The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1897-04-15
BOLD HOLD UP.
Not By FOOtpads or By High
Waymen,
But By the Carnegie Steel
Trust of Pennsylvania.
THE NEW YORK WORLD
Publishes a Statement of the
Situation
Which Has Resulted In Senator
ChandIer'S Plan
THE NEW YORK WORLD
To Take Charge of the Carne-
gle Works BY Uncle Sam.

New York, April 15.-The World pub
fishes the following from its Washing
ton correspondent;
The Armor plate trust, made reckless
by years of faVoritism in high places,
has attempted to hold up the govern
ment in fashion which in time of war
would be held to constitute a more SER
ious offense. Three warships wait only
for their sheathing of steel to add to
the dignity and strength of the Ameri-
can fleet. but the Carnegie and Bethle-
hem companies refuse to furnish it ex-
cept at practically their own figures.
Congress had fixed the maximum
price at 5000 a ton, still allowing the
trust a big profit. But the trust has
the plants, the government must have
the armOr from them or go abroad for
it, and highwaYmen tactics are resort
ed to. In this one case-and it would
establish new precedent-the hold up
is for something more than $2,000,000.
Secretary of the Navy Long having
before him the facts that government
contracts have more than paid for the
extensive plants of these corporations;
that they have received profits of more
than 100 per cent on every armOr plate
made; that they have supplied foreign
powers with the same armor for $3.50
less ton; that congress has discOv-
cred that armOr can be made at a profit
for less than $500 ton, calmly recon-
mends that the maximum price to be
paid shall be raised to $500 a ton.
III no department the ma
w of any foreign power could such a
scene have been witnessed as that in
Secretary Longs Office a few days ago
Bids for the armOr for three battle
ships were to be opened by the secre-
tary. Representatives of Carnegie and
Bethlehem companies gathered at the
department, as they had heretofore to
witness the opening of the bids. Threats
were made last March that if congress
assumed to limit the cost of armOr the
trust would refuse to bid and attempt
n ant in n ion
that would compel it to accept the
trusts terms. Not, one bid was receiV-
ed from either company, and the only
Ofter made by the Illinois Steel COM
pany whose bid obviously was framed
to suit the wishes of Carnegie. The
trust companies simply put in letters
saying that $500 was too low a price
Profit of $50 ton would be too small!
Representatives of the trust smiled
at the remarkable outcome and filed
out OF the SecretaryS office with broad
grinS on their faces. Former Secretary
Herbert, who had investigated careful
/ " the many scandals in connection
with armOr plate and had recommend
! ed to congress that the prices charged
by the trust were excessive, was also
there, but it was evident that he had
scarcely expected point blank refusal
from the armOr trust to make any bids
In this dilemma Secretary Long, with
out consulting the president, sends the
papers to congress, recommending that
the demands of the trust be acceded to
to the extent of raising the maximum
price to $500 ton.
Secretary Long has been in office lust
a few days more than a month. He
has had little or no opportunity to go
thoroughly into the question of armor
plate cost or the frauds upon the gov
eminent which have been practised bv
the armOr trust. His recommendations
for concession to Carnegie will doubt
less stir up much hostile criticism in
congress, which has had several invest
igatiOnS of armOr making.
In 1894 the Carnegie company, which
now assumes to dictate to the govern
ment price it shall pay for its armOr
plate, was detected in frauds involving
$1,4O4,O00 worth of plate, some of which
defective as it is, is now on our war
ships, supposedly on the Monterey Ter
ror, New York and Cincinnati among
others. For this fraud the Carnegie
company was locked by Secretary Her
bert Is per cent of the amount involved
but the fine was afterwards reduced by
President Cleveland for some reason or
other to 10 per cent though it was
clearly established in the meantime
that the frauds were worse than had
been charged.
The defective armor was located on
the war ships through an investigation
by the house naval committee which
recommended that the plates which
were full of blow holes be removed at
the expense of the companies This
recommendation was pigeon holed in
the senate. Senator Tillman charged
less than two months ago that the
armor plate trust had strong influence
in the the upper chamber, and the
charge that other backing than the
fact that the senate took no steps to
compel the Carnegie company to substi-
tute faWless plates for the defective
ones on the war ships. In the house
investigation the defective plates were
located on the sides of each war ship
and every foreign power has in its pos
session these facts which furnish them
with all the weak points in the navy
The Carnegie and Bethlehem compa-
MES have been receiving for armOr from
5000 TO $40 a ton. On a basis of $3.50
they have been making close to $500 a
ton. Even at the limit fixed as max
imum price by congress there still
would have been a great profit The
trust il its demands, is taking advan-
tage of the governments weakness in
having no plant of its own to manufac-
ture armOr plate. Several plans for such
a government plant have been proposed
in congress, one by Senator Smith, of
New Jersey, but all, possibly through
trust influence, have been shelved