The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1894-08-23
FRAUDS ARE PROVED.
House Committee Reports on
Carnegie ArmOr Plates.
Report Says Frauds Are Worthy
to be Called Crimes.
FINES NOT ENOUGH.
Mere Money Compensation Can
not Atone for the Outrage.
Lives of Sailors and Safety of
Nation Endangered.

WASHINGTON, Aug. 23.-Representa-
tive A J. Cummings, cha irman Of the
house committee on naval affairs, pre-
sented to the house today preliminary
report upon the investigation Of the ar
NOR plate billets furnished to the gov
ernment by the Carnegie steel company.
The committee finds that charges Of
fraud have been sustained; scores the
company severely and says, as has been
stated in these dispatches that SO sus
pected plates IN use should be tested a.
the only method of proving their fitness
or untitness. 1t only finds that the gov
ernment inspection was negligent, bur no
Charge of dishonesty rests upon the in
specIOr5.
The charges against the company were
THAT the pla .es and bolts had not re-
ceived the treatment required by the
contract; THAI false repOr,s were made
to the government inspectors; that
specimens for testing were re-treated be-
fore being submitted; that the testing ma
chine was frAudleutly manipulated; that
substitution made in the ca 5e of "A
plate designed for ballislic test an
that the government stamp was either
duplicated or stolen and used without
the knowledge of the government in
spectprs.
The report states that the number Of
furnaces used was totally mad .quate to
fulfill the specifications of the contract
on the amount Of arInor plate turned
out After the first investiga-
tiOns OF the frauds the mum ber of fur
naces was increased from four TO ten.
In regard to the 'jOc1eying" Of the
testing machines, 1t Is asserted that the
company made private tests of material,
and if il was below the standard. manIp-
ula ed the machine at the Official test so
that it would show the req uired strength
The charges of retreatiilg and substi-
tuting plates designed for bailistic tests
tie committee Is satisfied are true. The
charge of using duplicate or stolen
government stamp is not sustained.
The report says the governm mt in
spection was negligent and defective,
but th 5 is attributed to the fact that
there " as not nearly enough inspectors
to do the work. IL - as -er. ed tn. the
fraud has been traced home To the gen
erai 7uDerinte adenf, who Is d stock holder
in the Carnegie company. OF the fea-
ture of criminallty involved, Chairman
Cummings SAYS:
..'Tne frauds which your company have
committed are worthy TO be called
crimes. Ine services Of the Carnegie
company (whe her with or without The
Knowledge Of the company 10 increase
this gam, deliberately continued for
many months. is To commit acts whose
natural and probable Consequences
would be d terrible loss Of men IA tune
OF War dUA JCE41d pS the 0ol6dL 10 @uo Id
ton.
..To fine or make mere money
comp EensatiOn Is inadequate atone
ment for such wrongs. Your
committee do not consider it within
their province to draft criminal statute.
but they do feei under obligations to call
the attention OF the house 10 the impor-
tance of projecting the lives of our sea
men and The safety of the nation by ap-
propria,e legisla ion, denouncing as
crl mes all such acts as the frauds prac-
ticed on the government in counection
with armor plate and other material Of
war, and making such acts punishable
in ali persons who commit them or aid
in their com N issiOn."