The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1897-03-31
TILLMAN'S PLAIN TALK.
WHAT HE RECENTLY SAID OF SOME
GREAT FRAUDS.
How the Contractors Cheated the Gevorn-
ment In Furnishing Armor Plate
Words from a Strong Man.


The Senate having under considera
ton the bill (H. R. 10336) making ap
preparations for the naval service fol
the fiscal year ending June 30. 1898
and for other purposes, MIR. Illlmar
said:
Mr.. President: From my brief ex
perience in this body 1 sympathlze
very much with the feeling of help
lessness and ignorance which the dis
tinguished Senator from West Virgin
ia (Mr. Elkins) hes confes: ed; and,
even though I am a member Of the
Naval Committee and have devoted
as much time as could spare f1om
nv other duties here to the busine IS
of familiarizing myself with the sub
ject matter intrusted to my care, l do
not feel able to give him all the light
that he asks for on this question OF
armor. But do feel able to give him
enough light, and to give the Senate
enough light, to show that there is
nothing connected with the recent
history of this government-no ex-
penditure-so reeking with fraud and
so disgraceful to those who are r.
sponsible for it.
If we 90 back and trace the history
of this armor. plate manufacture we
find that during Mr.. Cleveland's first
term, when Secretary Whitney began
what is known as the construction OF
the new Navy, the manufacture OF ar.
NOR according to the most approved
methods was an unknown thing IN
this country, and that there was no
plant capable of performing that work.
The largest steel plant in the country
at that time, I believe, was at Bethle-
hem, and Congress wisely, perhaps
Q shall not pretend to say it was not
wise) entered not into a contract, put
it authorized the Secretary OF the Ma
Wy to enter into contract with the
Bethlehem Iron Works by which they
were to construct a sufficient addition
to their already large steel works to
make this armor. The price fixed was
away up yonder, some 5000 or $500, l
am not familiar with the exact amount
but it was $500 or $500 per ton, and it
was generally understood in the de-
bates and in the newspapers that the
enormous price was given by reason
of the fact that an enormous expendl.
ture of three, four or five million dol
lars was necessary, and the govern
ment proposed by this large price to
reimburse the Bethlehem Manufactu-
ring Company in the contract which
would then be let for its outlay. The
proof is overwhelming in these reports
in the testimony taken before the Ma
val COMMITTEES in the investigation
last winter, that the plant at Bethle'
hem, which was constructed in addl-
rion to what they already had, has
been paid for twice over by this gov
ernment absolutely, and that they
have made present of it to the Beth
lehem Company.
In year or two after the contract
was entered into at Bethlehem the
new Secretary of the Navy, Mr.. Ira
cy, finding that the delivery of armor
from Bethlehem did not keep pace
with the needs of the Navy, or for
some other reason-that was the c3-
tensible excuse-without authority
from Congress, entered into a contract
of his own with the Carnegie Works
at Plttsburg, by which they were to
receive the same price for the armor
that Bethlehem was receiving, and he
thereby hoped, as he explained, to
bring about competition in the price
of armor, and have two plants instead
of one, and thereby enable the gov
ernment to obtain all the armor it
might want in the construction of the
new Navy at reduced prices after a
while.
The construction OF the new Navy
has gone on. 1t is getting to be rather
respectable. 1t has cost us an enor-
nous sum. Last winter, when the
Venezuela war scare was on, the pro-
position came from the house to in
crease the Navy by four battleships.
There was struggle here to reduce it
to two, but we compromised on three,
as I foretold would be the casa, because
there are only three navy-yerds in
this country that can construct such
ships. Each one of them got ship,
and they, in collusion, agreed as to
the prics they would bid on those
ships, and no doubt we are TO-DAY pay
ing million dollars bonus or a mil
lion and half dollars clear pl oft
over and above q reasonable sum for
their construction.
But the question of armor to put on
these ships was under investigation
by the Naval Committee, and sll we
could do in this body as to the reduc.
ton that should Ee had was to put ii
off ard forbid any contract being let
out for armor plate until an investi.
cation by the Secretary of the Navy.
The Secretary of the Navy made that
investigation. 1t is here. 1t is full
and complete. The Naval Committee
has had this matter under considera,
ton during the whole year; we have
paid more attention to it than any
and all else before us; and notwith
standing our ignorance (and con-
fess we are still ignorant,) we have
learned enough to know that these
two companies, instead of competing
with each other in the manufacture
of armor, sre to day in collusion anc
have formed trust; that they fix the
price absolutely, without any regare
to justice, without any regard to th'
liberal manner in which the Govern
ment has treated them in the past
without any regard to the fact tina
the price they have received, amount
ing to about SIS, 100000 for plate
they have already manufactured, ha