The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1902-04-16
SCANDALS COMING TO LIGHT.
Row the Government Was Robbed in
Buying Transports.

Secretary Root today sent an an
sWer to the house resolution adopted
on March Is, calling upon him for al
facts that have come to his knoWl.
edge as to the conduct of the tran.
sport services between San Francisco
and the Philippine islands. The
answer includes the reports Of Inspec-
tor General Chamberlain and Lieut.
enant Colonel Maus. The reports of
various officers, enclosed by Secretary
Root, cover several hundred pages.
Major General S. B. NJ. Young in
transmitting the report Of Lieutenant
Colonel Chamberlain. submits an
analysis Of the report, showing no ade-
quate supervision to any feature OF
the fitting out of transports. for a
long time after tre service was in
augurated, and later the efforts to re-
form the system. General Young
specifies lack of securing competitive
bids.
He says: SIN the case of the Han
cock (before the board was organized)
involving an expenditure approximate
ing, if not amounting to half mil
lion dollars, the matter of indicating
needed repairs was put into the hands
of officials unknown to transport reg
ulaUions under verbal orders and
plenary power given by the honorable
secretary Of war to insure more SAN
itary arrangements on that tran
sport"
General Young also specifies the
case of "an ineXperience man who
knew nothing about paints, being
employed to supervise painting, in a
business where the painting bill Of a
single firm in two years and two
months amounted to s343,74.
In other respects, it is stated, the
report shows that work was given out
and supplies for general use (such as
the fitting up Of cabins) were purchas-
ed without due regard, habitually, to
the protection Of the governments
interests. On that branch of the in
yestigation covering cost Of articles
etc., General Young's summing up Of
the Chamberlain report says that in
one case where the bill was S15,31S,
the work is pronounced generally
unsatisfactory, charges excessive and
material inferior"
Prices paid for material were often
strlkingly in excess of the then cur
rent market prices for the same arti-
cles of like quality and supplies were
purchased in open market without ad-
vertlsing. 1t is further stated in
General Young's summary that pref
erence seems to have been shown
special firms to the point of ordering
from them articles out Of their line OF
business, these firm at the same time
charging exorbitant prices, to the ex-
tent, in a few instances Of 100 per cent
in excess CT ruling market rates.
Upon the facts developed by the in
vestigation, General Young remarks
that under the pressure OF necessity OF
moving large bodies Of troops at short
notice, lack Of methods and forms to
safeguard the government occurred.
Lieutenant Colonel Chamberlain
specifies in detail the features sum-
married by General Young. He re-
fers to the report of the Bates
board" that much of the work done
on the Logan was defective, also that
the amount spent on the Hancock,
s547,O16, was excessive and was for
luxurious fittings. Lengthy descrip-
tions are given of furnishings, etc., Of
inferior quality placed on various
transports.