The New York herald., 1921-07-26
us. SHIPPING BOARD
|. ORDERED TO RETURN
! nine SEIZED Liners
Restraining Writ Retlrna-
bic Thursday Won by
U. s. Mail Co.
AMERICA SAILS TO-DAY
Government Gets Second
Setback When Court
Stands by Order.
SEIZURE ACT OF FORCE
Justice Burr So Rules-ActiOn
Held Subject to Judicial
Inquiry.
SEIZURE ACT OF FORCE

The United States Mail Steamship
Company regained yesterday tempo
rary control of the nine ships seized
Friday by the United States Shipping
Board by winning two court victories
in quick succession.
Justice Burr Of the Supreme Court
granted yesterday morning a tempo
rary injunction. returnable Thursday.
restraining the Shipping Board. its Of
ficers, the United States marshal and
the United American Lines from in
terfering with the operation Of the
vessels. Last night, after an extended
hearing of motion by the Govern
ment and the Shipping Board at the
Manhattan Club, Justice Burr refused
to vacate his restraining order.
Henry w. Taft and Elmer Schlesinger,
the latter Of Washington. representing
the Shipping Board, argued that. regard
less of rightly or wrongly, the seizure
was an accomplished fact and not sub
ject to judicial inquiry. Justice Burr.
in rejecting that argument. declared the
been IAN exercise of force" and warned
the Government through its representa-
| tives against any action which might
make the restraining order imperative.
After Justice Burr had decided against
Mr. Schlesinger's arguments, the latter
at once took steps to withdraw the
deputy United States marshals who
had been placed on board the ships when
they were seized. He sent kilograms to
them directing them to retire from the
vessels pending judicial ruling when
the temporary injunction comes up for
argument on July %. The effect or the
withdrawal OF the marshals. Mr..
Schlesinger said, was to again place the
United States Mail Steamship Company
in control of the ships. as soon as the
company takes possession Of them.
| Mr.. Schlesinger said that several in
volved legal points must be passed upon
| by the courts, particularly as to the In
Junction granted by Justice Burr, and
also the question OF jurisdiction These
must be settled. he said. before the
Government makes any further mpor-
tant move. and until this Is done he
would not say whether the Government
would undertake to seize the steamships
again.
Vice Chancellor Lewis in Jersey City,
held In abeyance for deliberation Pc
tition of the Mail Steamship Company
for a restraining order covering ships
on the New Jersey side OF the Hudson.
The vice-Chancellor declared he did not
think he had Jurisdiction and that the
6ompany's remedy was in court of
law, but. nevertheless. took the volumi-
nous petition to his home last night for
close study before coming to a decision.
He viii peruse also the papers In the
New York case.
America Sails To-day.
The steamship America, chartered TO
the United States Mail by the Shipping
Board more than a year ago. and one
of the ships seized last Friday. Is sched-
uied to sail at noon to-day for Europe.
Both the Shipping Board and the United
States Mail say she will SAIL. the COM
pany going SO far as to say she will still
under its colors. The United Ameri-
can Lines, to which the vessel was ailo-
Gated temporarily Saturday afternoon.
stopped booking passage on the America
and the George Washington. another of
the seized vessels. which Is TO sail Au-
gust 3.
Just why It was necessary for the
United States Mall to seek an injunc-
tion in New Jersey unless II was as a
measure OF prccaution in the event that
Shipping Board agents at Hoboken,
where the America Is docked, might
interfere with her sailing to-day. was
something of mystery. 4 DE Lancey
Nicoil and Bainbridge Colby. former
Secretary OF State. who were retained
as special counsel by the United States
Mail to fight the Shipping Boards ac-
tion. asserted that since the injunction
restrained the officials Of the board In
this city, II also enjoined the boards
employees in New Jersey.
sci for the United States Mail occasioned
a report that he and Joseph Tumulty.
former secretary to ex-President Wilson.
owned the controlling stock In the
steamship company and that the seiz-
ure OF the nine vessels had political
background. Mr.. Colby characterized
this as "tommyrot."
Deny DIVIDING stock.
There Is not scintila OF truth In
the report" he said. that Joseph Tu-
multy or myself own dollars worth
of stock in the United States Mail"
Officers OF the steamship company
continued to hint the seizure was pro-
voked by 'intrenched foreign interests"
and the Shipping Board people reiterated
Continued on Thirteenth PAGE.