Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1894-08-31
ARMOR PLATE FRAUDS
A BOLD CRIME DISCLOSED BY
THE INVESTIGATION.

A BOLD CRIME DISCLOSED BY
THE INVESTIGATION
Hundreds of Human Lives and
Perhaps the Nation Might Have
Been Endangered.
The special committee of the House
investigating the charges affecting the
reliability of material OF the new ships
furnished by the Carnegie company Of
Pittsburg, laid their reports before the
House on the 2S,f inst. The report
shows that the contract with the
company covered period OF two years
and three months from November,
1890, to February, 1898. The amount
Of armor plate contracted for was
S,97S tons, costing S., 5,46l ,920. In the
opening of the report, Mr.. Cummings,
chairman of the committee, gives the
10 charges made against the company,
and follows it with the admissions
made under charge. Mr.. Schwab
admits under the first charge
that the plate did not receive
uniform treatment, explaining that
by saying that uniform results
alone were required. The committee
construes the specifications to mean
uniform quality before treatment and
practically uniform results will neces-
sarily follow. If uniform results alone
were meant, there would have been no
necessity for requirements as to the
process.
The committee finds the charges Of
fraud sustained, scores the company
severely and recommends that the SO
suspected plates in use be tested, as
the only method of proving their fit
ness or unfitness. 1t finds the govern
ment inspection was negligent, but no
charge of dishonesty rests upon the
inspectors.
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 government inspectors; that
specimens for testing were retreated
before being submitted; that the test
ing machine was fraudulently manip-
ulated; that substitution was made in
the case OF plate designed for a bal
listic test, and that the government
stamp was either duplicated or stolen
and used without the knowledge OF
the government inspectors. The re.
port states that the number of fur
naces used was inadequate to fulfill
the specifications of the contract in
regard to the amount of armor-plate
turned out. After the first investiga-
ton of the frauds the number OF fur.
naces was increased from four 10 ten.
In regard to the "jockeying" of the
test machines, it is asserted that the
company made private tests OF MA
terial, and if it was below the standard
manipulated the machine at the Off
cial test so that it would show the re.
quired tensile strength. The charges
Of: retreating and substituting plates
designed for ballistic tests, the com.
mittee is satisfied are true. The
charge of using q duplicate or stolen
government stamp is not sustained.
The report says the government in
spection was negligent and defective
but this is attributed to the fact tina,
there were not nearly enough inspec'
tors to do the work. 1t is asserted
that the fraud has been traced home
to the general superintendent, who is
a stockholder in the Carnegie com
pany. Of the feature of criminalty
involved, Chairman Cummings says:
"The frauds which the committee
have found are worthy to be called
crimes. The servants of the Carnegie
company (whether with or withou,
knowledge of the company, to in
crease their gain, deliberately con.
tinued for many months to commit
acts whose natural probable conse
quences would be terrific loss of men
in times of war, and perhaps the ma.
ton. A fine, or to make mere money
compensation, is an inadequate atone
ment for such wrongs. Your com
mittee does not consider it within its
province to draft a criminal statute
but they do feel under obligations to
call the attention of the public to the
importance of protecting the lives ol
our seamen and the nation by appro'
pirate legislation denouncing as crimes
all such acts as the frauds practiced
upon the government in connection
with armor.plate and other material
of war, and making such acts punish.
able in all persons who commit them
or aid in their commission"
In recommending a test OF plate
the committee says that notwithstand'
ing all the admissions made by the
superintendents employed by the COM
pany. they claim that all plates paid
for by the government are up to the
speculations of the contracts. The
contract of February %, 1893, states
the obligation imposed upon the con-
tractors to satisfy the inspectors that
everything has been in strict accord
ance with the terms Of the contract.
1t has been shown that the inspectors
have been satisfied and the armor
plates passed by the most notorious
frauds. The report continues:
"The efforts of the company and
all its superintendents, Kline, Schwab
and Cory, have been to satisfy your
committee that the armor is up to the
requirements of the contract, notwith-
standing false reports to inspectors,
doctoring of specimens, plugging of
plates, fraudulent retreatment of test
plates, and 'jockeying' Of the testing