Proper contract letting is a matter of real economics. — Author's discussion of

paper by Mr. Ernest Wilder Clarke. — Importance of subject. — Business opportunity of the U. S. A. — Prevention of progress. — Labor and capital. — Men who do the work must share in the profits, but preferably not in the management of business. — Quieting popular unrest. — Various methods of contract letting listed. — Description of each method. — Injustice of straight-lump-sum contracts. — Advantages of unit-price method. — Cost-plus method. — Hospital jobs. — Conscientiousness of contractors and workmen. — Paying by the job. — Cost-plus methods cut out competition. — All ordinary methods are faulty. — Salient features of an ideal system. — Description of the ideal method. — Method of profit-sharing contract. — Application of corrective ratio. — Employee's percentage of total profits. — Method of anticipating rise or fall of prices. — Exemplification of ideal method. — Advantages of ideal method. — Objections that have been raised thereto. — Adoption of method. — Addendum re profit-sharing in manufactories. ................... 337

Scheme of management expounded in Chapter LVIII of "Bridge Engineering." —

General principles for office management. — Employees should reach office on time. — No talking in office. — No visitors should be allowed in office. — No smoking in office. — Employees should attend strictly to their own business. — Collecting full data before starting computations. — Limits of accuracy in calculations. — Checking calculations. — Filing and indexing. — Drawings. — Standards. — Lettering. — No issuing of unchecked drawings. — Blank forms. — Cost records. — Card indices................... 358

Subject somewhat intangible. — To what extent will it pay owner to inspect? —

Compensation for inspection-Quality of inspection. — Methods of payment for inspection. — Omission of inspection. — Supervision by direct employees of the Engineer. — Inspection by established bureaus. — Economy in performance. — Start shop inspection at beginning of work. — Ground to be covered by shop inspection. — Economics of mental effort for shop inspectors. — Field inspection. — General question of the Economics of Inspection. ................. 361

Necessity for aid of shop expert in preparing notes for this chapter. — Importance of

systemization of one's knowledge. — Assistance of Mr. Earle. — General