The New York herald. [volume] (New York, N.Y.) 1920-1924, 1920-11-11

Nllt plAtldlS Alld tlIlPlOstto Va lAlN
Shipping Board, would be at the dis
posal Of the committee at any time or
place the committee might desire.
Commander Abner Z. Clements. as
sistant TO Admiral Benson. was pres
ent at the hearing and will be called
to testify to-day.
Waste I'm Every Branch.
! The testimony consisted chiefly OF ex-
! planations and Celebrations by John r.
Richardson. secretary and statistician
OF the Walsh committee, OF the general
charges contained In report submitted
Tuesday by him and 4. VI. Fisher. who
have spent more than a year gathering
their information. Mr. Richardson was
on the stand all day. Frequently Chair
man Walsh and Representative Steele
asked him for specific information TO
suostantiate the charges contained in
the report. Usually he was able TO
give from memory one or more cases
involving the point az hand and when
he was unable to do this he assured
them that he could produce the docu-
mentary proof either from his files OF
the files OF the Shipping Board.
Mr. Richardson testified that practi-
cally no branch Of the shipping Boards
activities was free from waste. fraud
and corruption, and that undue politi-
cal influences operated TO prevent the
management Of shipping on sound busi-
ness principles.
All these elements. no said, entered
into the ALLEGATION OF ships during and
after the war, into the construction and
fitting OF ships. and now enters espe-
clally into tho sale Of surplus materials
and supplies.
Political influences. he said, made
themselves felt In keeping ships which
the board had at its disposal from be-
ing allooated to we'll established COM
panies, and turned them over instead
to war babies" just organized and op-
Grated by men who had no shipping ex-
perience whatever. One OF the most
flagrant examples OF this. he said. was
the ALLEGATION Of ships and shipping to
Victor Fox, a dealer In theatrical cos
tunes.
MI Richardson said that no attempt
was made 20 inquire into the reliability
of tho concerns which asked for ships.
Even now, he said. only such business
agencies as Duns and Bradstreets are
consulted. ALLEGATION. he said. has been
performed by a director OF operations
under the Shipping Board. who com
Wandered vessels from established
lines and reailocated them 10 private
companies lie declared that there were
instances Of ships being turned over 60
companies IN which relatives Of men
connected with the shipping Board were
financially interested.
zoo Compsnies Vow operutiBE.
Asked specifically for companies which
he would place In the war baby" class
the witness named the American Ship
ping Company the jacksonville shipping
Company. the South Atlantic Charterinr
Company and tho Kingsley Company ot
New York. There are now about zoo
companies operating ships for tho hoard.
Mr. richardson said this number would
have 20 be cut IN half before the boards
division OF operations would be able 20
run the ships with any kind OF suocess
Among the established shipping con-
Germs which were unable 20 get aIloca-
tions when they needed them he natned
the Luckenbsch Line. the Kerr-Clegg
Line and the Robert Dollar Line.
Sales OF surplus materials have been
made az far below the market value. he
said admitting. however. that no one
could expect the Government 90 make
money on materials which in mary cases
had Deprecated.
fIo cited the case Of the National
aHat. .ff
vannah. Ca. which cost s2s5.OOO 70
build. This plant was one Of the finest
on the Atlantic seavoard ana had stocl,
OF materials valued at S245.000 The
yard and materials were sold six weeks
ago. AIR Richardson testified for ssa,-
/ 500. although the Shipping ucart 1r
a.angIu. hid stat.s,1fttol laet TNaDos,.l...,. ..