The moral of that story lies on the surface. If you want a contract,
be on the spot when it is let. A smashed lamp-post or something
equally unthought of may secure the prize if the bidder be on hand.
And if possible stay on hand until you can take the written contract
home in your pocket. This we did at Dubuque, although it was suggested
we could leave and it would be sent after us to execute. We preferred
to remain, being anxious to see more of the charms of Dubuque.
After building the Steubenville Bridge, it became a necessity for the
Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Company to build bridges across the Ohio
River at Parkersburg and Wheeling, to prevent their great rival, the
Pennsylvania Railroad Company, from possessing a decided advantage.
The days of ferryboats were then fast passing away. It was in
connection with the contracts for these bridges that I had the
pleasure of making the acquaintance of a man, then of great position,
Mr. Garrett, president of the Baltimore and Ohio.
We were most anxious to secure both bridges and all the approaches to
them, but I found Mr. Garrett decidedly of the opinion that we were
quite unable to do so much work in the time specified. He wished to
build the approaches and the short spans in his own shops, and asked
me if we would permit him to use our patents.
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