The Cordova daily times., 1922-02-02
SLOWLY THRASH OUT SHIPPING TANCLE

1 W ASHINGTON. Feb. D. The, re- organized United States Shipping Board and Fleet Corporation is slow ] ly but surely emerging from the tangle of difficulties which economic and other conditions forced on 1t and is today progressing to the goal of an efficient directorate for an \ American merchant marine, accord Il ing to J. Barstow Smull. vice-presi- dent in charge of allocation and charters of the board.
 The difficulties which MT. Smull has in mind, he stated, concern char i, tering of boats, depression in ship l ping worse than any before and a ! complicated system of allocating and I operation of boats. In the hands of private agencies large numbers of Shipping Board vessels have been tied pu or operated with difficulty owing to unprecedented conditions. l Concerning the withdrawal and all 1 location of these vessels, Smull stated that on July "A there were 1 seventy-five active managing agents of the fleet corporation operating 674 steel ships Of this number twelve agents were tramp operat- ors.," with total of 125 vessels in service Losses on all these vessels were from $5,oOo to $25,oOO per round trip to Europe totalling $1,250,0oo ! in June.
 FoRTY.THREE ACTIVE AGENTS "On January 1, 1922. there were only forty three active agents hand | ling three hundred and twenty y-one ships" Smull said "All tramp steamers have been withdrawn, and the losses in October, the last month for which we have a report, have been cut to s4OO,OOO and are still being diminished"
 | From the latter part of July to the present, Smull said, approximately E26 steel cargo boats have been with drawn from service, and about 173 have been allocated, thus leaving about 353 steel cargo and passenger vessels still tied up. These figures are only approximate, as later re- ports are expected on them
 These boats. it is hoped, will be chartered eventually on more advan- tageous. terms for the government than has been the case under the old charter system. This system is being supplanted by the bar-boat and time charter as fast as conditions permit. A general reorganization of the char tering machinery has gradually taken place, 1t is said. with a view to putting this end Of the work on a business basis
 BARE-BOAT CHARTER ] The bare-boat charter plan has been handicapped by the hard eco- homie conditions, but at present about twenty-three vessels are op- erated on this basis, turning in ap- proximately $50,000 a month. With i the looked-for improved conditions, it is stated, many other boats are expected to be chartered in this way. l Regarding drawbacks encountered in charaering, Smull pointed out that some time ago the board decided that 1t was unfair to privately owned ton mage to charter board vessels on a bare-boat basis to compete with es- tablished coastwise lines This is due to the fact that the private own CT has to charge higher rates owing to his greater overhead costs of op- eration than the government fleet.
 Smull cited the Jones act, which he says requires government ves- sells to avoid iniuring private lines by charterine along lines which would compete with private vessels.
 He pointed out that the Jones act must be the guiding rule for all agencies in building up the American I shipping industry and indicated that 1 it is along its intended lines the board is now working to a solution of it's problems.