The herald., 1894-08-24
Report of the Investigating
Committee.
The Charges of Irregularities
Sustained.
Servants Of the Carnegie Company
Guilty of Crimes.
Money Compensation IL Inadequate for
Such Wrongs suspsct-
ed Plates That Should
Be Tested.
BY the Associated Press,

tive Cummings, chairman of the house
committee on naval affairs, presented
today the preliminary report upon the
investigation OF the srmor-plate billets,
furnished by the Carnegie Steel COM
pany. The committee finds the charges
of fraud sustained; scores the company
severely and recommends that SO sus'
pected plates in use be tested, 90 the
only method of proving their fitness or
unfitness. 1t finds the government in
spectors were negligent, but no charge
of dishonesty rests upon them.
The charges against the company were
that the plates and bolts did not receive
the treatment required by the contract;
that false reports we're made to the gov
eminent inspector; that specimens for
testing were re-treated before being SUBJ
mitted; that the testing machine was
fraudulently manipulated; that substl-
tuition was made in the case OF plate
designed for bsllistic test. and that the
government stamp was either duplicated
or stolen and used without the knowl-
edge of the government inspectors.
The report states that the number OF
furnaces used was totally inadequate to
fulfill the specifications of the contract
ON the amount OF armor plate turned
out. After the first investigation OF the
frauds the number OF furnaces was In
creased from four to ten.
In regard to the ''jockeying" OF the
test machines, it is asserted that the
company made private tests OF material.
and if it was below the standard ma.
nipulated the machine at the official
test 80 that it would show the required
tensile strength.
The charges of re-treating and substi-
SIS p,-t1p aoeigped for bniiietic testa,
the committee ia satisfied are true. The
| charge OF using q stolen or duplicate
| government stamp la not sustained.
The. report says the government in
spection was negligent and defective,
but this was attributed to the fact that
there were not nearly enough inspectors
to do the work. 1t is asserted that the
| fraud has been traced home to the gen.
eral superintendent, who is q stock
holder in the Carnegie company. OF
the feature OF criminality involved
Chairman Cummings says:
THE frauds which the committee has
found are worthy to be called crimes.
The servants of the Carnegie company
whether with or without the knowledge
of the company-to increase its gains,
deliberately continued for many months
to commit acts whose natural probable
consequences would be terrific loss of
men in time OF war, and perhaps the
dearest to the nation. To fine or make
mere money compensation is an made
auate atonement for such wrongs.
"Your committee do not consider IL
within their province to draft q criminal
statute, but they do feel under obliga-
tions to call the attention of the public
to the Importance of protecting the
lives of our seamen and the safety of the
nation by appropriate legislation, de-
nouncing as crimes all such acts as the
frauds practicsd upon the government
in connection with armor plate and
other material of war, and making euch
acts punishable in all persons who COM
NIT them or aid their commission"
In recon- mending test OF plate the
committee says:
Notwithstanding all the admissions
made by the superintenden.s employed
| by the Carnegie company, they claim
all the plates paid for by the govern
ment are up to the specifications OF the
contracts. The contract of February
rs, 1898, states the obligation imposed
upon the contractors to satisfy the in
spector that everything has been done
in strict accordance with the terms Of
the contract. 1t has been conclu lusively
| shown that the contractors have been
satisfied and the armor plates passed by
the most notorious frauds. The efforts
of the company and all it's superintend-
ents, Cline, Cory and Sohwsb, have
been to satisfy our committee that the
armor is up to the requirements of the
contract, Notwithstanding false reports
to inspectors, doctoring OF specimens,
plugging of plates, fraudulent retreat
| ing OF test plates and ''jockeying" of
the testing machine, The unbluehing
character OF the frauds to which these
men have been parties. and the disre.
gard for truth and honesty which they
have shown in testifying before your
com mittee, render them unworthy OF
credencs, and everything bears against
| their contention.
ut Is not to be supposed that such
manifold frauds were continued for a
long time without an important object
to be gained. As individual plates and
groups of plates were passed in many
cases by fraud, the fair conclusion ia
that without the frauds they would not
have passed. Two questions remain,
however: First, whether. notwith-
standing the frauds and the failure to
attain the high standard required by the
contracts, the armor is not good steel
and fair armoY; second, the extent to
which the government has been damaged
by the frauds and Irregularities prac-
ticed upon it.
"The terms of the resolution under
which your committee is acting, require
them to ascertain the amount of dam
ages. 1t is impossible for them to do
this with the present powers. The only
way to ascertain the actual strength and
condition OF the armor, is to subject
certain plates of the groups passed by
ballistic tests. Your committee has no
more work to do, for the Information OF
the house, in relation to further contin-
| uing this investigation by making such