The Dalles times-mountaineer. [volume] (The Dalles, Or.) 1882-1904, 1894-04-07
THE CASE STATED.


THE CASE STATED.
The Chicago Inter Ocean of last
Friday thus stated the facts in the
Carnegie frauds:
"The Carnegie case has Its peculiar
ities. Carnegie, Frick and Huntsicker
are the important personages OF firm
that contracted to supply the naval
department of the United States with
armor plates.s The persons named are
officers of the Carnegie Steel Com
pany, Limited, of Pittsburg, Pa
Until January 8, 1894, Mr. Carnegie
had posed as an ultra protectionlst,
and as stalwart among the stalwart
Republicans. Until November, 1892,
the managers of the firm had been
counted as friendly to the. Republican
cause. In the summer of 1892 there
was serious difficulty between the firm
and it's workmen, and many Republi-
can newspapers, the Inter Ocean among
them, said that Mr.. Carnegie and the
managers Of his company were not
without blame In the origin and con-
duct of the dispute. From that time
Mr.. Carnegie's friendship for the Re
publican party cooled, and he stood
inactive during the political campaign.
That was in 1892. Afterward, in
1894, on the 9Th day of January, Mr..
Carnegie caused to be published in the
New York Tribune letter in which
he advised the Republicans in con-
gress 60 support the Wilson tariff bill.
The date of this letter is important.
"In September. 1898, Mr.. Herbert,
secretary of the-navy, received infsrma
ton that much of the armer plate de-
hvered by the Carnegie 6ru to the
navy department was of quality in
ferior to contract terms, being full of
'blow-holes' and other defects, and also
that plates selected og tn. naval Off
GERS for 'ballistic tests had been sub
jected to retreatment at the works OF
the company, thus making the selected
plates stronger and superior to the
mass of plates of which the selected
plates were supposed to be fair sreci-
mems
"The information was given by
workmen who had suffered during the
famous homestead troubles of 1892
troubles that contributed largely to the
Democratic victory in the fall of that
year. The workmen stipulated that
they should receive % per cent of the
money recovered from the Carnegie
company by the government Inves-
LEGATIONS pursued under direction of
the secretary of war proved the
charges to be we'll founded; indeed,
Carnegie, Frick and Huntsicker each
and all had interviews with the secre-
tary Of war, and each and all admitted
the fact of the inferiority of the plates
delivered to the quality of plates de-
manded by the contract, and ultimate
~. though unwillingly, they were
forced to admit the fact that plates
selected for the .ballistic test had been
retreated and improved at their works
without knowledge or consent of the
government officers who had selected
them as fair average specimens Of :he
mass of plates.
Secretary Herbert determined that
the damage done to the navy depart
ment by the acceptance of the inferior
plates delivered by the Carnegie COM
pany was to the extent of Is per cent
Of the contract price Carnegie, Frick
aad Huntsicker asked Secretary Her
bert if an appeal lay from his decision
to the president, and upon the secre-
tary,s affirmative answer they resolved
70 ley the case before him. On De-
oember 20. 1898. Carnegie, Frick and
Huntsicker had an interview with the
president; who, then was extremely
anxious as to the fate Of the Wilson
bill in the house of representatives..
ION the 9Th day of January last he
wrote the letter to the Tribune. On
the 10th day of ths same month the
president of the United States re-
duced the secretary Of wars estimate
If damages against the Carnegie COM
pany by one-third.
"We have stated the case; we think
Z needless to argue upon it. The
question submitted to the jury Of the
vhole country is just this: Is there
'easonable grounds Of suspicion of con
lection between Carnegie's letter.
erick's aggravatlon of the, Homestead
rouble, and the presidents favorable
leclsion, in de6nance of that of his
ecretary of war, in matter affecting
men who have rendered service to the
Democratic partyf