Perth Amboy evening news., 1920-11-10
BOARD
WASTE CHARGED
Report on Operations, Which
is Sent to Washington, Tell
of PayrolIs Being Padded.
EVIDENCE OF GRAFT
Improperly Drawn Contracts
Cost Government Large
Sums of Money, Is Charged
BY The Associated Press.

BY The Associated Press.
WASHINGTON, Nov. 10-Charges
that the activities of the shipping
board have resulted in an enormous
waste of government funds, are con-
tanned in a report submitted to the
house committee on shipping board
operations by two former employees
of the board, j. NJ. Fisher and J. f.
Richardson. who for more than q
year have conducted investigation.
The report released for publication
today by the committee of which
Representative Walsh. Republican,
Massachusetts,. is chairman, states
that the Investigators found evil
dence of graft in the purchase OF
supplies for government-owned
ships, of corruption on the part Of
officials and employees of the ship
ping board, and of the political and
other influence in the negotiating OF
contracts for construction and allo.
cation of vessels.
The investigators grouped their
observations under separate heads,
representing various phases of tho
shipping boards activities. They
declared that improperly drawn
contracts had cost the government a
toi SC SUM- anu SOII1t QlNlSlOuS
the board had failed to cooperate
efficiently and that others had fail-
ed completely to function properly.
The report said that payrolls had
been padded by some of the firms
which prepared government-owned
vessels and that there had been Z
heavy loss to the government as the
result of wholesale thefts of sup.
plies and equipment from ships.
The investigators also reported to
the committee that companies oper-
atlng government vessels had in
some instances owned stock in COM
panies which furnished supplies to
the ship at prices ranging as high
as 80 per cent. above wholesale cost.
Discussing the ALLEGATION OF
ships, the report states that "inves-
tigation of companies or application
or essigned or allocated tonnage
seems to be more or less haphazard
with the United States shipping
board The investigators say that
the division of assignment and al
location attempted to cooperate
| with the department of investiga-
! ton but that Just about ''the time
proper cooperation between these
two departments had beeM-eS(13ll
| lished, the department of invesffra.
tion was so disturbed by a Change
/ in its directing heads and personnel
as to render its Offices useless for
the purposes of the division Of as
| signment and allocation."
Mr.. Richardson. one of the inves-
tigators, was formerly connected
! with the department of investiga-
ton. Mr.. Fisher was at one time
connected with the federal trades
commission. He states in gent
Ing the report that it was y
to be constructive and n
the shipping board rather
| structively critical"
No limit has been place
board on the cost of fuel
food for the crews. One 81
charge for grapefruit knives $s..s
each. Another steward bougL, straw
berries for the crew, paying 60 cents
quart and having them delivered
seven miles by automobile.
There has been no safeguard
against theft of supplies. Not one
quarter of l per cent. of the cases
against members of crews have been
prosecuted.
The board has had "supercargoes"
on ships as its only representatives
One of these men. Richardson testi-
fled, was on the payroll of the board
from January to December. Then
/ II was IOuilu HcftT DctH ~
sea- During that time he was q
house detective at the Hotel st.
Regis.
A. NJ. Fisher, who snade the re-
port of his investigation of the Ship.
| ping Board to the Congressional
committee, was with the Federal
Trade Commission in 1917 and later
made q survey for the Shipping
Board as to the keeping of records In
the office of the Lumber Administra-
ton. j. +. Richardson, his assistant,
was with the Boards Department OF
Investigation until he was engaged
by the Congressional committee.
Corruption of Shipping Board
Emergency Fleet Corporation em-
| ployes and officials became the ten-
/ dency," the report reads in part.
MANY bunkering companies
charge to the Shipping Board insur-
ance on the coal in transit which
actually is not carried, and certain-
ly is a part of the cost of transit.
High freight rates. high loading
charges, etc, all are passed on to
the board. with consequent excess
profit to the fuel company Short
deliveries, owing to improper check
ing are common.
Theft of unconsumed fuel it diff
ficult of detection without a sytem
of surveillance and investigation
such as the Department of Investi-
CATION constituted. 1t is not un-
common for as much as $4,000 to
Sc. 1000 worth of fuel to be charged
for a second time and the money
divided between the officials named
on a single boat on round-trip
voyage.
Excess profits are common in the
water supply business. Profits as
high as 500 per cent are found 20 ex-
list in companies which it seems
pT obable. managing or operating
agents of the board are interested.
These excess profits arise from ex-
cess charges for the service, short
deliveries and falsiiieation of tank
capacity.