Evening star., 1938-11-22
Jefferson Memorial
Foundation Contract =
MayBeLetin Week
Work Nay Begin by
End of Next Week,
Officiols Think

A contract for construction of the
foundation for the Thomas Jeffer-
son Memorial on the shore of tho
Tidal Basin probably will be award
ed next week, and work may begin
by the end of the week, in the opin-
ion of National Park Service on
cialS.
Park Service legal authorities and
engineers today are examining five
sets of complicated bids, some of
which involved as many as a score
of alternative proposals based on
various types Of caisson material
and piles and methods of construc-
ton. Since many of the alterna-
tive proposals are based on unit
prices for material and are not to-
tailed, 1t is possible that several days
may elapse before the low bid Is
determined definitely.
Despite the demonstrations of last
week against destruction of jap
anese cherry trees and other trees
on the memorial site, the bid open
ing was a humdrum affair, attend
ed chiefly by representatives of the
bidding companies, all of them out
of-town concerns. Although two
officers of the Federal building
guard service were on hand to guard
against any possible disturbance,
their services were not required.
Meanwhile, work was speeded up
on the removal of the smaller trees
from the site where the foundation
will be laid.
I'VE want to have the site ready
by the time the contract for con-
struction Is let," C. Marshall Finnan,
director of National Capital Parks,
explained today with the bids
already called, we have no time to
lose"
Mr.. Finnan said a full crew of
workmen was occupied on the job
yesterday and work will be con-
tinued as rapidly as possible until
all the smaller trees have been re-
moved to other parts Of Potomac
Park.
Reading Takes Half Hour.
The bids were opened in an Office
adjoining that of Arno B. Cam
merer, chief of the National Park
Service, in the new Interior De-
partment Building. Mr.. Cammerer
and other ranking officials of the
Park Service were present when
Wilbury B. Montgomery Of the en-
gineering staff opened and read the
five bids.
Because of the many alternative
proposals reading of the bids re-
quired nearly half hour.
The bids cover caisson, pile and
Gaping construction only. As q
part of this work, however, the sue
cessful contractor will be required
to prepare the site end complete
the removal Of trees from the con-
struction area. The work of trans
planting some of the trees by Ia
borers of the Office of National Capt.
tai Parks was interrupted last Fri
day when women demonstrators
against removal of the cherry trees
chained themselves to the trees and
took tools away from the workmen.
Low Bid Is $384,900.
The first action on the part of
the successful contractor, however,
probably will be the erection of a
high board fence around the me-
mortal site. Under terms of the
specifications this fence will be at
least Z feet high. It will surround
the working area but must not in
terfere with the use Of adjacent
recreational areas.
Each of the five bidders submit
ted a lump-sum proposal for the
Job, ranging from a low Of 1884 900
from the Raymond Concrete Pile
Co. of New York to maximum Of
$439, TAO from the Western Founda-
ton Co. of Chicago. The alternative
proposals in the few instances where
they were totaled increased the
lump-sum bids by as much as $780,
900 or reduced them by as much
as $125, 900 in some instances.
The bids were accompanied by bid
bonds ranging from 500, 900 to more
than 5000, 900 to insure performance
of the work.