The Montgomery advertiser., 1905-09-11
MONOTYPE co. !. GETS CONTRACT Report of Keep Con-
 mission.
 CANNOT BE SET ASIDE President Hands Mergarl- thaler Go. Hot Shots. Admits Unfairness of Public Printers Test But Declares BaseIess Charges of Corruption Is Nearly As Bad As Corruption.

Oyster Bay, L. l., Sept. 10.-Presioent Roosevelt today made public the re port of the Keep commission on Us recent investigation of affairs In the | gt vernment printing office at Washing. | ton. The inquiry was made by speciai. ! direction of the President on account or a protest which he had received from officials of the Mergenthaier Typeset- ting Machine Company against the award of contract by Public Printer Frank w. Palmer to the Lanston Mono type Company for seventy-two ma chimes of its make.
 By order of the President the con tract with the Lanston Company was held up until an investigation could ne made with the view of ascertainlng corruption in the letting of the contract were substantially founded.
 As heretofore chronicled in these dis- matches. the President decided after an examination of the Keep report that the contract for the Lanston machines should stand. The Keep commission re : ported that If the contract could De set aside. "such a course would be de- sirable," although tho commission states expressly, that no payment or promise passed from the Lanston Mono type Company to the Public Printer, or to any person in, the government ser vice"
 1t was developed by the investigation however, that two important assistants of the public printer were indirectly in terested in the Lanston Company, tneir wives being stockholders therein The commission shows that fair and im~ partial test of the Lanston and Mergen- thaler, machines was not made and re- ports that the purchase of so large number of Lanston machines was I'm provident" and indicated great par tiality and bias on the part Of the pup lie printer" The commission regards tho purchase as ''maiadmistration." The report of tho commission Is voluminous' containing about 16,0C0 words. Accom- panylng 1t is a memorandum by Presi- dent Roosevelt in which he approves the report except as to the disposition of the contract for Lsnston machines, which he has directed shall stand.
 RoeseveEes MeEnorandana.
 The text of the Presidents nemorar- dunn follows;
 "Oyster Bay, I. l., September 9, 1905.
 'srhe conclusions of the commission are hereby approved save the latter part of conclusion first. It does not ap- pear that there Is any question as to the validity of the contract in ques- ton. If 1t had not been for the con ductor of the Mergenthaler company in preferring the charge discussed by the committee in conclusion two, that or corruption, I should agree with the committee that 1t would be desirable to set aside the contract If such course were legal. But second only to corrup- lion fin A public office in point of in- iauity comes making baseless charge of corruption and this Is what the com mittee finds the Mergenthaler Com pany has done in this case, Its coments being in part:
 company to produce evidence of such oorruption 1t must be held that the charge was made recklessly and the Mergenthaler Company should be se- verely condemned for including such q charge in a formal communication to the President of the United States made as a basis for official action on his part If is fair also to the Lanston Mono type Company to say that no evidence was presented by the Mergenthaler Company, nor was any obtained by the committee in the course of Its hearing tending to show any promise, payment or consideration of any kind whatso- ever made by the Lanston Company, or any of its officers or agents to any per- son in the Government service.
 Had not this charge of corruption been made I should have entirely agreed with the conclusion of the com mittee. that If 1t were possible (which 1t Is noO it would be desirable to can eel the contract in question.
 tsPublic Printer Palmer has been re- moved from office. The cases of the subordinates alluded to in the report must be taken up in connection with the discipline and reorganization of inc bureau when Mir. Palmer's successor assums off1ce
 The Keep Commission was appointed some time ago to make a general in- vestiRation of the business methods in | all inc Government departments with a view of simplifying and improving them. It's report into the affairs of the Government printing office Is signed by | c. H. Keep, Assistant Secretary of the Treasury, Chairman: F. H. Hitchcock, iTrst Assistant Postmaster General; Lawrence O. Murray, Assitant Secretary | of Commerce and Labor, and James R. | Garfield, Commissioner of Corporation j in inc Department of Commerce and Labor.
 r,ittee in the report made public today are summed up as follows:
 Tune was duly executed by the public Drinter and the Lanston Monotype | Eoronanv before its subject matter was | oaIIad to your attention and before, tbarefore. any orders were, or could be l tssued to delay action. The law gives | the public printer full discretion to raoke such a contract and his contracts sor machinery do not have to be ap- vowed by any superior officer or by the ttnint commissioner of printing. We Enow of no ground upon which the non+ract can be successfully attacked. Its validity, however, is more properly ,uestIon for your legal advisors than Sor this committee. If 1t could be set aside such a course would be desirable
 second-No corruption, payment or
 -a1o,sa nassed from the Lanston Mono
 t1,oe Company to the Public Printer or
 to anv person in the government ser
 vice. A.. nSo-o...A.,
 rhird-The action of the public
 .t,,tnr in making this purchase was
 ,r oninion based largely upon
 r. III o from his subordinates claiming
 ',p,.toritv for the Lanston machines
 supei' ,lp'sh ronort was based on unfair tests
 wa wn'0T i,,nerfect records and was unjust
 sa any tbo Mergenthaler machine.
 'o ussnn,rtb-Two important assistants of
 .ha nubIlc printer holding positions as
 shIots shI of division in the government
 n,'.tI,e office and connected in im- p%ortant % % ways with such renoEt wsFa