Arizona republican., 1920-11-10

MT. Fisher who formerly was con- nected with the federal trade commits sion, made a survey for the shipping board as to record keeping systems in the office of the lumber administra- tion. MT. Richardson. for 20 years newspaperman, was employed for sew eraI years in the boards department of investigation. In presenting the report, MT. Fisher explained that it was designed to deal only with prob lens which could be solved wholly by the shipping board itself and left on- touched" fourteen general subjects in connection with the boards operations. Among these enumerated were organi- zation of the board, technical errors in the construction program, German American deals, assumption of the diplomatic functions by board officials, enforcement of the new merchant marine act and evasions of the selec- tive draft act.
 General Activities Detailed
 Taking up in detail seven general phases of the boards activities. the report charged gross waste of gov ernment sums and failure of the var ious divisions of the board to CO.,
 
 complete failure of some of the divi- sions to function properly.
 | Padding of payrools by firms repair | ing shipping board vessels, ownership | by companies operating government vessels of stock in companies furnish l ing supplies to those craft at prices ranging anywhere from 40 to 50 per cent above wholesale costs, wholesale theft of supplies and equipment from 4Ia Of mil 0f l. lars through improerly secured loans, made to contractors building govern ment vessels also were charged. The investigators alleged that Tn some cases the fleet coronation loaned money to contractors and accepted, as security, bonds issued by companies incorporated by the contractors which bonds have since been found to worthless" The charge also was made that in many cases ship build ing plants which are going concerns are turned back to contractors as sal wage propositions and the contractors thus reap large profits at the expense of the fleet corporation"
 Another allegation in the report was that many of the firms holding con- struction contracts fnaugurated Lib erty bond selling crusades in thetl plants and charged to ship construc-
  secured as the cost for selling the bonds It was further charged that in some cases the fleet corporation authorized contractors to take from their appropriated funds" sums tC purchase Liberty bonds and that sub sequently in some cases these bonds were sold or hypothecated at los' and the money thus realized, used 'fol plant purposes"
 FHraFkfn0 "They the contractors) then put il claim against the United State shipping board emergency fleet cor poration for the losses thus incurred, declared the report.
 Going into the batter of salvage o shipbuilding plants. uncompleted hull and materials and stores, the repor alleged that it was asserted by per sons in position to know" that the sal . of millions of dollars worth of ma . terials" owned by the fleet corpora tion, had netted no more than 131
 cents on the dollar at a time when tn :, shipping board at other points wa ! purchasing the same materials in tn oen market at prices in advance O the original cost prices of the material
 sold
 However" said the report, ,"th question seems to be one of maladmin
 istration, rather than one of funda
 mental conditions. in so far as tn
 limited returns from the sale of thes
 materials is concerned"
 . The report said that the Barde com / pany, was trying to purchase under
 blanket contract all supplies and store f of the fleet corporation and charge . that one of the officials of this com
 pany was also, 'an adviser to th