The daily gazette., 1876-08-02
RObesoh's IBipedchhueIts.

There is not doubt in the. mind of
any fair man, who has the good of his
country at heart, that the Secretary of
the Navy, Robson, ought to be i'm
peached and hurled from office. His
plundering of the government presents
case which is absolutely terrible to
contemplate. Millions and millions of
the peoples money, in these hard times
of toll and deprivation have been sauan-
dered on favorites, and to get money to
keep rogues in Office. No wonder the
rascals fight for Grants corrupt rule. In
the House of Representatives on Mon
day Mr.. Whitthorne, chairman Of the
committee, presented the following facts,
which were not answered, but some of
them were confirmed by Mr.. Hewett:
AS to the attempt on the part of the
Secretary of the Navy to show the pres
ent effectiveness of the Navy, he put
against his statement those of the Ad-
miral and of the chief officers. 1t was
sustained only by the testimony of Isaac
Hanscom, the Chief Constructor, and he
would show that this man was not re-
liable witness. He charged that during
the administration of Seci etary Robe
son there had been squandered need
lessly in skilled labor, S3,00O,OOO; in
wastage Of timber, 81 ,000, 600; in loss on
contracts without competition, $4,000
GOO; in loss on purchases without COM
petition S5,0O0,0O0, in ship materials,
&c., $1,000 600; in misdirected and un-
necessary work and labor, S8,000,000, and
in unnecessary purchases of timber
80 UOn UlU ha q
So, ,000, ,000-a sum sufficient to build
eighteen ships of war of 1000 tons,
thirty ships of 900 tons, or sixty ships
of 500 tons so that if the Secretary OF
the Navy had used more new vessels in
the Navy than there are vessels alto.
gether on the Navy Register. He had
not time to enumerate the many frauds
exposed by the committee, but he re.
ferred especially to the case of one
Chamberlain being borne on the rolls as
detective, while the inference was that
there was no such person and that his
salary for four years found its way into
the hands OF newspaper correspondent
He referred also to the testimony of Mr.
Matthews, of New York, a man who
furnished large supplies to the navy
both under contract and under ope1
market purchase, and who was connect
ed with E. G.. Cattell, to show that mos
Of the high officials of the navy, from
the Secretary down to the Inspector O
Clothing in New York, were debtors O
his.
Having passed on to the question O
the exchange of old iron for new, h
yielded to Mr.. Hewitt IN. " who de
ciared that the contract with Seyfert
McManus ~ Co., to exchange old iron a
Ia cents pound for new iron at cent.
was a most extravagant and wastcfu
contract by which the Government wa
robbed. If the Secretary of the Nav
had done his duty and advertised. tina
exchange could be made on a basis of a
least cents per pound better than i
was made. The quantity wa, a 538 O0
pounds. The firm with which he CHew
itt) was then connected would have bea,
only too glad to be bidder, and coul
have made all the materials Sewer,
McManus & Co., furnished.
Mr.. Harris Mass asked Mr.. Howl,
whether he had taken into consider,
tiou the fact that the iron had to /
furnished cut to dimensions, includir
beam and frame iron, exactly such as I'll
Government might require.
Mr.. Hewitt replied that he was a M
ker of beam-iron and frame-iron, ju
such as the Government needed, and
the time this contract was made bear
iron did not exceed Al cents per poun
cut to lengths and dimensions as r
qulred. There has been no time sim
1877 when frame Iron could be bougl
from any reputable iron-master for
cents per pound. and that old iron W
worth II cents In cash In the market.