
labor Though in fact it turns out to
be very expensive labor and would be
on a par with city potato raising ana
barn building, especially in result
! The city managers in erecting this
large barn for the accommO datlon or
so to rs per cent more stock than 1t
heretofore carried, especially with a
drop in the number Of inmates IN
the house from over 100 two years
ago this January to less than 70 TINS
year are apparently forcing tho city
in order to use what they have built
for us to expend money for stock to
no ,hor
produce and feed for tho stock, and
the city will have less help to do 1T
with than ever. Consequently it would
be forced to go into the labor market
to hire help to keep up the plant.
Also there have been surveys made,
maps drawn, and the mayor has al
ready preached the subject of procur-
ing adjoining land to enlarge our
crop capacity to keep pace with our
increased farm facilities and live stock
possibilities. After our experience in
the ice business, in potato raising,
freezing and selling, and our profit
able barn building, do tho people
want to go into the dairy or any
farming, especially under our present
m2nagem emit? Do the people Of New
Britain want to go in for $4,000, or
moro layout with a chance Of yearly
deficits of $4,000, or more for the
sake Of another visionary scheme?
You want to understand it would
make a few moro soft jobs for G.. A. @.
to hand out and the public to pay for
Members Of the board state that
the superintendent Of the building was
selected and engaged upon the recon-
mendation Of tho mayor; two bust
! ness men tell me that tho mayor
! claimed to them that tho credit for
! this mans being engaged was due to
him. This party has received $500
! for himself and men for labor on this
job as per bills paid by the depart
ment; $1,000 approximately for HIM
self and $4,000 for men at 55c per
| hour, practically in round figures IS
weeks Of work, and would average
about 500 per week for the men, or
four men for each day at $3.50,
! while the other men received SIS for
| bossng them. Add on Sc per day for
| the regular architect and inspector,
| the superintendent Of the board
! and the inspector at IS a day,
| sometimes the city engineer at So
! per day, the town homo superintend-
! ent and timekeeper and assistant in
| spector at "a per day, once in a while
the city building inspector at IS per
day, makes a swell payroll, though Of
course most of them do not appear
in the barn cost, and all except the 81
! an hour man were not regular day
! men and there only a short time on
| each visit The timckeeper of course
was there every day but only for q
! short time. This work which cost the
! city over $4,000 was practically fig
| ured by four reliable builders in their
bids at from $1,400 to $500, another
! practical man figured it at less than
! 81 400. This was all done before the
work was let. I have been over the
| plans and specifications and allowing
for all contingencies feel confident
that O. good profit would have been
made at $1.75O to $4,000 and with my
! thirty years experience | consider my
qualifications for estimating good. Tor
! some reason or other 800 to $4,000
has been dropped on this line besides
! extra expense caused by the delay.
! For painting inside, q bid was re-
! ceived for 500, givcn out for coo an
hour, cost $139.5O. Plumbing done by
the day probably for various reasons,
cost more than if done under COM
! petent management
There has been in contamination
the building of q. piggory adjoining
the slaughter house so that all offal
and waste from butcherine the stock
can be fed to the pigs. It might be
we'll for the city authorities to ascer-
tain if this would be satisfactory to
the state officials having such matters
in charge before they go in for an ex-
pense of $4,000 or $4,000. Also it
might be we'll this time to try other
parties for prices, plans and fixures
besides those used on the barn.