New Britain herald., 1929-10-11
CONTRACTS AND POLITICS

CltlZtlS SulIertu IlndllCldl sur TPilStS after contractors had played with sidewalks in front of their proper ties and then sent big bills to the city to collect for the work, causes the public to acquire little more education about the contracting sys- tenn in general and the principles underlying 1t.
 Fortunately the contracting sys- tenn as applied to sidewalks is. no longer followed. That fact causes an expectation that high bills for no work in particular will not be the rule in the future As the cartoonist would say that is progress.
 There used to be a general sup position that anyone doing business with q city had the moral and legal right to mulCt the municipality if he could do so. Whether he could or not depended upon the honesty of officials or politicians handling the contracts: and when such officials happened to be a part of the same political rings as the contractors, the chances for a certain numbers of "cuts' were considerable. We are not concentrating on local condi- tions or happenings, but have in mind the liaison between politics and contracting the country over, paint ing q picture on a large canvas as it were.
 The number of political contrac- tors who have grown wealthy in New York, in Chicago, and in other large cities and also in the coun- ties and the small cities, would form a most interesting list in who's who In things as they are"
 We don't get excited over such matters until little furry crops
  up in our own midst. It is lucky that the ruCtion involves no more than some picaynne sidewalk graft, as 1t is termed.
 The parties to blame in municipal and larger graft. of course, are not the contractors but the system un- der which they are allowed to take their pickings. Most city and state contractors undoubtedly are honest regardless of conditions under which they could gain an advantage. But a little pilfering by 6 few contrac- tors now and then goes a long way toward throwing a veil of suspicion over the entire system of con- tractural relations with governing bodies It is assumed, often wrong ly, that a contra ctor who does busi- ness with the city is in for extra profits.
 There can be no doubt about 1t that great deal of work is given out by contract that governing bodies themselves could do through their departments. The board of public works in this city has added ! new functions to its list every year. and has come to lay down improved streets for the city that cost less and in the estimation of many per- sons are better than when such work was done by contractors. When a governing body has much of q speci- fled kind of work to do year in and year out there seems no reason on earth why it shouldn't buy the ma chinery and do the work itself. That is what the city learned within re- cent years. Sidewalk construction has been added to this municipal function and the bills are going to be straight in future.
 The state spends millions in the construction of roads. The contract system largely prevails and 1t is claimed there is a strict oversight by state inspectors. The question can fairly be raised as to why the state doesn't turn to being it's own road ! contractor. buying the necessary machinery and employing the nec- I cssary talent. and thus saving money for citizens of the state in a depart ment which needs as much financial aid as it can get. It might be possi- ble under such q system for the state to get more good roads for l less money.