THE USE OF IRON. , 77 



" It is remarkable that so many fail to see that specifica- 

 tions and inspection must always go hand in hand ; that 

 neither can confer the benefits it should without the other. 

 Most people realize that if no specifications are stated to indi- 

 cate the nature and quality of the structure desired, the manu- 

 facturer cannot be blamed if the structure does not meet the 

 expectations of the purchaser. But often little thought is 

 given to the second part of the purchaser's duty, that of 

 inspection. It is not recognized as a duty owed by every 

 purchaser for his own protection and safety, and to secure 

 benefits from a carefully compiled specification. When the 

 millennium is reached, when it may be reasonably expected 

 that every man's work will be perfect and each one's labor as 

 valuable as that of his fellows, then there will be no differ- 

 ence between good and bad, no possibility of errors or mis- 

 takes or dishonesty. When that time arrives there will be no 

 further use for either specifications or inspection, and many a 

 busy man will loose his job. But until that time there will 

 be varying grades in the quality of materials and workman- 

 ship, and the necessity for specifying the grade desired on 

 any piece of work will remain. 



"And just so long as there is any cause or reason for 

 specifications, just so long will the inspector be needed to see 

 that the specifications are carried out." 



Concerning the character of the inspection and cost for 

 same, Mr. Henderer continues: " There are a few inspection- 

 bureaus who are striving for the improvement of inspection 

 services, through the establishment of carefully devised sys- 

 tems for the thorough handling of the work and the employ- 

 ment of only experienced and thoroughly reliable men. Such 

 companies can and do give the quality of service that makes 

 inspection thoroughly valuable. But they have thus far 

 found themselves seriously handicapped by the many irre- 

 sponsible inspectors who undertake work at ridiculously low 



