Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1919-01-03
H!0C ISLAND PROBE WILL
 EMBRACE ALI
Shipbuilding Plants, Which
 Will Be Gone Into By the , Senate Committee.

Washington, Jan. 2.-Only four ships have been delivered by the three great government fabricated ship building plants, Charles Piez Director of the Emergency FL ct corporation, said today in testifying before the sepate commerce commit tee. Difficulties in constructing the yards and in obtaining material were largely responsible fc1: the delays, the witness said. Three of the ships have come from the Hog Island Yard, MT Piez testi- fled, and the fourth from the Sub- marine Boat Corporation plant at Port Newark, M. J., which should have delivered 124 vessels by last December z.
 The Merchants Ship Building Cor poraticn at Bristol, Pa, has not yet delivered ship, he said, although under it's contract 24 should have been completed by December z. The Hog Island yard delivered it's third ship today and has launched twelve others the committee was told.
 Before resuming it's inquiry today, the committee adopted a resolution by Sena tor Nelson, of Minnesota, cx- tending it's Investigation to include survey fthe progress of all gov ernment ship building.
 Under the resolution, the shipping board and the Emergency Fleet Corporation would be required 10 furnish statement showing the numser of ship yards where ships for the government are being or are to be built or contracted for to- gether with the capacity of the yards and the amounts contributed by the government for their con- struction, if any, and the number of ships each has compl ated or launch ed. The. committee also asked for the expenditures made from aH money appropriated by congress f.r ships and whether any of the vessels completed for the fleet corporation have been used in carrying men or munitions to or from Europe.
 Questioned today about the Hog Island yard lMr. Pfez told the conl- mittee that because of change in the management of the American International ship building corpora tion, contractors On the Hog Island project. the fleet corporation and de- cided that it would be unwise for the government to take over man. agement of the yards at this time. Under the new arrangement, Matt Brush, formerly a vice-presides1t of the American international corpor- ation. heads the American Interna- tional Ship Building corporation, and other changes in the executive off, cers have been made.
 Mir. Piez said the government eventually should exercise itsN option on the Hog Island site and take over management of the plant.
 The Hog Island yard, the witness declared has been the meca for rep resentatives of all nations visiting the United States and generally they have expressed admiration for. it. lie said the plant eventually would be- come big producer.
 Il feel most distinctly that 1t was a great asset to have the Hog Island yard in reserve, just as it is a great asset to have a large army in re- serve," said MT. Piez. "It has been very great moral factor in our suc- cessful prosecution of the war"
 Extension of its investigation of the Hog Island ship yard to gen. eral inquiry into the accomplish ments of the shipping board was voted today by the senate commerce committee by adopting a resolution of Senator Nelson of Minnesota, calling on the board to furnish it With information relative to all of its work since the shipbuilaing pro gram was undertaken. Senator Nell son also called on the emergency fleet corporation to give the commit tee information relative to publish ed reports that the ship program had slowed up and that no troop transports had been turaed out by the fleet corporation.
 Charles Piez, director general of
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