City Council Caught in Costly Pipe Scandal
Seattle’s city fathers accused of wasting thousands of dollars by rejecting cheap, high-quality pipe in favor of a politically connected supplier.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
If there is a Republican in this city who voted last March for the present 'reform' administration who does not by this time truly hate himself for having done so, Ordinance 1,306, passed by both houses of the city council last Wednesday, ought surely to bring about that result. The ordinance authorizes the board of public works to purchase one thousand tons or more of cast iron pipe from the Northwest Supply Company. The price is omitted from the ordinance, apparently to conceal from public scrutiny the council's inability or unwillingness to conduct affairs on business principles. In March, D. K. Wood & Co. of Philadelphia offered the city pipe at $33 per ton, but the reform council laid the recommendation on the table. Later, the city ordered pipe from the Oswego Iron Works through the Northwest Supply Company at $59.75 per ton. This shameful waste of public funds represents a difference to the city of thousands of dollars. If this is 'reform,' then we had better pray for anarchy.
“If such government is 'reform,' then we had better pray for anarchy.”
This 1892 report on government waste regarding municipal utility contracts reflects Seattle's enduring struggle with civic procurement and the tension between political appointments and the need for efficiency. Public contracting remains a high-stakes, contentious arena in Seattle city politics to this day.
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