New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1917-12-13
Purpose OF the Fund

Presidents use.
Purpose OF the Fund
The purpose OF this fund was to get
things going at once. Thirty-hve mill
ion dollars was allotted to the War De-
ncrtment. and later repaid. General
Crozier made his first draft upon this
speeding-up fund in September, ana
then for only a trifing amount. Inc
general may be asked tomorrow why
something was not done with this iuna
70 get contracts for arms started
promptly.
To-dav's hearing was only begin
,in, Tho ordnance chief was allowed
70 tell his own story in his own way
Few questions were asked, and those
IN the most considerate manner. There
was no disposition to follow up admis-
.iors sbarplv. as the failure to follow
nm the admission Of failure to use the
emergency fund TO promote the en-
,,o,co into contracts before final ap-
aronr;ations were made showed plainly
! enough. er.. ,s -
;s not evident that it is carrying Dig
/ s,;ck The spirit of the voluntary
censorship. which is a more eXactlng
! tb;no than an involuntary censorship,
roste upon the proceedings OF the IN
voS,icatine committee. Moreover, there
! - annarent a feeling that in entering
/ into these Investigations Congress IS
Going through a political No Mans
fsnd II likes safety in the trenches
better Perhaps courage Will come.
/ perbaps il won't. A few days VIII tell.
E,pansion Caused Confusion
The picture General Crozier painted
u,as the picture OF a small organiZa-
ton totally unprepared caught sud
denly by the war, lost in the confusion
of an enforced expansion. Some one
aid the other day that if the Ger
mans should bomb Washington and
,r,, "a blow up the War Department. IN
order 10 hit il all they would have to
do would be to drop bomb upon
eyerv building in Washington. In or
dor TO hit the Ordnance Bureau they
uould have to drop shells on 30 per
cent of the buildings in Washington.
General Crozier told the committee
of Ahe process by which his bureau
grew from one occupying few rooms
in one building to one occupying some
rooms in almost every building. You
hal a feeling when you listened to the
tale that the business OF delivering
guns had literally bee "lost IN the
,huffie." =.
When the war began the business OF
building guns was a long way OF
senator Wadsworth asked the witness
what was done while war was impend-
ING. after Bernstorf's return TO Ger
MANY
ave prepared list OF munitions
manufactured. Evidently it was neces.
sary to begin at the beginning. But
the card index was not all. There was
a good deal of thinking and discussion
done" explained the general.
IL was evident from the testimony
that there was good deal Of think
ING and discussion done on contracts
The witness told repeatedly how man
ufacturers wouldn't make this and
wouldn't make that contract.
The Contract Rock
Rumor has il that the general
wrecked the gun-producing programme
on the contract rock, just as Admiral
Capps almost wrecked the shipbuildinrg
programme upon the same obstacle.
The chief end OF a government bureau
head in time of peace appears to be
to make a fine record of fighting with
contractors 10 produce before Con-
grcss when its investigating commit
30 calls upon him. This spirit has
heen carried over from peace into war
some one has said of General Crozier