New-York tribune., 1920-11-14
Untermyer to Notify Esti.
mate Board Lockwood
Committee Cannot I'm
dertake Further Inquiry
Material Combine
Probe Next Move
Unlikely Mayor Will Be
Recalled in Investiga-
tion Into Labor Phase

Ahe Lockwood legislative Investigate
ing committee will not undertake an
inquiry into the city government or
any of its contracts for alleged graft
This was announced last night by
nlsn official representing the commit
tee. Its decision on this point will be
placed before the Board of Estimate
tomorrow morning by Samuel Unter-
myer, chief counsel Of the committee,
when he confers with the board on the
question of eliminating crookedness in
city contracts wherever found.
The Board Of Estimate will be told
that the city government has ample
facilities to protect itself according to
law under the three departments that
are organized for the purpose The
entire $60,000,000 worth of contracts
now outstanding with the city can be
fully investigated by the departments
Of Finance and Law and the Commits.
sioner of Accounts.
SAys 1t Is City Task
The committee is of the opinion that
the task of investigating schoolhouse
and other contracts should be under
taken by the city For the committee
itself to undertake this work would
mean that the purpose for which the
committee was constituted would have
10 be sidctracked. Under these cir
cumstances, it is understood that The
Mayor will not be called again as
witness. He will be permitted to tes-
asked again should any particular evil
dence obtained during the investigation
warrant his being questioned, but the
present purpose of the committee is
not to recall him.
The committee will be convened
Wednesday morning and continue
hearings Thursday and Friday of this
week. It is expected that the labor
phase of the investigation. dealing
chiefly with the activities Of Robert p
Brindell and his Building Trades Coun
cil. will be completed then.
The next thing to be taken up by
the committee will be the vestigation
into the alleged building materials
trust. The committees case against
the alleged trust has been in the hands
Of Leonard NJ Wallstein, associate
counsel, for some time. Mr.. Wallstein
committee, and although he would
make no comment yesterday he ad
mitted that it was well advanced.
While the Lockwood committee will
refuse to investigate city contracts. it
was said that the committee will gladly
put at the disposal Of the city govern
ment any and all evidence it has pro-
cured regarding illega! practices con-
nected with city contracts.
Collusion Believed Exposed
The evidence already shows that
there has been collusion in bidding for
city contracts, both on the new court
house and the public schools, so far as
limestone, ventilating, steam heating
and plumbing are concerned. II shows
that in the contracts for forty one
schools limestone was substituted for
terra Gotta at an increased cost of
$4,000 for each school, or a total in
crease to the city taxpayers of $164,000
for the entire school contracts
The evidence does NOT show how
much the limestone contracts actually
cost the city after John T. Hettrick,
lawyer for the limestone group sue
ceeded in getting the contracts changed
from terra Gotta to limestone. This is
phase of the investigation the COM
mittee is Of the opinion that the city is
we'll able to continue.
1t was pointed out that if the COM
nittee were to continue the investiga
tion into the city contracts it WOULD
take at least twenty further sittings
and the main work OF the committee
would suffer in consequence. The com.
mittee began the investigation into the
schoolhousc contracts chiefly to show
the complete ramihcations Of the Het-
trick group of contractors and also tc
lCnntnued ON mana alxtcenl