take a ticket, which they have to give up as they go on to the Suffolk-street territory. It would make no difference if they didn't take half a cart-load. The only person who loses would be the contractor. It would make no difference to us as long as the measurement was made at the hill. Mr. Merrill and Mr. Barnes can say that there have no loads gone from there without tickets, and all properly numbered. They can show the check cards that have been used, and Mr. Ware can show the book which indicates where the loss has been. TESTIMONY OF WILLIAM W. MERRILL. Q. -(By the CHAIRMAN.) You are employed at Fort Hill? A. Q. A.. Q. How long have you been so employed? Since the first of July. What is your duty there? A.-My duty is to give out these tickets to the driver of each cart as he passes by where I stand, with a load of gravel. A. -I put the number of his cart beside the number of the ticket which he takes. Q.—On which side of the hill are you? A. — On the south side. Q. A. Who is at work there? Mr. Hayes's teams, or the teams he employs. Q. Well, state how it was when you were first put on, the first of July; how you found things then, and the result of your observation. A. — When I first went there, there were from fifty to sixty teams running out, and I gave out the tickets, according to directions which I received from Mr. Squires, to each teamster as they passed out; and I stood so that no team could pass out without my seeing it. I continued there during the day, and didn't leave the position from the time I went, at quarter past six in the morning, until all the teams had taken their last loads; until nearly six o'clock at night. At night I made my report to Mr. Squires; I can't remember each day. It went on, and that was my business. Q. A. About sixty teams were employed on that side of the hill? Yes, sir, during the month of July, until they numbered the carts, then the number dropped off, and there have not been so many since. Q. How many teams have been employed since? A.—It has averaged from fifteen to forty, forty-five or fifty. When Mr. Hayes has had work elsewhere, he has taken his teams. Sometimes, when forty or fifty teams would come in the morning, during the day some of them would be sent to other localities, and perhaps would return again. I could not tell. Q. Do you see Mr. Hayes there, very often? A. — I see him when he rides in and gives orders to his boss there, the man that superintends the working of the hill. Q.-There every day, I suppose? A. No, sir. I think he is not there every day, but most every day, however. He might ride in, and I not notice him. TESTIMONY OF FRANK BARNES. Q. (By the CHAIRMAN.) You are employed on Fort Hill, on the north side of the hill? A. Yes, sir. Q. - You have been employed since the first of July? A. —Yes, sir. Q. Your duty there has been what? A. — To issue tickets to the carts. Q. In the same way as Mr. Merrill did on the south side? Q.-Have you been constantly employed there since the first of July?. A. I have been there, except two days that I went away to a funeral. Q. — All the carts that have left that side of the hill must pass by you to receive their tickets? A. Q. Yes, sir, there is no other way to get out. A. Part of them belonged to Mr. Fitzgerald, who is a subcontractor. (MR. SQUIRES.)-Mr. Souther has the main contract; these other men are sub-contractors. Q. Any other sub-contractors under your care? Q. Do any of them belong to Bonner and Sutherland? A. —No, sir; not that I know of. Q. How many teams have been employed there? A. On the average, about twenty-five teams a day, sometimes twenty-six. Q. A. TESTIMONY OF WILLIAM H. WARE. (By the CHAIRMAN.) What is your business? My business is to take the tickets from the carts as they pass by me. Q. You are stationed at the Suffolk-street District? Q. A. Where are you stationed? At various places. Part of the time I was stationed at Castle street, now I am stationed at Tremont street, wherever there is the nearest way to get to the Suffolk-street District. Q. Q. Will you produce it? [Record produced.] You have kept this record, Mr. Ware? A. Yes, sir, daily. Q. State the substance of any conversation you have had with parties up at the Suffolk-street 'territory, about this matter of stealing, anything that you can remember. A. Q. A. I have had some conversation with a gentleman up there. - What is his name? That I could not tell you; I am not acquainted with the gentleman. He is in the employ of Mr. Hayes. I had considerable conversation with him, and with other gentlemen, so much so that I don't recollect all he said. He merely stated that he didn't see how this affair could be stopped; what they could make of it on Mr. Hayes's part. Q. A. What time was this? Some time in July, when I was stationed up there. Q. - After the article appeared in the "Daily Advertiser" calling the attention of the public to it? A.—I don't know that it was the next day; it was very soon afterwards. He didn't see what they could do about it; they couldn't prove anything about taking away any dirt. Q. What the city could do about it? A. - We had quite a conversation. He said it was what had been done for the last twenty-five years, this stealing dirt. Not only by them, but others. All the parties that had anything to do with the city were all stealing. Q. A. How do you know the man was in Mr. Hayes's employ? He said he was in Mr. Hayes's employ, and I have seen him riding round in his team. He has lately come in his employ. Did he use any threats in regard to Mr. Squires? Q. A. Q. Not that I know of; I don't seem to recollect. Any other conversation you had with him? A. I have had no conversation with anybody except the team-drivers; I have had no conversation with the employers. They all know, for they said they were ordered by Hayes to carry it down to these vessels. Q. them? Would you know any of those teamsters again if you saw A. — There are so many of them, I could not keep the run of them. I don't know the names of any of them. Q.-Was anything said about Mr. Squires going to see Mr. Hayes? A. I think a gentleman told me that he thought, if Mr. Hayes had gone to Mr. Squires, he might have bought him off, and nothing been done. Q. That was the man in Mr. Hayes's employ? A. Yes, sir. He said he thought Mr. Squires could be bought off. Q. Anything more you think of that he said? A. - He said, if he could not be bought off, he was the only one in the employ of the city that could not be bought off. Did he tell how much he thought he would have to pay ? No. I told him, I thought he hadn't money enough to buy him. Q. A. Q. You produce the record, and put it in the case as part of your testimony? A. Yes, sir. Q. Is there any of those teamsters now carting dirt that told you they had their instructions from Mr. Hayes? A. —No, sir. One of them, I know, is not. I think he was too honest for Mr. Hayes. Because they have told me so often that they were ordered to carry it down there, I think they are not there now. I have not seen them for some time. Adjourned to Tuesday, October 3, 1871. Q. THIRD HEARING, OCTOBER 3, 1871. TESTIMONY OF JOHN SOUTHER. (By the CHAIRMAN.) Will you give us the history of the Fort Hill matter? |