Delay in Completing the Construction of the New Hospital

Superintendent William A. Mercer explains that there was a slight delay in completing the construction of the new hospital because they switched the foundation from brick to stone and lowered the ceilings from 12 to 10 feet in two wings of the building. He requests that no deductions in pay are made from the original contract with contractor Harry G. Brown.

Mercer forwards and endorses a letter from Brown explaining that the two changes in construction delayed completion by at least three weeks. Secretary James Rudolph Garfield agrees to not penalize Brown for the delay as it was caused by decisions made by the Bureau of Indian Affairs.