Delaware state journal. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1870-1883, 1883-07-05

John Roach the Lowest Bidd, ON
All the Vessels.

Proposals were opened at the Navy
Department Monday for the oonstruo-
ton Of the new naval cruisers. The fol
lowing were the bidders aud the amount
Of their bids The Chicago
x Co, New York, 81 163. 600 Harlan &
Holliugsworth Company, II, $780, 600 !;
Cramp X Sons, Philadelphia, 81 $50 900,
and John Roach x Son, Chester 1889 900.
The Boston Harlan 4 Hollingsworth
Company, $777,000; Cramp Il Son,
$74S, 900, and John Roach, 1913 900.
The Atlapta-Harlan & Hollingsworth
Company, $775, 900; Quintard Iron
Soma, $3.50, 900, and John Roach & Son,
$6l7,0O0.
The dispatch boat Dolphin-H. A.
Ramsay & Co., Baltimore, Md, $420, 900 /;
Allen & Blsisdell st. Louis, Mo-, $3.50, 900;
Cramp Il Sons, 1915 900, and John Roach,
$3l5,000.
Mr.. Roaoh's total WAS 81, 44O, 900,
against $2,775, 900 of Cramp x Sons, the
next lowest bidder. The contracts will
probably be awarded AZ soon as the proper
bonds are filed with the Secretary Of the
| Navy.
| Charles Cramp says It ia ridiculous to
talk OF building the Chicago for $3.50, 900
| when the estimate of the Advisory Board
was 81 ,24S, 00c.
Mr.. Allen says: "Well, Pennsy lvania
will lose her navy ya'd, but she gets the
navy" He thinks with the rest that
Roach has taken the job with no profit,
if not at q dead loss all around. The
only object, in his opinion, ia to pre-
| vent the development of any other private
yards in the future. Mr.. Allen deplores
the fact that Roach got all the ships, be-
cause it will tend to defeat appropriations
to continue the work thus begun. He
thinks if he he had got the dispatch boat
| it would have exerted good influence in
a political way by securing the friendship
OF congressman in the interior. Now it
will, he says, be- matter OF doubt az to
future appropriations for the navy.
! The Chicago is to he A, JO0-ton vessel;
| 3l5 feet between perpendiculars +; ex-
treme breadth, As feet 2 inches depth,
81 feet inches mean draught, 10 feet.
| The Atlanta aud Boston are to be 3, 900
ton vessels I; go feet long, AZ feet beam,
and 2G feet ! ! inches deep; mean draught,
| II feet.
The dispatch boat will bu 240 feet long,
80 feet beam, 13t feet deep and about
$50 tons displacement.
| The three cruisers must be completed
within Is months and the dispatch boat
within IL months from the execution Of
the respective contracts.
On being told that the New York Wo,iI
| reported several of the bidders rs deolar-
ing that the vessels could not be built
for the sums named by Roach and that
the llOrM declared that there had been
an understanding among various ship
builders by which division OF
| the contracts Was to have been
secured, and that Roach had violated
the agreement, and further that Roach
had placed his bids low with the full
knowledge that further appropriations
would be made, representative of the
Harlan & lIollingswOrth Company said
that his company had expressed its
opinion AZ to the lowest sums fol-
which the vessels could be built
by the bids it put in. Further than this
ho would not discuss the rnhjnet. He
declared that there never was any agree.
ment as to partition Of the contracts
among various ship. builders, enoh builder
bidding on his own responsibility. lie
did not believe that Mr.. Roach had
any understanding as to an increase Of
the contract prices.