Norwich bulletin., 1920-11-10

tent composed of persons previously en- gagged with the fleet corporation; that it purchased riaf Srials from the corpora tion at stipulated price and sold these materials where is as is'' at an advance sometimes of more than 100 Yer cent. ov- CT the purchase price and that in many cases it appeared used fleet corporation plants and equipment "to reap enormous profits from the sale of materials which it had purchased" from the heet corpora tion.
 It was alleged in the report that re- pair work on shipping board vessels was done on a basis of pay for workmen on the job at. current wages plus 50 per cent. for overhead and profit, plus ten per cent. of material cost to cover cost of purchase and profit to the contractor.
 "Overcharges immediately became and continued to be common under this form of agreement" said the report. Tt is to- the advantage of the contractor to pad payrolls, slight work, put too many men on the job,. encourage loafing on the job, corrupt inspectors and timekeepers, use helpers and charge for first class work men, use common labor and charge for skilled labor, drag the work to make it last longer, find additional work to, and get 1t specified. etc
 "Corruption of United States Shipping
 
 ployes and officials became the tendency | under this practice Usually attempts are made by contracts, and, in manI cases l apparently are successful to secure the ! favor of the port construction and repatr 1 representative, who has the assignment of work to the various contractors, and i the local United. States Shipping Board Emergency Fleet Corporation agency au- ditor, who has under his charge the checkers and timekeepers"
 i It was charged that good men" were "heckied, insulted or even frightened off
 the work, where they will not prove sus- | ceptible to corruption.p Tho report de- | clared it was a comparatively easy mat
 ter to accidentally drop a bar or a
 wrench into q ships hold when a l straight" timekeeper or inspector was
 standing under.
 The report dealt at length with the | furnishing of fuel and supplies to Ship | ping Board vessels, declaring that the ex- i! penditures of millions of dollars was left in the hands of masters, chief engineers and stewards" In many cases, it was as- i serted, the supplies are purchased from brokers who add a profit of from 25 to J 40 ptx cent. give gratuities to masters i es, free automobiles. free liquor, free en- ! tertainment, etc." and charge them in I with the price of supplies.
 ] The report charged that ships officers
 were enabled by the fuel allowances made
 for each voyage to finish with excess fuel that they receipted for full supply on re-bunkering and then get a rebate
 from the bunkering company" to the ex- tent of the excess.
 It was charged that through politica, influence ships had been assigned tc companies in which officials of the Ship pingf Board were or had been asso- ciated' and that companies w:~ech did not have "the standing or the financial re- sponsibility to insure safe and proper
 management and operation" got all ton.
 mage applied for by sthat means.
 I While many of the government ships are making profit, the report said, oth- CTS are operating at a loss and it was ! asserted that there were many who be- lieved that a final accounting of the ! operations of the ships would show "a f serious loss on the gross tonnage oper. ated.,' ..--.
 Reviewing shipbuilding contracts ana settlements, the report charged that wal
 uable and expensive shipbuilding plants
 erected on lands owned or leased by the
 contractor in several cases'' were no properly safeguarded as to title
 The result of these oversights," sait SIdIet
 Shipping Board Emergency Fleet Corpor I ation found itself in the position of own
 ing plant located on privately owned sites and faced the necessity of giving away or selling these plants for smal U percentage of their original cost to tn, T owner or lessees of the sites
 The report also charged that in som [ cases attorneys who represented the fee } corporation in drawing the contracts lat Gw T @ww1k1. , sel ''to assist them in interpreting or il } breaking or in attempting to break tn . contracts"
 ] It also was alleged that some com panies towhich the corporation had lover | advanced many millions of dollars" wer l unable to repay these "over-advances [ and that they were permitted 'all sort si of exhorbitant claims to absorb then
 Numerous cases were on record, the rc
 port said. where doctors, veterinary sur 2 geons, barbers, drygoods clerks, and oth : CTS of similar inept callngs, were place as inspectors over work of constructio 5 of both plants and ships.'
 In a 'foreword'' to the report, MI . Fisher said
 ! While desire to give full credit t g the United States Shipping Board for it t accomplishment of having constructe 8 and launched under abnormal and ao Sl Verse conditions, Sucn neet Of ships a
 it did, I feel that this task is full Il equalled. by the problem now confront . ing the Shipping Board of creating an Q nourishing an American merchant ma rine. From this viewpoint the -epol sI presented herewith is a sketch of | proposed inquiry by this committee des a ignated to deal first with the problem - which now confronts the Shipping Boar n and secondly with the problems pre-