New-York tribune., 1919-12-28
Payne Expected
10 Resign Over
lnperat0r Issue
Decision to Turn German
Liners Over to Britain
Directly Contrary to Pol
icy of the Ship Board
Nem York Tribune
Wash ir0tOp Bureou

ASHlNGTON, Dec. 27.-John Bar
ton Payne is expected to RESIGN as
chairman of the Shipping Board as a
result of the row between the board
and the State Department over former
German ships. President Wilson has
decided the fight between his execu-
tlves against Mr.. Payne, but the COM
plicatlons, it is feared, will prove
highly embarrassing.
1t became known to-day that Chair
man Payne had been virtually defyine
both the British government and the
State Department for months in his re-
fusal to hand over the ships in oues-
ton to Great Britain for temporary
use by that country. In the case of the
lmperator, it is believed by high Of
MEALS OF the government that a con-
siderable bill of damages will have to
be paid to Great Britain because the
shipping Board held the vessel so long
after the end Of the period for which
she had been allocated to American
use
Fight Started Over Tankers
Ihe shipping board started the fight
by attempting to force Great Britain
the Standard Oil Company. British
olilclals were informed that the United
States would hold the lmperator and
other German vessels until Britain
released these tankers
Inc State Department. on the other
nand said the~qucstion of the tankers
mad nothing to do with the case of
the German liners, and stated that the
solemn word of the United States had
been given to turn the liners over to
the british government as soon as the
movement of American troops from
france to this country was completed.
AS a matter of fact, the German
liners never have been awarded to any
country. That deeison remains to be
made. When the ships were first OBJ
tanned from Germany, however. both
Great Britain and this country asked
Tor the use of them temporarily to fiji
pressing needs. This country wanted
TO BRING American troops home from
france. Great Britain wanted to take
home the Australians and Canadians.
Ships Lent for Troop Carriers
An agreement was made at this time,
for which the American representa-
tives at Paris voted, that the ships
should be lent to America first. until
the troop movement was completed.
after which they should be turned over
to Great Britain until the permanent
award should be made.
The case Of the oil tankers is entire
ly different. In this case the Standard
on Company, which held the control
ling interest in the German concern
which owned the tankers, was claiming
possession. They had been taken over
by the British government pending a
permanent settlement. which, as in the
case of the liners, has not been made.
Several knotty legal questions are in
volved in the tanker case
For instance, the Standard Oil Com
pany. fearing confiscation of the tank
ers by Germany during the war. at
tempted to sell its interest in them.
The American Alien Property Custo-
dian, in seizing some German owned
securities, in the subsidiary German
held the sale to be null
and void.
Boards Action Criticised
But the Shipping Board, according to
the State Department view, was un-
willing to let the tanker case be fought
out on its own merits. 1t attempted
to force the hands of the British by
holding on TO the liners, ignoring the
agreement under when America had
obtained the temporary use of these
llncrs to bring America. soldiers
home
1t is regarded as particularly unfor-
tunate here that much of the publicity
given this question of turning over
the ships to Great Britain has given
the impression that the Shipping Board
was fighting to hold on to ships for
American use and to prevent their
going permanently into the hands of
Great Britain.
The whole fight, State Department
officials insist, was over an effort by
the Shipping Board to force Great
Britain to hand over these Standard
Oil tankers by refusing until she did
so to comply with an agreement pre-
viously made as to the liners. 1t re-
quired the overruling of Chairman
Payne by the President, it is stated,
to settle the question.
There was talk at the Capitol to-
day of a Senatorial investigation of
the whole question: by either the For
eign Relations Coe,mittee or the Com