The Washington herald., 1913-10-15
BIG sum SAVED
! ON new EARSHIP
Government Comes Out
S6l4,136 Ahead as Result
Of Contract Fight.
STATEMENT BY DANIELS
Secretary Of Navy Urges the Establish
ment Of a Federally Owned and
Operated Armor Plant.
STATEMENT BY DANIELS

More than half million dollars will
be saved in the construction Of one bat
tieship as the result Of the fight which
Secretary OF the Navy Daniels has made
against the '.armor plate trust" COM
prising the Bethlehem. Midvale and Car
Inegie Stee; Companies.
But in announcing this victory yester-
day afternoon Mr.. Daniels admitted that
il was not satisfactory, and that he
believed a government-owned and operat-
ed armor plant to be the only satisfac-
tory method Of securing armor plate at
q fair price for the government
Secretary Daniels gave out the figures
in announcing that, as a result OF a
second series OF competitive bids for
the armor plate contract in connection
with the construction of battlcship No.
80. probably to be named the South Caro-
lima, the contract had gone to the Mid
vale Steel Company.
First Bids Identical.
Already contracts for much of the steel
work on the projected battleship had been
let to the Carbon Steel Company of Pitts
burgh. which this year was encouraged
to compete against the 'Big Three" COM
panies for such work as It could ac-
complish. But three classes of armor,
known as Glass a. Turret, and Class
''B' armor, only the three big companies
are able to manufacture.
These three turned in identical bids the
first time, and Secretary Daniels refused
to accept the bids on the ground that
they were not competitive. AS a matter
of fact, there has been no competition
in this class of work between these three
companies for years, the successful bid
der" always dividing up the work with
the other two, IL is declared. As the
result OF Secretary Daniels refusal to
receive identical bids. after a number Of
Conferences with the Secretary, officials
of the companies turned in a set OF bids
which were neither identical with each
other-or, in any case, identical with the
bids first submitted.
AS result II reductions in these bids
and the saving effected through competi-
tive bidding on other steel requirements,
the Secretary announced yesterday that
ssl4.lS5 had been saved on battleship No.
80 alone.
Fight just Begun.
Secretary Daniels, however. is not sat
isfied with this saving and will continue
to urge the erection OF a government
steel plant.
"I am, of course, pleased at the sub
stantial savtng in the cost Of battleship
No. So he said yesterday afternoon.
This has resulted from the refusal to
accept the original Identical bids Of the
steel companies. but consider that the
fight has only just begun. and that this
reduction is the mere preliminary skir-
mish, as it is my intention to eventu-
ally secure armor for the United States
Navy at the actual cost OF manufacture.
This, II is my firm belief. can be achieved
by the erection of a government armor
plant. and II is my intention to lose no
opportunity to urge upon Congress the
advantages Of its construction
The prices submitted by the Midvale
Company and accepted are Sill SIS lower
than those submitted by all three COM
panies in the first set of bids. Referring
to the identical bids first received, Secre-
tary Daniels said:
This was in conformity with their
practice for some years past OF putting
in bids practically identical for armor
and such gun forgipgs as they alone were
able to manufacture. Competition under
this system was. of course, a farce, and
no pretense of an intent to underbid each
other was made by the steel companies
when an explanation was demanded"
While the Secretary does not consider
the prices finally accepted anywhere near
as low as they ought to be, the necessity
for beginning at once the manufacture of
armor for battleship 3S, In order to avoid
serious delay in her completion and the
bility that any further reductions
2ould be obtained at this time, decided
him to accept the new figures. At the
request of the bidders the Secretary con-
sented to allow the successful bidder to
sublet. in case of necessity, any portion
cf the armor-plate contract, provided that
the firm to which the contract originally
was given should stand the increased
cost IL any, charged by the firm receiv-
ing the sublet contract.