The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1899-05-10


OFFICIAL 1GHOnANCE ABOUT -.
GET 0OCND.
The dead wall Of of1cfaI ignorance.
inertia and downright stupidity which
6eattlA INNS up against Whenever IL
tries to secure from certain depart
ments Of the government recognition Of
it, advantages. or Justice TO its COM
mercial interests. would be ludicrous II
II were not both exasperating and In
furious.
First comes Endicott. the brick and
mcrtar' rear admiral In charge of the
bureau Of yards and docks. and tells
tho world that Capt Aahan and his
distinguished colleagues made q mis-
take In locating the Port Orchard dry
dock He calmly proposes to abandon
all the work which has been done there
and build q dock at some other point.
yet to be determined upon. The world
wide fame Of Capt. Mahan az a naval
strategist and expert. the facts that all
Of the arguments against the location
OF the dock which he advances were
fully discussed and refuted in the re-
ports OF the two boards by which the
dock was located. that It Is the best
dock that the government owns. that
el.0oo.ooo has already been spent upon
II. and that further sums have been ap-
propriAted on the recommendation OF
his own department, cut no figure with
this civilian admiral.
Following him comes the commissary
department and tells US that Puget
sound cities cannot be permitted to bid
on supplies for the army. because the
war department cannot spare a conf
missary officer to open the bids and
pass on the supplies. Our request that
troops and supplies may be shipped to
the Philippines by way Of Puget sound
II met by the statement that the gov
eminent lent some money more than
twenty years ago to the Central Pacific
railroad. and that that road must be
patronized. to the exclusion Of all other
transcontinental roads. because the
amounts due to It from the government
for transportation are credited against
it's debt The debt was adjusted months
ago on basis satisfactory to the gov
hat e. ~
aided road. and. therefore. all other
roads and routes. and all cities not
reached by II, are excluded from con-
sideration. The government would save
millions Of dollars. and the health and.
perhaps, the lives OF many OF its so.-
diers by choosing the northern route.
but this appears to count for nothing
against the consideration that by
choosing another route. the government
Is able to collect part OF an old debt.
which everybody knows is perfectly Sc
cure.
Our demands for consideration, in
stead Of being impartially Investigated
by the department. are referred to
quartermaster stationed in San Fran
cisco and bound by family, social and
business ties to that city. What this
report may be can only be imagined. as
our Chamber OF Commerce has never
been favored with any information re-
sarding IL.
Latest Of all comes Corbin. the Poo
Bah OF the war department. whose little
finger appears TO be thicker than thu
loins Of the major general commanding,
forms us. with exasperating GOODNESS
that our soldier boys cannot be brought
directly home from Manila. because
there are no drydocks or other facilities
for repairing the ships machinery or
hull at Seattle" II is hard TO tell how
TO deal with ignorance so dense and Gull
pablo as this. Without the slightest In
CURRY or investigation. on; OF the depths
Of It's own incredible ignorance. the war
misstatements- Gen. CorbIn's letter
furnishes only one more proof O. the
absolute ussd az such an investigation
OF the advantages and resources Of Pu-
get sound as was asked far In the re-
cent letter from the Chamber ~ Com
n1erce. We are glad 10 see that this
body has supplemented its first letter
by another. which we print today. point
ing out the facilities which Puget sound
affords fer the docking and repair OF
ships This letter very wisely ignores
the Grass ulissta,enents Of the war d.
partmen. hu. submits the facts regard
iny cur drydocks. shiphuildinw plants
ard repair shops IN way tha, should
Re convincing. even 10 Corhin or an
Era!eoft