Western Reserve chronicle. [volume] (Warren, Ohio) 1855-1921, 1862-02-19
Frauds on the aorernmant.

Representative Dawes of Massachusetts,
lately made seathing speech on the
frauds perpetFated on the government
The first item is a contract for cattle to be
furnished at Washington:
This contract was made so that the
first twenty-five hundred head of cattle
furnished was charged at arate which en-
abled their original contractor to sHb-let
it, in twenty-four hours after, to man in
New York who did know the price of
beef, so that he put into his pocket with
out stirring from his chair, thirty-two
thousand dollars, and the men who actu-
ally furnished the cattle in question, put
into their pocket twenty7six thousanddoll
lars more, so that the contract under
which these twenty-five hundred head of
cattle were furnished to the army was so
made that the profit of fifty-eight thou
sand dollars was realized over the fair
market price"
Then comes paragraph about shoes:
''Sir, poorly as the army is shod to-day,
a million of shoes have already been worn
out and q million more are being manu-
factured, and yet upon every one of these
shoes there has been waste of seventy
five cents. Three quarters Of million of
dollars have been already worn out, and
another three quarters of a million of dol
lars upon shoes now being manufactured"
That was pretty fat contract, and such
shoes-two pairs for every man for six
months. But here is horse operation:
ga regiment of cavalry lately reached
Louisville, one thousand strong, and the
board of army officers there, appointed for
the purpose, have condemned four hun
dred and eighty-fYe out of the thousand
horses as utterly worthless. The man
who examined these horses declared, up
on his oath, that there was not one of
them that was worth twenty dollars; they
were blind, spawned, ring-boned, afflicted
with the heaves, with the glanders, and
with every disease that horse-hesh Is heir
to. These four hundred and eighty-fve
horses cost the government, before they
were mustered into the service, ffty-eight
thousand two hundred dollars, besides
more than an additional thousand dollars
TO transport them from Pennsylvania TO
Louisville, where they were condemned
and cast of"
There Is contract for the supply Of
one million and ninety thousand muskets
at twenty-eight dollars apiece, when the
same quality of muskets are manufactured
at Springfield for thirteen and half O.
piece; and an ex-member of Congress is
now in Massachusetts, trying to get ms
chinery made by which he will be able to
manufacture in some six months hence.
at twenty-one dollars apiece, those rided
muskets manufactured to-day in that ar
mory for thirteen dollars and halt.
Then we come to the supply OF wood
for the Potomac division OF the army
upon which the speaker says:
There is an appropriation, also, for the 3
supply of wood to the army. This con-
tractor is pledged the payment of seven
dollars a cord for all the wood delivered
to the different commands-wood collect
ed after the labor of the soldiers them
selves had cut down the trees to clear the
ground for their batteries, and then this
contractor employs the army wagons 70
draw it to the several camps, and he has
no further trouble than to draw his seven
dollars for a cord, leaving the government
to draw the wood.
There are many nIsfe Of the sans sort.
The gentleman closes by saying that the
treasury cannot stand such drain for
sixty days, and that if it is not stopped
providence will decide the matter in ques-
ten for Us. AIr. Dawes Is republican.