The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-03-20
contract and the others before the con- tract was signed"

contract and the others before the con- tract was signed :"
 Tn the interest of whomY'
 They asked me about the attitude of the department. told them what had done and what I proposed to do. No suggestions were made by them to me in any way. They simply felt. they said. 1t was to the interest of the Gov ernment to have two companies build ing boats D
 Mir. Metca1f and Chief Constructor Capps both declared they knew of no excessive profits being realized on the submarines and the former held that the Navy Department should be allow cd to arrange the details of the types of boats.
 The total appropriation for sub- marine boats since such boats were first contracted for was shown by Mir. stephens to be s4.se0.ooo and Admiral Capps was asked if he considered there was a million dollars of excessive profits
 @As an off-hand statement" he re- piled, T would say no. I think un- der their contracts the builders have q fair but not excessive profit"
 In regard to Mir. Lilley's charge that submarine boats owned by this Gov ernment were inferior to boats of like nature owned by foreign nations. Ad- miral Capps said there was no basis for such charges.
 ITS the Lake Boat Company offering to construct boats more cheaply than the Electric Company asked Mir. How ard.
 If you get them down to the same characteristics, I should say mo-" re- piled Admiral Capps.
 Admiral Capps was asked the fol- lowing question. prepared by Mir. Lit tleton, counsel for the Electric Boat Company:
 .Sincs you became chief constructor. has the Electric Boat Company ever received a contract except by winning competition and except at a price fair and reasonabie?'
 He replied:
 sTo the best of my knowledge the Electric Boat Company has not re- ceived q contract in the last four years which was not fair and reasonable. So far as competition is concerned. the contracts have been based upon results obtained after trial"
 After this point. a recess was taken.
 Before Secretary Metcalf took the stand at the afternoon session. Chair man Boutell had read a letter from William Dulles of New York. regarding the anonymous letter Mir. Liiley had left with the committee, stating that Mir. Dulles and Robert McA Floyd of Cold Spring Harbor. N. r.. had resign ed as directors of the Electric Boat Company, '.because of the amount used for corruption and for which they would make no acounting."
 Mir. Dulles said that no such fact as suggested in the anonymous letter caused his resignation He resigned because he did not have time to de- vote to the interests of the company and had done so with great regret. MT. Boutsll stated that the committee had Intended to take no notice of the com munication owing to it's anonymous character. but in view of the fact that the letter had been published and as Mr. Eilley had sent 1t to Mir. Dulles. the committee had decided to have the matter entered on the record. ClarIxsem Nails speaR.s Edgar Clarlxson, Secretary of Repre- sentative Hobsols tsstifed that Mre gpaar told him that the Electric Boat Company had inffuence with Speaker Cannon and could use 1t to secure the assi knInent of Ar. Hobson as mem Der Of the Naval Committee, but before this influence would be used Mir. Spear would have to know how Mir. Hohson stood. on the subject of submarines. Mr Clarkson said that he transmit ted this information to Mir. Hobson and later MT. Spear called Mir. Hobson on