e made early in 1863. It was
agreed that they should be completed within six or eight months. It was
also provided in these contracts that the Government "should have the
privilege of making alterations and additions to the plans and
specifications at any time during the progress of the work, as it may
deem necessary and proper," and that if said alterations and additions
should cause extra expense to the contractors the Government would "pay
for the same at fair and reasonable rates."

It thus appears that the time allowed for the completion of these
vessels was with the assent of the contractors made exceedingly short;
that notwithstanding this fact they consented to permit such alterations
of plans as must almost necessarily prolong the time, fixing no limit to
such extension, and that in the same breath they fix their measure of
compensation for such alterations and an extended time consequent
thereon at "a fair and reasonable rate" for the extra expense caused
thereby.

Almost immediately upon the beginning of their work alterations and
changes were made in the original plans for these vessels, and they were
repeated and continued to such a degree that the completion of the
vessels was delayed many months.

In the latter part of the year 1864 and early in the year 1865 payments
in excess of the contract price were made by the Navy Department to the
contractors under the provisions of the contract above recited. The
contract price for the _Squando_ was $395,000. The contractors
claimed extra compensation amounting to $337,329.46, and there was
allowed $194,525.70. The contract price of the _Nauset_ was
$386,000, the extra compensation claimed was $314,768.93, and the amount
allowed $192,110.98. The contract price of the side-wheel steamer
_Ashuelot_ was $275,000, the extra compensation claimed was
$81,447.50, and the amount allowed was $22,415.92. The different sums as
thus adjusted were received by the contractors in settlement of their
claims for extra expense, and receipts in full were given by them to the
Government.

A number of other contractors had done like work for the Government and
claimed to have demands growing out of the same for extra compensation.

Evidently with the view of investigating and settling these claims, on
the 9th day of March, 1865, the Senate passed the following resolution:

_Resolved_, That the Secretary of the Navy be requested to organize
a board of not less than three pe