The New York herald., 1922-11-22
7RACKLESS TROLLEY
BUS BIDS IN MAZE
Attorney for Commission
Attempts to Show Favor
itism in Specifications.
EXPERT RESENTS HINT
Denies Plans Were Drawn
to Suit Any Particular
Builders Type.
SHIFT FATAL TO ATLAS
Cars in Use on Staten Island
Suddenly Found to BE
Undesirable.
SHIFT FATAL TO ATLAS

Were the specifications for track
less trolley buses for use in Staten
Island so changed as to favor prospec-
tive bids by the Trackless Transports
tion Company with it's Imperial"
type of bus and to squeeze out of the
competition the Atlas Corporation,
which had built the first seven We
hicles operated over the route?
That is the question the solution of
which Clarence J. Shearn has been
hammering at persistently during the
last few days of the Transit Commits
sion's investigation of the municipality
supervised bus system. AS on Mon
day, the results he attained yesterday
were largely negative.
Prof. Morton Arendt of the electrical
engineering department of Columbia
University. who had acted for the city
In an advisory engineering capacity in
the matter of bus evolution, was recalled
TO the witness stand yesterday. For
hours the examiner piled him with ques-
tons. but he denied Indignantly that
A"'citNA9hi iidu PIOlupleQ III any degree
the altered specifications, the actual re-
wdt @f which. had been to make the
1fAr1iess transportation Company of
shss @zg the successful bidder over the
manufacturing concern of Yorl. Pa.
~+seots P'pt of Favoritism
--s 1t not a fair statement" asked
lT fho.
which you were the head so changed the
specifications as to make them fit the
Imperial bus manufactured by the
Trackless Transportation Company" .
Certainly not declared Prof.
Arendt. "How dare you say such
thing?"
Don't try to question mer' admon-
ished the examiner. II don't want any
more of that cheap talk"
That was not meant to be cheap
talk" retorted the professor
Mr.. Shearn renewed his attack with
the result that he finally won the assent
OF the witness to this summation OF fact
Then this is the situation, is il not?
That YOU had been observing the opera
sion of these seven Atlas cars as an ex-
pert for four months and on or about
February 8. 1922. you received conf
munication from Commissioner Whalen
dated January "a asking you to take up
the matter of getting out specifications
for new set OF cars that you then put
into print set of specifications for cleo
trical motor driven trackless trolley
cars, which specifications were substan-
TALLY those that permitted the Atlas
type of car; that there was a revision
II these specifications which was sent
out on February IL, 1922, which still
permitted the Atlas type of carr"
yes, sir"
specifications Changed.
That you had on January 80. 1922.
In your possession the proposal of the
Trackless transportation Company with
the specifications that I have read
In evidence that this type of car pro-
posed was radically different from the
type OF car In operation on Staten Island !:
that you caused these specifications TO
be changed in such n manner that II
was impossible for a successful bidder
10 put out the type of car then in use
on Staten Island but which made it pos
sble for the Imperial bus put out by
the Trackless Transportation Company
70 bid with a chance of success?"
Yes"
And that the Traclxless Transporta-
ZION Company did bid" the examiner
continued "and obtained the contract,
and you. now say that as far back as
February II. 1922. when the second re-
vision OF the specifications went out,
you were of the opinion that the Atlas
Company bus was "A cheesebox on a
raft. unsightly and topheavy?"
Yes"
THAT is correct. is It?"
yes, sir"
Prof. Arendt contended that the only
alteration that bad operated materially
against the Atlas concern was the
changed specifications as to length OF
wheel base. Otherwise. he protested,
tho changes were not especially pre-.
judicial TO the Atlas product
4 The investigation will be continued
rcxt Friday morning at 1880,