New-York tribune., 1921-09-17


not self-sustaining as an Investment
Ihey are drag on the city treasury
wnsn they ought to furnish it with
FUNDS he said, "and if they did fur
man 1t with funds and extortion was
prevented, navigation would be carried
on at less cost than it is carried on
to-day"
Senator Downing. Democratic mem
per OF the committee, here remarked
that there is no eXtortion that is
practiced that could not have been
prevented by doing those things which
the Dock Commissioner recommended" :"
ii have shown" replied Mr.. Brown
that twenty-four piers were making
return of S5,000,000 when the city
was only getting a million and haf
dollars. ! don't know that the city
wants any money, but it seems to me
that this would be good way to get
an honest dollar"
Commissioner Hubert then Joined
tn with the remark that Mr.. R'ppons
figures, by the latter's own statement,
were estimates and were not actually
what took place.
When the Dock Commissioner and
the Chamber of Commerce and the
president of the Merchants Associa-
uon, as commission, fixed the present
rate which brings in PA per cent, in
order to prevent the steamship com
panies from leaving the Port of New
York. there was no question of getting
commercial return them" said Com
missioner Hubert.
Ships Forced to Pay High
To this Mr. Brown replied that it
was shown that "instead of paying
21s per cent they arc paying Is per
cent, and are still continuing to come"
"But they are paying it under lease
that was made under the recommends
tion of the Dock Commissioner and
the Chamber of Commerce." retorted
MIR. Hubert.
"They are paying it under q secret
uncontrolled system of extortion,"
came back the committee counsel.
They are paying it under a system
which the United States District Court
says l cannot stop them from collect
Ing it under" went on the Dock Com
missioner. There is not newspaper
in the City of New York which did
not say that l laid the blame on the
Corporation Counsel because he told
me l was powerless under the deci-
sion of the United States Court and
for me TO go TO the Legislature, and
l went to the Legislature, and the
Legislature did nothing about 1t. All
/ want is fair play"
More Losses to City
The long leases granted to the lessees
of the Chelsea piers were discussed, it
being developed that these leases were
granted in 1910, before the present
Dock Commissioner took office, for a
period of fifty years, with provision
for an increase in the rental of 10 per
cent every ten years. Mr.. Rippon said
these leases were "iniquitous" and "de-
prived the city of its just compensa
tion."
Mr.. Brown characterized the Chelsea
pier leases as q monumental illustra-
tion of the violation of all the sound
principles that would appear from an
examination Of the various witnesses
down to date
James w. McGovern, manager of
piers and wharves in this port for the
United States Shipping Board, produced
the copy Of a transcript of meeting
before the New York City Chamber of
Commerce referring to the dock situa-
ton, and identified report prepared
by General Black and sent to John
Barton Payne on February 20, 1920,
then chairman of the board.
Mr.. Brown then put in evidence a
letter written by Mr.. Payne to Murray
Hubert on March 1, 1920, in which
the former drew attention to the
profteering practices as follows: Que
largely to the fact that the Shipping
Board controls no piers in the Port
of New York, operations from that port
are proving highly expensive, and the
board has evidence that profteering
methods are pursued in that port in
ilxing berthing charges. 1t is evident
that this practice is preiudcial to the
objects for which the board is work
ing, as we'll as to the well-being of
the port itself"
Senator Downing Objects
Senator Downing objected to the ac-
ceptance of the latter for the record.
denying the truth of the generals
statements
General O'Brien, of 1876 East Thirty
fourth Street, who had been Dock Com
missioner between 1896 and 1898. then
demanded to be heard, saying he had
been subp9naed to bring some papers
and desired to make q statement. He
SAID he began an investigation of the
high cost of moving fuel and food and
building materials over the wharves OF
the Port OF New York as special rep
resentative of the United States Shin
ping Board. He said he Endorsed every
word in General Blacks report and
made special objection to what he
termed the mmercialization of the
recreation piers, which he claimed we're
set aside by statutes and portions of
which have been leased by the Dock
Commissioner for commercial pur-
poses.
He continued:
u doubt if in the annals of COM
mercial activities there was ever such
perversion, official perversion, of the
peoples interests of the Port of New
York, and, sir, come here with the
determination, SO far as lies in nv
power, that this question of maIad-
ministration Of the Dock Department.
whether it is by the Sinking Fund
Commission or the Corporation Coun-
sel-the Commissioner of Docks ac-
cused all three-be taken up. want
to say further that the people who are
paying this heavy burden on account
OF these enormously extortionate rates
for moving foodstuffs and fuel and
building materials over the wharves of
the Port of New York, their minds are
becoming inaamcd, because it is moth
ing more than proiteering, fraud and,
I say, criminal negligence.
Great Wrong to People
~ say further than that, that don't
care whether the Corporation Counsel,
or the Commissioner of Docks. or the
Sinking Fund Commission take a diff
ferent position, ! say to you it was
an official perversion and great wrong
to the reople who are deprived Of these
specially set aside piers for the benefit
OF the people in congested districts of
New York