File No. 893.77/1501
The Secretary of State to Minister Reinsch
Washington, December 18, 1915.
Sir: Referring to previous correspondence and especially to your telegram of November 26, 3 p.m., regarding the question of tenders [Page 167] for bridges in connection with the Hukuang Railways, there is enclosed herewith for your information copy of a letter of December 14,2 to the Department from the American Group transmitting a letter received by them from the president of the United States Steel Products Company in connection with this matter.
You will observe from the enclosed letter that the Steel Products Company is unwilling to give the guaranty required by the managing director of the Hukuang Railways because it has no knowledge of what class of men would attempt to erect these bridges, what experience they had had on this class of work or what delays the railroad company might claim. The company further states that as its work is laid out by means of templates and mechanical spacing machines, all spans of the same length would be exact duplicates and if one span of each length was erected and properly checked the railroad company would have sufficient assurance that the spans would go properly together. The company has bid upon the specifications exactly as called for, i. e., has given a price including shop erection of each span, and has also given an alternate price based upon the shop erection of one span only of each length, which alternate proposition, it feels sure, wall save money for the railroad company, if considered.
You are instructed to take this matter up with Chinese Government and urge the fairness of the proposal of the United States Steel Products Company.
I am [etc.]
- Not printed.↩