The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1920-11-11
j. s. MILLIONS
THROWN 4 WAY
IN EVERY BRANCH
Shipping Board Practically Gave
Ships to Some Buyers
SOFT FOR "WAR BABIES"
Old Established Lines Could Get No
Ships but Friends of Board Got
More than They Asked For.

New York, Nov. 11.--Additional dis
closures showing waste, mismanage-
ment and actual corruption in the
Government construction and opera
tion OF merchant ships led Represen-
tative Joseph Walsh, chairman of the
Congress Committee on United States
Shipping Board Operations which is
conducting an inquiry at the Federal
Building, to anounce last night that
high officials would be called before
the committee within the next few
days.
Mr. Walsh said that in addition to
Admiral William s. Benson, the pres
ent chairman Of the Shipping Board,
the committee also would request the
presence Of Jchn Barton Payne,
Charles NJ Schwab. Charles y. Piez
and Edward n. Hurley all of whom
have at one tine been in charge either
OF the Shipping Board or the Emerg-
ency Fleet Corporation.
At the close Of the hearing yester-
day afternoon Chairman Walsh an
nounced that he had iust received u
telegram from admiral Benson as
suring him that all rec rds, as well as
the officials and employees of the
Shipping Board would be at the dis
posal Of the committee at any time or
place the committee might desire.
Commander Abner B. Clements. as
sistant 10 Admiral Benson. was pres
ent at the hearing and will be called
to testify today.
The testimony consisted chiefly of
explanations and elaborations by John
+. Richardson, secretary and statis-
tician OF the Walsh committee of the
general charges contained in report
submitted Tuesday by him and A NJ.
Fisher. who have spent more than a
year gathering their Information Mr..
Richardson was on the stand all day.
Frequently Chairman Walsh and Rep
rescntative Steele asked him for speei-
fic infc rmatlon TO suhstantiate the
charges contained N the report. Us
ually he was abe TO give from men,
ory one or more cases involving the
point at hand. and when he was IN
able TO do this he assured them that
he could produce the documentary
proof either from his files or the files
OF the Shipping Board.
Mr.. Richardson testified that practi-
cally no branch Of the Shipping
Board activities was free from waste
fraud and corruption and that undue
political influences operated to pre-
vent the management of shipping on
sound business PRINCIPLES
Al these elements he said, entered
into the ALLEGATION Of ships during and
after the war, into the construction
and fitting Of ships, and now enters
especially into the sale of surplus ma
ter ais and supplies,
Political Influences, he said. made
themselves felt in keeping ships
which the board had a. its disposal
from being allocated to well establish
ed companies and turned them over
instead to "war babies" just organized
and operated bv men who had no shin
ming experience whatever one Of
the most dagrart EXAMPLES of this. ho
enid. was the aloca'ion OF ships and
shipping 10 Victor Fox, dealer in
theatrical costumes.
Mr.. Richardson said that no attempt
was made 10 inquire into the rnliahil,
itv of the concerns which asked for
sh ps. Even new, h said, only such
busine agencies as Dun's and Brad
streets are consulted Allocation. he
said. has been performed by "direc-
tor Of operations under the shipping
Roard. who "commandeered" vessels
from established lines and reailocated
them to nriyate compauies He d.
cared that there were instances Of
ships hping tnrned owe" &c comnanies
in which relatives Of man connected
with the shiuning Board were fnanci
ally Interested.
Asked specifically for companies
which ne would place in the war
baby c'ass the Witness named the
American Shmning Company, the
Jacksonville Shining Company. the
South Atlantic Chqrtoring Comnany
and the Kingsley COMPANY of New
York. There are VOW about 200 com.
nanies operating shins for the board
Mr. Richardson said this number
would have - ho cut in half before
the boards division of operations