The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1899-05-11

W dSti VIII no WHISPER OIL SCANDAL ABOUT
contracts, and with not even a suggestion
that the food given to our fghting men on
the sea was not abundant and OF the best
quality.
Born in New York city in 1887, ana
prepared for college at the Philips acad-
envy, he was graduated from williams
college and was about to enter the profess
sion of law when he was appointed, Sep
TENDER ., 1861, an assistant paymaster,
boat Pembina in the expedition that re-
suited in the capture of Port Royal. Fol-
lowing his promotion, in 1868. to be pay
master. he was attached to the Richmond,
and he participated in Farragut's exploits
at Port Hudson and in Mobile bay. The
war over, he served on the Michigan, on
the lakes, from 1865 to 1868. at a time
when the Fenians were making trouble.
and was with his ship when she captured
party of Fenian Invaders crossing the
Niagara river. Paymaster Stewart was
next in service as purchasing officer In
Washington, and from 1878 to 1875 was
fleet paymaster on the Aslatlc station.
gaining information and experience that
We're valuable year ago. Becoming pay
inspector in 1879 his next tour ashore was
as Inspector of provisions and clothing at
New York, this service lasting from 1850
to 1888, when he went to the Euronean
station as fleet paymaater on the flagship
Lancaster, continuing on the station until
1853 Selected to I'LL The important post
of navy pay officer at New York, he took
hold Of that work at a time when the de-
partment was undergoing reformation.
The bureau TO which he was attached was
then called the bureau Of provisions and
clothing, as it had been called for many
years 1t clothed and fed the navy and
gave 1t its pay. In his first annual re-
port in November 1885, he criticised the
workings of the department
b \ \
Not to 60 too minutely into the faults
found by Nj. whitney in the loose con-
tract method followed, it is enough to say
that he found them dlsorderly and even
seandalous. There were too many waste
full open purchases" and not enough econ
omy of management of contract purchases.
1t was slow work from the beginning,
suggested by Secretary Whitney, by which
discovery was made OF a necessary re-
form. to the adoption of a new system,
under which the navy became the owner
of all material purchased for it. thus talk
ing property out of the exclusive control
and use OF a bureau, and requiring that
uhe new bureau of supplies and accounts
should keep track of all that was bought
and see that II was properly distributed
and accounted for, and no Unnecessary
purchases made in the old loose way. Mr..
Stewart was appointed paymaster general
by President Harrison on May 16. 1890.
To the pay corps the appointment was ad-
msttedly the best that could have been
made. Wherever he had been employed
Mr. Stewart has always been the calm, me-
thedical, good-tempered, steady man Of
business commanding respect and conn.
deroe FOR the work performed by him and
those under him, aud affection for the
manner IN which he conducted it. When
he reached the bureau Of supplies and uo-
counts here he found the books supplied
to carry the accounts under the Whitney
system stin unopened Paymaster Gen
eral Stewart understood the theory and
saw thu way al once to put it in practice.
One OF the first things accomplished by
him was the provision of card index
account with all the ships. bureaus and
store houses, by which. at a moments
NOTICE. he could tell The secretary Of the
navy Just what a ship had cost originally.
how much had been expended upon her
for maintenance repairs, coal, clothing
and care, i she We're laid up.
~
Paymaster General Stewards promotion
to be pay director, the highest grade in the
pay corps, came in 1891. During President
cleveland's administration he continued
he