The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-04-18
He Refuses to Put Blame Upon
 Officials of Navy
POOR BUSINESS METHODS
Mir. LiIley Maintains That Mistakes Were Made in Regard To Sub- marines, But Makes No
 Charges.

Washington. April f7.-Representa- tive Lilley of Connecticut, under whose resolution a special committee of the House has been investigating the Elec- tric Boat company, reiterated his charges today before the committee that the company has made excessive profits on the contracts it has secured from the United States government and most rigid cross examination by mem- bers of the committee, assisted by Mar tin Littleton, attorney for the Electric Boat company, failed to make him re- tract MT. Howard, MT. Stevens and MT. Olmsted manipulated the probe re- lentlessly and vigorously, the latter especially trying to get the author of the charges to admit that the secre- taries and other officials of the navy department were incompetents and that they were fooled and duped into en- tering into contracts with the Electric Boat company.
 LiIley Is Stubborn.
 MT. Stevens devoted more than an hour to a remarkably earnest effort to have Mir. Lilley charge the Secretary of the Navy and his predecessors with in the last six or seven years, the chiefs of the navy bureau and naval of ficials generally, in whose hands are the construction of vessels and the let ting of warship contracts with gross ignorance, inefficiency and incompe- tence,' in that they were responsible for awarding to the Electric company contracts which netted them an alleged excess of more than $1,00O ,000. MT. Lilley refused to father such a charge. He maintained that to the contrary. he believed these men were highly com petent, 'in their line and so far as their information carried tn em,' but he insisted that they were not good business men, that the poor bargains they made proved that, and that to none others than shrewd, able business men should be entrusted the letting of government contracts. An attempt by MT. Stevens to have MT. Lilley testify that on the shoulders of the President should be placed the responsibility for the alleged incompetency of navy of ficals, elicited the reply that the policy which has brought into office five secretaries of the navy in as many years is a poor policy.
 Officers Nervous.
 In the course of his testimony rela- tive to possible influences having to do with the awarding of contracts to the Electric Boat company, MT. Lilley said he had Treason to know there has been good deal of nervousness in the executive officers and the navy and war departments" and that this may have presuaded the government of ficials that they should procure sub marines at any cost.'
 MT Lilley assured the committee that no person connected with the Lake company in any way. shape or form, ever had the slightest intimatio from him that he intended to introduce his resolution. After the resolution was introduced, he said, he thought it would assist the committee if he se- cured information from every availa bi e source and he welcomed any sugges- tions from MT. Neff or Mr. Thurston.
 LIlleyS information.
 In reply to a question by MT. Howard how much information Mir Lilley had at the time he brought his charges and how much additional information he expect ed at that time to get from the Lake Boat company in order to prove them, MT Lilley replied:
 'l did not expect to get anything at the time from the Lake Boat company l thought I had sufficient evidence or could procure sufficient evidence myself to substantiate these charges
 Mr. Howard-At the very outset the charges themselves were drawn by the attorney for the Lake Boat company"
 MT Lilley-A great many of the charges were suggested by me. Senator Thurston put them into shape.
 Regarding the production of the books of the Electric company, Mir Liley said he thought they would show that very large sum of money had been expended by this company-"some such fund as the yellow dog fund developed during the insurance investigation in New York"
 MT. Iilley claimed that if the witnesses had been called in the order suggested by him they would not have had knowledge in advance of his information and it might have been possible to bring out something from the officers of the Elec- trio Boat company.
 You mean by that to say that the testimony that mas been delivered haS been false testimony?' asked MT How ard.
 q do not mean to say anything about it. I think they had a chance to cut their cloth according to my knowledge"
 Are you friendly to the Lake Boat company people?" asked MT. Howard.
 'I am friendly to every human being" replied MT. Lilley. "I have no personal feeling against the Electric Boat people, notwithstanding the fact that I have been told some of the officers of the company have said Hobson and I are black maiers."
 No Corruption Charged.
 Before the committee adjourned for the day MT. Lilley, in reply to Chairman Bou tell, said that he did not charge corrup ton on the part of any official of the navy departmet in the matter of this al legged excessive profit.
 Then" said MT. Boutell, i've are per fectly in accord. now that you are still convinced that there has been a million