The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-11-13
A' 'ADOO NAMED IN | SHIPPING BOARD
 INVESTIGATIONS
Witness Says He Heard Some Criticism After Former Secretary of Treasury
 Had Resigned
By Associated Press

kkNew York, November l2.-Alleged ''po- HNical activity" previously referred to in f 2stimonyl and reports before the Walsh bRe United States shipping board was k8gain touched upon in testimony pre- Pented here today.
 k byCongressman Israel M. Foster, ques- V 3ionirg John T. Meehan, deputy chief of Hhe boards bureau of investigation, Fked if there had been any loss to the overnment through political infiu- bee" The witness replied that he could lot say there had.
 a Asked if there had been any com haints of such influence, the witness ' aid he had heard some criticism ot \ William C. McAdoo, after he had re- 3&fgned the office of Secretary of the EIreasury. 1t was charged, or rather com < Ilained of, the witness added. that Mir. | ilcAdoo had appeared before the board FIn behalf of tho Morse interests. E T do not want to be understood the bitness continued, ''as saying that it is lIven inferred that MT. McAdoo has in- lIlerfered with, or has been harmful to 3|he board in any way" He explained l|le was tAtifying only as to criticisms fAe had heard.
 sH Meehan also said that, while most 'or .Hhe investigations of his department had ,Ieen of the activities of minor employees. '|bis department had not overlooked .of- Ecials." He added they had gone very High" in the boards personnel. He re- Heated previous testimony that no irreS- Ihlarities had been discovered among tho |toard's officers. References were made, t<1xrr 4 1r Ill., larly in southern district shipyards, where dismissals had taken place at his One of these dismissais Ivas brought about, he said, by what he Termed undue and unnecessary delay as Ikvell as exorbitant expense in repairs lto wooden ship. The final repair Dill |bn this ship. he said. amounted to fully IF200o 600 and the ship could not be sosd today for s75,0e9.
 CITES ALLEGED GRA)T CASE II Going into details of alleged graft ltmong ships officers. he related details i1f q case on the steamship Dio On Ehis ship, he testified three of it's off |cers. including the captain, had man bged to conceal the presence of 400 tons bf fuel when it arrived from Rotterdam. |At Norfolk more oil was taken for q voyage to Rio de Janeiro At this point the officers paid for the delivery of ,.too tons of oil, the witness asserted. but through cennivance with an employe ol an oil delivery company only 800 tons were delivered
 The difference between the value CT the 600 toms delivered and the l.O00 tons paid for. amounting to about 5000, was split between the parties implicated ID the transaction. The officers of the ship, in addition to the split, also took the usual percentage for sale The captain. tho witness alleged also coii- nived with a repair company for certain alterations to the ship for which the board was charged $l1.ooo.
 The captain, the witness added. re. ceiyed s6no from this contract as "his bit" It was afterward ascertained that repairs could have been made for $A000. The ship, when sailing, took aboard sufficient beef to last nine months, most of which was later throwh. Meehan testified that the e.aptain. chief en gineer and another otii- cer were indicted. The latter two con fsssed and received light sentences L@rom the court The captain was releafed on bond and is due to appear here TOT trial on November 15- The witness sa'u hc had been informed, however, that the antain and his wife and fourteen truuks'' had sailed from Key West for Euenos Aires The shipping board IS now seeking him.
 Details of alleged irregularities in over charges to the shipping board vesseis' collection of double fees and many other ,ffcnses have been run down, Meelan . s,sarted. and in some eases restitution Made and in others prosecutions insn- f,1fed. Testifying as to commissions pa'd ships officers. he said that the ma iority of these were smaii-wnat he termed .spetty grating" One firm, how ever, refunded to the board $7e,oU wnicn it had paid in commissions Tn one yeas 2 nd in turn had charged to the board as
 supplies.
 me witness also testified that, in addi- tion to prosecutions, it had broken large number of officers-meaning tnat they could not again obtain positions al their profession He said there were az ,aast .5 old and efficient captains now ,shore in New York because of the ac- +,vities of his department He further said that men guilty of drunkenness hoard ship were discharged.
 M'ADOO'S STATEMENT
 When informed of the testimony given nv MeenaA. Mr. McAdoo issued the foi- lowing statement:
 Some time after I left the treasury my law firm, McAdoo, Cotton & Frank- Mn. was associated with the regular al- torneys of the Virginia Shipbuilding com pauy as counsel in a controversy when had arisen with the shipping board un- der contract for the building of ships. our relation to the matter was purely entirely within the proprie- ries and beyond criticism The resulting settlement was greatly to the advantage of the government.