The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-01-23
SICKEL AND BECK
ON STAND IN PROBE
Testify in the Shipping Trust Inves-
.igation


Washington, January 22.-ShiDping
agreements whereby the North German
Lloyd the Hamburg g-Amercan. the Red
Star and other transatlantic lines keep
out of each others European ports were
acknowledged today before the House
committee on merchant marine by w. j..
Sickel of New York, vice director or traf-
fic of the Hamburg american line.
Mr.. Sickel said the European companies
operated from single ports in the major
fly of cases and that there was an agree
ment between the Hamburg-American
and the North German Lloyd whereby
the former refrained from taking freight
to Bremen from any North Atlantic port
of the United States and the latter re-
Trained from taking freight to Hamburg.
In the same way, he said, his company
did not carry freight to Antwerp in COM
petition with the Red Star line.
No general agreement concerning
other ports were in effect so far as MIR.
Sickel knew. He said there was no
agreement between the different lines
whereby the rates from the United States
the various European ports were adjusted
at common level. Mr.. Sickel said he
understood that his company the North
German Lloyd and the International Mer-
camille marine held so per cent of the
stock of the Holland American line.
p A. S. Franklin, vice president of the
White Star line. and a director of the
International Mercantile marine, will ap-
pear as a witness before the committee
tomorrow.
More testimony intended to show pool
ing and rate fixing among Atlantic
steamship lines was given by Christian
j. Beck, freight traffic manager of the
Hamburg American lines operating to the
United States.
Mr.. Beck produced a pooling and rate
agreement between the Hamburg Ameri-
can and the Royal Mail steam packet
line i'm the United States trade between
Jamaica, Central America and South
America. A tacit understanding that
rates should not be cut existed, he said,
between his company and the United
Fruit line.
There had been an increase OF about
10 per cent in rates to Jamaica in the
last year he declared. The agreement
appeared to show that the pooling applied
not only to Jamaica ports, but to the
Panama canal zone. 1t provided that
so per cent of the freight earnings, ex-
cluding earnings on refrigerated cargo,
bananas and large cement and clinker
shipments for the isthmian canal COM
mission, beginning in 1908, should be
pooled on the basis of 771a per cent to
the Hamburg American, and 221a per cent
to the Royal Mail company. The share
of the Royal Mail was increased in per-
centage considerable degree If the
ships called at Port Limon 1t was agreed
the two companies should meet to en-
deavor to prevent interference. The gulf
trade to South America has disclosed a
tacit understanding that the United Fruit
company should observe the New York
rates Mr. Beck declared Witness was
asked why New Orleans shippers were
required to pay the same rate to Colon
as to New York shippers despite the fact
that New orleans was a days steaming
travel closer He replied that the differ
ence in distance was offset by the fact
that cargoes handled from New Orleans
were chiefly of lumber. flour and grain,
raw products which did not yield a large
compensation.