The Portland daily press., 1885-07-15
THE DOLPHIN.
John Roach Submits Reports In Re-
ply to Sec'y Whitney's Board.
Ex-Sec'y Chandler Writes a Very
Sarcastic Letter.

W IIo Oun IlldJ ne snail puDllSn no state
ments OF his own about the Dolphin, but that
he submits two reports made to him as an
answer to the report of Secretary Whitney 5
board. The first of the statements is signed
by Thomas +. Rowland, metal ship builder
and engineer; DR.. s. A. Smith, naval archi-
tect; Warren E. Hill mechanical engineer j;
Andrew Fletcher and Stevenson Taylor,
North River Iron Works; p. E. Lefevre,
superintendent Ocean Steamship Company !;
James Parker, formerly manager of Record
q american and Foreign Shipping; George
y Sloat Of the Old Dominion Steamship
Company and j. M'Lachlan. They exam
ined the Dolphin in the Erie dry dock, and
say. That she is very strongly built about
the engine. room. that they could find no
evidence of the slightest springing of the
engine room floors, and believe that they
could not have sprung; that the floors are
well laid and OF proper workmanship; that
the supports of the shaft alley are of proper
and sufficient strength that the split six
inches long in the web of the miZZenmast is
perpendicular and of no consequence; that
the bow of the ship is perfectly strong, and
that no authority requires that painting
shall be provided against except when the
perpendicular depth between the upper and
lower deck is greater than thirteen feet, the
depth on the Dolphin being seven feet; that
many minor defects set forth by the board
are trivial and easily to be remedied and
that there is not the slightest evidence that
the vessel is structurally weak. AS to the
charge that slight shifting of ballast and
coal appeared to alter the vessels shape so
that her after crank pin heated almost at
once, the subscribers say that it is remark
able statement; that they do not believe it,
ana that In their opinion it is unfair and alb
surd Several other persons vouch for the
good behavior of the Dolphin during recent
trips.
Boston, July 14,-Secretary Chandler has
written letter to the Boston Journal in ref
erence to Attorney General Garland's recent
decision that the contract with Mr.. Roach to
build the Dolphin is void; that the pay
ments men TO Roach 4 are illegal and may be recoy-
ered and that the government should seize
and hold the Dolphin as security for their
repayment. The ex-Secretary says:
This may seem to be an extraordinary decision
but 1t was not difficult for an Attorney General
tV, VINO, when requested, wiped out an amendment
OF the United States constitution with the utmost
promptness. Lawyers, business men and fair
his present position"
Mr.. Chandler quotes the act of Congress-
providing for the construction of the de-
Spatch boat and intimates that no sound
Jurlst or unprejudiced person having com
mon sense would say that the Navy Depart
ment was bound to insert in contracts and
insist upon guarantee by the contractor
that the despatch boat should prove to have
sea speed of Is knots and that the contract
would be absolutely null and void without
such guarantee. The idea, he says, is pre-
designed and adopted by the Navy Depart
ment and advisory board and the bidders
had nothing whatever to do with Them The
department had no right to demand that the
contractor should guarantee that the engines
designed by the Navy Department Should
produce 2300 horse power and should move a
snip 10 knots in a gale of wind at sea- If
the contractor had been expected to guaran-
tee such results he should have been allowed
TO design the ship. The fundamental propo-
q Ic b o1o, Il
foundation of law or sense to support it,
Continuing, Mr.. Chandler says
Mr.: Garland says that the contractor, if he had
misgivings whether a vessel planned like the
sgp popih WGnla make the required speed should
this be serious proposition Of an intelligent law
yerY IL would seem as if the newspaper report
OF Mr.. Garland's opinions must be incorrect At
nrst ne is made to say of the clause in the CON
tract that the ship should be built in accordance
VIII W tne provisions Of acts of Congress- 81 am
oI the opinion that this covenant bound the con-
tractor as effectively to make a ship of a sea
speed OF l5 knots as though he had agreed to do
clause which provides that the contractor shall
not be responsible for the failure to produce 23OO
morse power # it is not due to defective workman
snip or materials. The obvious intention of this
was 10 relieve the contractor of all duty and re-
% sp9nsslblllty as to speed and power OF the ship,
tract exists between Mr. Roach and the United
states and that he must pay back all the moneys
received by by him and hand over the Dolphin as
the work of good lawyers If Mr. Roach did
guarantee the speed as if he had agreed to do SO
IN express words the contract cannot be abso-
lutely void, because elsewhere is clanse which
relieves him from guaranty of horse power
"Ihe law absolutely required a guarantee of
speed, says MI. Garland. ut is in the contract
as II III express words" he also says. But he fur
ther says that there is clause dispensing with a
gfbin gofabrianty y1 1f horse power which the law says
lutely void under the law requiring speed Per-
maps two lawyers wrote the opinion for the De-
partment OF justice on this question, one holding
that the speed was guaranteed and that there
fore the Dolphin must be rejected, and the other
holding that speed was not guaranteed and there
tore tore the contract was void and she must be re-
jected, and the Attorney Grneral and Mr. Whit
ney liked the conclusions of both opinions so
much that they determined to put them both to-
gether and promugate them to a wonderinp
world. Those who choose to accept Mr. Gar,
lands opinion as good law may find some excuse
board and Mr.. Roach; but by all others it must be
considered unjust and oppressive Letit be not
t'1, ea tnat TINS 5 wicked assault upon Mr. Roach by
TWO newly fledged Cabinet minister's reyelling in
mlsuSed power is perpetrated solely for the as
sumed reason that the Dolphin has not 15 knots
sea speed, when in fact ON every one of her sew
eral trial trips she has reached is knots and her
last TRIP was made at sea in pursuance of the
orders Of Mr. Whitney. But Mr.. Whitney, en-
enough and 10 knots sea speed means 171a knots
when there is not high sea, and upon this arbi-
tba tbFsry ,trsan ASSUMPTION the whole fabric of
While even the packed board organized by him
70 condemn the Dolphin reported as follows:
with regard to the engines, boilers and main
machinery Of the vessel, the board is
OF opinion that their general construction and the
character Of the material of which they are made
conform to the terms of the contract and specifi-
cations and various changes made by authorities
OF the naval advisory board from time to timen
yet this ship is to be rejected because the con-
tract to build her was wholly void; Mr. Roach is
to be ordered to pay back all moneys he has re-
ceived; the rejected vessel is to be seized by the
government as security for repayment, and all
this to crafty Mr.. Whtney'S spirit of resentment
and on the authority of such legal opinion as that
OF Mr.. Garland