The Connecticut labor news., 1921-09-23
PLOT TO PULL DOWN U. 5. FLAG INVOLVES
 ROADS, SAYS JONES
Railroads Declared to Be in Conspir- acy to Force American Mer-
 chant Marine Of eSas.

American railroad managers have conspired with foreign shipping in terests to destroy and drive off the seas the American merchant marine, Senator Wesley L. Jones, chairman of the Senate committee on com merce, charges in statement in which he reviews evidence upon which his deductions are based.
 Senator Jones has sent the report, which he describes as having been made by an Experienced railroad man tremendously interested in the upbuilding of the merchant marine" to Chairman Lasker, of the Shipping Board, with request that earnest consideration be given to suggestions the report contains.
 The conspiracies of railroad man agers and foreign shipping compan- les, or American lines with foreign connections, have resulted in tying up the great bulk of the United States Shipping Board vessels, Senator Jones says.
 A study of the situation by the Shipping Board, the report continues, will show that, due to the large new fleets of foreign flag vessels, operated by the companies with which the trunk lines have established con tracts, these concerns have been able to control at the expense of the Ship ping Board vessels, transportation of Hundreds, if not thousands, of car goes ,aggregating many millions of tons of freight on which the revenue has totalled hundreds of millions of dollars"
 Secret Contracts Available. The discovery of these secret con tracts and their enforced filing with the Interstate Commerce Commits sion, which is now required, would enable the Shipping Board, in the opinion of Senator Jones, Ito dein- itely determine the principal cause for the success of foreign flag yes sells in transporting approximately two.thirds of our export and import sea-borne commerce"
 Senator Lasker is advised that if he will investigate he will find that railway managers have used their in f1uence in favor of foreign ships. and against ships that fly the American flag.
 There is, according. to Senator Jones, adequate existing law to deal with this destructive form of treason against the national interests If the Shipping Board and the Interstate
  ate the whole conspiracy can be shown up, and then 1t will be clearly established why American vessels have suffered so much during the past two or three years.
 This is an old story, and. 1t was given attention by Labor shortly after the railroads were returned to pri- vate management. It was then point ed out that the great trunk line roads were Voiding regulations made by the government while it operated tran sportation that had for their purpose the curtailment of discriminatory practices that reacted benefcially to foreign flags.
 Southern Ports Make Protest.
 There was at that time some pro- test from southern ports which, dur ing the period of Federal control, for the first time had received any thing like a fair deal from the rail roads.
 The trunk lines are controlled wholly in part by the Morgan bank ing house, which also has large in terests in foreign shipping concerns, as well as banking connections with foreign shipping nations. It was stated more than a year ago that these interlocked combinations were moving to exploit this nation in the interest of foreign shipping interests, which meant :. that Shipping Board vessels and all American ports save that of New York were to suffer heavy losses.
 Nothing, apparently, was done to correct this condition, and the pro- test of Senator Jones proves that it has been carried on to point where even those who have been loyal de lenders of the railroad interest are compelled to cry out against its dis loyal and destructive practices.