Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-09-11
.G,P,O, REPORT PUBLIC
Former Public Printer Palmer
Scored.
THELANSTON CONTRACT
MATTER FOR LEGAL DEPART
MENT TO CONSIDER.
Mr.. Oscar J. Ricketts, Exonerated
From All Blame for Middle at
the Big Shop.
THELANSTON CONTRACT

A dispatch from Oyster Bay. L. l., last
night says: President Roosevelt today made
public the report of the Keep commission
on its recent investigation Of affairs in the
government printing office at Washington.
The inquiry was made by special direction
of the President on account of protest
which he had received from officials Of the
Mergenthaler Typesetting Machine Com
pany against the award of a contract by
Public Printer Frank w. Palmer to the
Lanston Monotype Company for seventy
two machines of its make.
By order of the President the contract
with the Lanston company was held up I'M
til an investigation could be made. with
the view of ascertaining whether the
charges of favoritism and corruption in the
letting Of the contract were substantially
founded. The President decided, after an
examination of the Keep report that the
contract Tor the LanSton machines should
stand The Keep commission reported that
II the contract could be set aside "such a
course would be desirable although the
commission states expressly that mo cor
rupt consideration. payment or promise
passed from the Lanston Monotype Com
pany to the public printer or to any per-
son In the government service"
1t was developed by the investigation,
the public printer were Indirectly interested
in the Lanston company, their wives be-
ing stockholders therein The commission
shows that fair and impartial test Of the
Lanston and Mergenthaler machines was
not made, and reports that the purchase OF
80 large number OF Lanston machines
was improvident." and indicated great
Partially and bias on the part Of the pub
lie printer. The commission regards the
purchase as maladmnistration"
The report of the commission is volum-
inous, containing about 1900 words Ac-
company1ng 1t is memorandum by Presi-
report, except as to the disposition Of the
contract for the Lanston machines, which
he has directed shall stand.
The Presidents Findings.
The text of the Presidents memorandum
follows:
OYSTER BAY, September 8, 1905.
The conclusions of the committee are
hereby approved, save the latter part of
conclusion one. 1t does not appear that
there is any question as to the validity of
the contract in question. If it had not
been for the conduct of the Mergenthale
company in preferring the charge discussed
by the committee in conclusion two. that
Of corruption, should agree with the COM
mittee that it would be desirable to set
aside the contract. II such a course were
legal. But second only to corruption in
public officer in point of iniquity comes
making a baseless charge of corruption
and this is what the committee finds the
Mergenthaler company has done in this
case, its comments being in part:
g In the light of the failure of the COM
pany to produce evidence Of such corrup-
ton. 1t must be held that the charge was
made reckleSsly and the Mergenthaler
company should be severely condemned for
including such a charge in formal COM
munication to the President of the United
States made a basis for official action on
ic fli to thn ,rf,
Monotype Company to say that no evidence
was produced by the Mergenthaler COM
pany, nor was any obtained by the COM
mittee in the course of its hearing, tending
to show any promise, payment consid-
GRAFTON of any kind whatsoever made by
the Lanston company, or any of its Off
GERS or agents, to any person in the gov
eminent. service
Had not this charge of corruption been
made, l should have entirely agreed with
the conclusion of the committee that II 1t
were possible (Which it is noD it would be
desirable to cancel the contract in question
Public Printer Palmer has been removed
from Office The cases Of the subordinates
alluded to in the report must be taken up
in connection with the discipline and re-
organization of the bureau when Mr.. Pal
mer's successor assumes office.
THEODORE ROOSEVELT"
The Keep commission was appointed some
of the business methods in all the govern
ment departments, with a view of simplify
Ing and improving them. Its report into
the affairs of the government printing office
Is signed by G. H. Keep, assistant secretary
of the treasury, chairman; F. n. Hitchcock,
first assistant postmaster general; Law
renee o. Murray, assistant secretary of
commerce and labor, and James K. Car
field commissioner of corporations in the
Department of Commerce and Labor.
No Corruption Found.
The general conclusions of the commits
40 1fn tn1o
summed up as follows:
"First-The contract of the 18th of June
was duly executed by the public printer and
the Lanston Monotype Company before it's
subject matter was called to your attention
and before therefore. any orders were. or
could be- issued to delay action. The law
gives the public printer full discretion to
make such a contract, and his contracts tor
machinery do not have to be approved by
any superior officer by the joint commit
tee on printing. We know of no ground
upon which the contract can be success
fully attacked Its validity Is, however
more properly question for your legal ad-
visers than for this committee. If 1t could
be set aside. such course would be de-
sirable.
''Second-No corrupt consideration, pay
ment or promise passed from the Lanston
Monotype Company to the public printer or
to any person in the government service.
"Third-The action of the public printer in
making tnlS purchase was, III our OplIiOH,
based largely upon report from his sub
ordinat ties, claiming superiority for the Lam
ston machines. which report was based on
unfair tests and imperfect records. and was
unjust to the Mergenthaler machine.
"Fourth-Two important assistants of the
public printer, holding positions as chiefs of
division In the government printing Office
and connected in important ways with such
report. were indirectly interested in the
I.anston company, their wives being stock
holders therein.
"Fifth-Both the Lanston and Mergen-
thaler machines have done excellent work
in the government printing office, and both
are needed there, and. in our judgment. both
should have been purchased, but further
than this we express no opinion as to their
comparative merits for particular classes Of
work
"Sixth-The purchase of forty-five Lam
ston machines. costing about $4,000, for
work on patent specifications without any
test of the Mergenthaler machine on this
work. although request for fair test of
the two machines on this particular work
had been made by the Mergenthaler COM
pany, and although the public printer had
promised the Mergenthaler company careful
consideration of the merits of the two ma
chimes on this work, was an improvident
purchase and indicates great Partially and
bias on the part of the public printer. We
consider 1t maladministration.
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