New-York tribune., 1920-12-14
Pay or School
" ork Steps,,
Builders w arm
Contractors Tell Board of
Estimate That the Work
on I8 Buildings Halts
Unless They Get Money
Blame Craig for Delay
ultimatum Will Expire Fri
day; 100000 Is Held
Up on Bills Long Due

Work ON eighteen public school
buildings now in course Of construc-
tion throughout the city will be stopped
Friday unless the contractors receive
payment for work already done, accord
ing to an ultmatum served on the
Board of Estimate Yesterday at the
resumption Of the boards investigation
of city contracts. The threat of the
contractors. if carried out will affect
new schools in all the boroughs, in
cludng nine in Brooklyn, four in the
Bronx, three in Queens, one in Man
haitian and one in Richmond.
The ultimatum was sent to the
Board Of Estimate and the Board Of
tducatlon in tho form of q letter
signed by the following contractors;
!. A. Clark Company, James McAuthor
Company, Emerson Building Company,
P. j. Brennan & Son, Peter Clcarv and
the Frymicr e. Hanna Company. The
contractors placed the responsibility
tor holding up payments to the amount
OF $4,000 on Comptroller Charles T..
Craig. In addition to this they de-
clared that $S03,000 had accrued to the
city IN retained percentages on con-
tracts held by them. The letter was
read at the opening of yesterdays ses-
sion Of the board.
Assistant Corpora Counsel Cars
well, who IS conducting the Board Of
Estimate inquiry, declared that all the
warrants for payments due the school
contractors in question had been ap-
proved by the Law Department. sicnel
by the Mayor and sent back tc the
Comptroller for payment, where thev
now lay. Mr.. Carswell advised tAc
board that there ~as no action il
could take TO facilitate thc payment Of
the warrants and that the whole mat
ter was up to the Comptroller. 1t vas
suggested that mandamus PROCEEDINGS
might be brought against the Ccmptrol-
ler' by the contractors At The sug-
gestion of Mayor Hylan tn matter
was referred to the Corporation Coun-
sci Tor his opinion
O'Brien Charges Fraud
Corporation Counsel O'Brien sent a
communication to the Board of Esti-
mate, which was also read at the open
ing OF the session, in which he alleged
collusion and fraud mad been dis
covered in the contract for heating
and vcntilating on Public School 1872.
in Brooklyn. He advised the board
that the warrant calling for the pay
contractor, should be Cancelled and not
paid.
John T. Ncttrick's code of prac-
ticc. under which various contractors
were designated by numbers instead
Of names, and its intricate operation
in the field of ''opeA bids" as explained
1T great length before the Lockwood
Committee, figured in the Board Of
Estimate hearings yesterday.
Juana Almirall, OF Amirall & Co.. a
brother Of Raymond i. Almirall fore
man Of the extraordinary grand jury
was one Of the first contractors exam
incd. Mr.. Almir&ll testified that he was
ono Of those VINO had paid Hettrick d
"retaner fee" Of $3.50 and agreed to
pay him per cent Of the contract
he first went down to see IIcttrick
when he heard that other trades or
other people had employed him, and
that they had certain arrangements with
the union men which he understood his
own employees might adopt i'm follow
ing certain codes OF practice intended
to solve the labor problem.
Code Didn't Mean Anything
The witness told Of attending meet
ings at Hettrick's office He said that
ms "tin SeNcrcu cOiNecll OnS with tict-
trick IN the first week Of last Octobcr
when they found that Hettrick was un-
able to get labor and the statements
OF the code Of practice Of the union
did not moan anything" Mr. Almiral
testified that his number under the
Hettrlck system was No. l. He said
that ms trm was supposed to submit
figures TO fettrick on all WORK IN great
cr New York in excess Of $500.
Frank J. Fee, president of the Wells
Newton Company, who have been
successful bidders on many school con.
tracts within recent years, cnlivcned
TIE close OF the days session by turn
- nh lMsN,A ~. :. NJ. -Ai,.isnr -.