If the contract has been obtained as one of the Erie Barge Canal contracts, the work will be let _unclassified_, as it is called. By this is meant that no discrimination in monthly estimates will be made between rock and earth removed; that the earth and rock removed will be measured in excavation, and the contractor will be paid for these two materials indiscriminately. Now, we shall assume that he can make a profit of 4 cents per yard on the earth, and 10 cents per yard on the rock, so that his total profit on the contract will be $9,000. According to the terms of his contract, he will be paid on the monthly estimates 46.66 cents per yard removed, less 10 per cent──or 42 cents, the 10 per cent being retained until the completion of the contract. Suppose, now, that he starts in on the rock, and he excavates the 50,000 yards at a cost to him of $35,000.00 for which he will receive 42 cents per yard, or $21,000.00. He will then be out of pocket $14,000.00; but there will be coming to him as held by the State $2,333.33. Before he can begin to "see daylight" on his contract, he must proceed to excavate earth until he has made up the $14,000.00. He gets 42 cents in cash, and it costs him 26 cents, so that he must excavate 87,500 yards of earth, for which he will get the $14,000.00, and he will have held up $4,083.33 additional. There will then be remaining 12,500 yards to be excavated on which he will get $5,250.00, with $583.33 held back. He will have been obliged to do 91⅔ per cent of his contract before he stops putting money into it; and the money that he has put into it he will not be able to draw interest on, because he will not be drawing interest on the 10 per cent retained. The amount of money that he had to put up to cover shortage on his contract will have been $14,000.00, on which he will have to pay interest to his bank. If, on the other hand, he commences the earthwork first, he does 100,000 yards of earthwork, costing him 26 cents, on which he gets back immediately 42 cents, and he has $16,000 for working capital, in addition to $4,666.66 held up. He then does the rock work, and the rock work never exhausts his capital, and he has no interest to pay except on his plant, which he can easily do out of his $16,000. This is not only a practical problem in how to handle a contract without being wiped out financially, but it is an exceedingly important one as defining where the ultimate success in the operation lies. It can readily be seen that when a contract is taken on close figures, the entire success of the financial operation will depend upon the proper layout, as indicated above.