The Birmingham age-herald., 1921-08-28
NINE SH|PSARE RESTORED ID J. s.
 BY COURT ORDER
U. S. Mail Line Accused By| Lasker of Diverting Over Million Obtained From
 Immigrants .,...
By Associated Press

New York, August Exchanges that the United States Mail Steam ship company had diverted through prior uses sl,20O,ooo obtained from immigrants were made today by Chairman Lasker of the shipping board after the government had re- gained possession of nine ships orig finally chartered to the company.
 MT. Lasker announced that. with the vessels restored to the board by court order, they would be operated by a special committee until the board decided whether to sell them or charter them to another company.
 He declared the sl,2eoo0 repre- sented advance money collected from immigrants for passage, hotel ex- penses. railroad fares and immigra- ton head taxes, and that decision temporarily to operate the vessels as patriotic service was reached because "the government feels that it could not permit fraud and hard sHipS lo oc WoIhco oii thouooHoS oi immigrants Diversion of the funds, he asserted, was an "un- considerable act"
 The fight for the possession of the nine vessels has been in progress since they were seized by the board last month on the ground of nom payment of rental. The company temporarily regained possession Of the ships through injunction pro- .ceedings, and when. the case came up today before Federal Judge Man. ton, he ordered receivers for the company. appointed after the seiz- ure, to return the craft to the board. The receivers requested that the de- cree be issued and informed the court that they intended to dispose iof the company's assets for the bene- fit of creditors.
 Operating Committee
 The committee which will operate the vessels comprises W. Averill Hartman, Kermit Roosevelt and A.. W. Moore, who will serve without compensation. Lasker in his state ment declared that the board had started its action Ito maintain the American flag flying on the seas and to protect innocent immigrants who we discovered were being fleeced."
 No o-called alien shipping in terests will be permitted to drive the American flag from the seas--not so long as American citizens are willing and able to operate American ships for Americans.f Mir. Lasker added.
 The nine vessels which Judge Man ton ordered returned to the govern ment are the former German liners. The Agamemnon. Susquehanna, President Grant. and America. now are in New York; the George Wash for this port; the Mount Vernon in Boston; the Potomac in Bremen and the Pocahontas in Naples.
 Mr. Lasker's statement said that the receivers on examination of the affairs of the company found con ditions even worse than had been represented by. the shipping board.
 Tt was impossible for the receiv- ers.' the statement said, Ito fur ! ther operate the ships with the company's income already diverted through prior uses. The government consistent with its policy to do ev- erything possible to keep it's pre- mier fleet on the seas, consented ,te the return of the ships and agreed that 1t would honor these lnmmi' grants tickets. making good ths cash deposit and taking an assign ment from the immigrants of their claim against the United States Mail Steamship company. Inc.
 The shipping board agreed with Judge Manton that operators would continue to use ssuch facilities from the receivers as would be practical l including; the docks of the Nortr IGerman Lloyd company at Bremen Germany. and other terminal facil- tiles.
 Had the United States Mail com pany been permitted to continue with the ships. the losses would
 quickly have mounted into un' l told and immeasurable sums Rarely has like condition of com. I n1ercial chicane been unearthed. W. Heel that the conditions unfolded more than justify the seizure IT July.