The Morning Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Okla.) 1919-1927, 1922-12-14
JANIT0R TANGLE
STILL A PUZZLE
Order to Cut Off Their
Heat and Water Is
Rescinded

The six 1anitOrS who refused to
yacate their quarters in six school
buildings will still have heat and
water, according to decision reached
by the school board yesterday. But
following the called meeting OF the
board Wednesday night w. A. Mar
uuls, president of the board. stated
that such decision was reached, not
because of any wish to be lenient
towards the 1initors themselves but
slmply because the board could not
make their families suffer through
no fault Of their own.
we do not want to cause suffer
ing. and have no wish to retaliate,
although the men have treated us
unfairly" Marquis said. The ac-
ton of the janitors is costing the
public money, yet there are some
people who are in sympathy with
getting lot of sympathy from
people who ought to be in hearty
cooperation with the schools. /
feel that in fairness to the school
board and in the interest OF the city
OF Tulsa, the public ought to know
the situation as it really is, and do
not believe that it does"
Comes to Head.
The ianitor question came to
head this week when f. t.. Noor-
HES, to whom the contract for jan
i,or service in the city
schools was let, asked the
board to release him from liza
billty in those building whose quar-
ters are still being occupied by the
iauitors whose services were dis
uensed with June Is, OF this year.
but who refuse to leave their
quarters. These janitors are in
Horace Mann, Whittier, Washing
ton, jefferson Lee and Celia Clin-
ton schools. Explaining that il was
impossible for him to prevent dam
age, scme of It costly, to buildings
over which he did not have con-
troll, Voorhies cited instances
wherein negligence in some of these
schools had resulted in damage to
the buildings ami Tor which he was
held. according to the terms OF his
contract, to account. The board.
after it had heard Voorhies, grant
ed his request and ordered him as
well to cut off all water and heat
from these quarters. Under con-
tract, Voorhies pays the board s25
n month for each OF these rooms.
This part of his contract he was re-
leved of under present conditions.
Informal conference yesterday
morning led the board to rescind
its order for cutting off service for
the present. and at the special
meeting called last night, formal
decision was made to this effect.
Voorhies charged in his talk that
in schools where the six Janitors are
living, there have been repeated
unIsances, such as theft, damages
TO building and other things, while
an the buildings where he has con-
trul there mas been no such annoy
ance of any kind, Marquis said last
night that in Celia Clinton, where
the janitor there is living in the
schoolroom, OF which he refuses TO
be d.spossessed, II has become nee
essary TO use a room in the base
ment for q schoolroom since the
children are deprived of the use of
the schoolroom proper.
The whole trouble dates back to
last summer when the six tanitors
refused to leave their quarters fol-
lowing their notice that their serv-
ices would no longer be required,
defied the board to oust them de-
claring they had contra cts and car
ried the matter to court where they
won. Voorhies said yesterday that
lie offered work to all old tanstors
aud that 20 of them are now in his
employ, all OF them getting as much
as they did under the old regime
and some of them more. The six
VINO refuse to leave he also offered
TO employ, he said.
The contracting system that re-
suited In the employment of Voor-
HES was adopted by the board last
summer after thorough investiga-
tion and means a saving, Marquis
said last night, TO the people Of Tul-
"a of a good many thousands OF
dollars for this year as compared
with last.