New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1872-03-09

1877 TELEGRAPH TO TBB TRiBrNRl
WASHINGTON. March S.--Gen. Dyer, Chief OF
odnance being sick to meet the Arms investigating
Committee at the Capitol the Committee visited him at
,s residence az the Washington Arsenal this morning
,en Over was attended by his assistant, Major Be9et'
and his chief clerk Mr.. McNally, with whom he(ccn-
.p,,ed before answering any question OF Importance
r,om Cen Overs testimony II appears that the con-
,ncton put by the War Department upon the clause Oh
,e statute Of 1865 requiring arms and ordnance stores
40 he offered at public sale on ~ uays
.ot,oe before being sold at private SAFE Is
NOT that every lot shall be 20 offered but that some Oh
each class shall be offered, after when the saes VI
that class may go indefinitely, with no pu"hc auVer
ti,ement Of any kind That is II ten thousand cleaned
and repaired Springfield Ies were advertised at puoc
sale in the Spring Of 1882 that advertisement and the
,ae attempted under It were sufficient to authorize the
nenartent TO 90 on after and sell cleaned ana
repaired Springfield rifles at private SALE mat u ""s
lust this method of dspOsing OF arms ana ordnance
stores which Congress intended to prevent is as pam as
can be- 1.-THE Government offered each lot at auction
after 80 days notice. every who desired 10 purchase
could attend and bid II the arms were not then
sold all these wouldbo purchasers would Know that
they were for sale privately anu could come 10 tne
Ordnance Bureau and make their Offers But the con-
strucon 10 the law by the War department Arrows
Gen Dyer sell 10 Remington or any one else'
without any one hut the purchaser knowing that such
arms we're for sale all and gives to dishonest officials
schance TO make corrupt terms with purchasers.
Gen Dyer testified that this loose construction OF the
law was given TO him verbally by Gen. schoneid wheh
he was Secretary Of War. Gen Dyer returned to wash
lucton fro the West October 10, 1870 and found
The Department besieged by applicants TO purchase
arms and ammunition so eager were some OF these
hat half dozen OF them went down 10 the arschh ana
,aw Dyer at hsihouse that day and the next ne
sold Ia f. Remington Sons sl,2sl76J worth OF arms
and cartridges and the 18th sent out aD official letter
10 several the leadn merchants OF tho country
flpm tn n
and stores Ii would also that on the 18TH, the
next day after his return from the West he had also III
vi.ed bids arms &C., which were TO be opeued That
day for in his report 10 the Secretary OF war; Dyer
Anout half an hour before the time fixed for opening
tho bids for Springfield and Enfield musket IN October,
Of Remington 4 Sons, stating that they we're the
agents Of the French Government, and authorized TO
purchase for II. postponed the Dlds, ana nie-
3atelv showed the dispatch TO you. and you promptly
directed TO suspend the sale and not TO entertain any
bids from l.. Remington sons
The marvellous rapdity with which business was con
dlcted at the Bureau the 18th and 18th of
Oaoper 1870 fail 10 he remarked. Gen. Dyer re-
tarns Washington the 18th, and within - hours he
has sold than 81 $50 900 worth OF srms 10 Reming
ton, arranged sale 10 take place by means
Of bids on the 18th, and sent out letters
FOR another on the 18TH After that date
Over was not very positive whether this immense sale
was completed after he the telegram but
he thought that il after Tue fact that he saw the
telegram aud received orders not TO sell any TO
Bennington before the delivered, and before
any payment on them had been made, established
beyond dispute. Dyer also testified that be understood
perfectly the time that the great demand for arms was
caused by the French war.
or cont oct IT, 1870 inviting bids
,he 18th none sent 10 Herman Boxer though
Nat was the largest German-American arms dealing
house in the country. and had made purchases OF the
Government previous occasions. But other houses,
which were not N the arms business at all, and which
art now known to have represented Remington, must
have known Of the SALE since they put in bids.
The Committees attempts to find out the exact m0ds
opran making these sales have not so far been very
snccessful DYER testified that they conducted,
during the French war exactly they mad been before,
Tat would appear from what he SAID that his super
vision over them was rather nominal IMAM
real Tie most of the business con-
Quoted by Major Crispin. in New.YorR, who had
general sell any agent of France or Ger
many; but Dyer failed show that he took any pains
t. inform himself whether this order was Obeyed. The
whole examination, TO where the business was done,
Who has the original bids whose business 1t was to
detect the agents either belligeront Sc. was very
uhsa factory, the Committee did not feel Ike press
ng hun, while he seemed TO be quite i'll.
The Springfield breechlOading muskets, OF the model
Of ls65 was examined by Board, which sat In the
Winter Of ls7 and 1868. They praised the arm very
highly. bu suggested some changes, which, when made,
produced model Of 1868 The gun OF the 1850 model
was sll far better gun than any European breech-
lader hut. that Of 1868 better, OF course the
former was discarded and the latter temporarily
adopted. Gen. Dyer being in Sew-York in December,
no. according 10 the testimony already secured wrote
70 COL Bene his representative here 10 withdraw from
the hands of the troops the OF the model q 1866 and
In their places those Of 1885, and he said, to-day
that MAJOR Crspn suggested that cartridges
foud be manufactured they could be sold advantage
Thls was DONE and so they were sold TO Richardson.
At this point, NJ. schurz asked Gen Dyer If these
ttech-loaders not infinitely better than any
neloading gum and he replied that in his judgment
they were but that the officers all very anxious
&c, hOe Of 1863 He not asked whether the militia
would have preferred them TO the Old muzzleoader
With which they armed or whether it would not
tAye been better keep the breechoaders In the
Hnas while. unit We had few hundred thousand OF
uem on hand, 10 be used In case OF an emergency.
M schurzQ Referring 10 the report OF the Board OF
Omeers From TINS report, IL appears that the Board
That Is that the then in the hands of the troops,
The model Of 1866, be modified and Transformed A.
q IL well known TO you that at the present moment
We breech loading musket il the only musket that
should suddenly break out this country making
tbe Organization of large army, what would you
o srDs A. We have not enough to arm very large
IN! Ne should TO work and make them at once,
sud get them made.
y Would you he in very great want Of breech-
"oSueist a No, not very great want.
lou have not 10 put in the hands OF the troops
. We eoud.get In all some 1900 suppose, and pre-
e 10 50 days we could get 900 day from RerpiBg-
W. manufaetory alone; he conld certainly turn out
IN IN month; then there are other manufactures
Ton recommended yourself. that there should be at
- breeehlosders kept IN the arsenals, 10 pro
~ tS eDergeneest A. did.
osppese an emergency OF that Kind, which We had
s,syntetd with 10 years should arise that new
~ son or great foreign should occur, requiring
sy seuid have be armed with brssenIosders, and
vS~o yVp Dot have 10 INTO the market for them A.
tnould have 10 do that
" would be- Hlad, then. bnv back