Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1924-05-21

1 L.
Judge Parker In which the former
said he believed there was no bet
| ter basis for q settlement than MS
! plan, but, that 1t was too mucn %
| hope" that the board would accept II
Joseph Mccormack, assistant coun-
sci of the board, testified that the
| 500. 900 virtually was all the money
| stockholders Of the Atlantic Corpor.
alton advanced toward establishment
| of the shipbuilding plant. The gov.
eminent, on the other hand, paid al
the money on the plant and the YES
sells built under the contract.
War prices became so minated ne
said, that a new contract was ex-
ecuted under which the government
wrote off approximately l,ooo'sou
! from the company's obigations.
| Further correspondence read into
the record showed that on October
&c. 1922, Senator Moses wrote San
| ford Freund, then general counsel OF
the board. asking postponement OF
! the hearing of the case In the Ne"
Hampshire. courts.
| "A few days observation In this
state" said the letter. "connrms my
belief that you are raising pohtlcai
| Cain in New Hampshire by faiiure
| to compose the Atlantic case and en-
able us to establish an industry al
! that plant"
Another letter, dated October 81
| 1922, from the companys four attor-
ney's including Tyler, to Frank .
| Streeter, special counsel for the state
of New Hampshire. and speclal
counsel to the attorney general IN
| the Portsmouth case. disclosed tna'
the late President Harding had writ
ten the then Governor Brown, OF ne"
/ Hampshire. regarding settlement
After acknowledging receipt OF q
letter from Streeter, which contained
a copy 70 Mr.. Hardings letter, the
/ attorneys agreed to meet at Con-
cord. attorneys of the board to make
ANY settlement with the board whlcr
YOU and the governor say Is 1alr.
A letter dated the same day from
Streeter to Freund, said:
! apparently you and your associa-
tes in Washington do not appreciate
! the strong conviction OF the gov
! ernor. the senator and our Repunb-
can state administration that an al
justment should be made quickly ano
publicly known
AS late as March !, 1924, President
Coolidge, according to letter read
! into the record and signed by William
f. Garcelon. of Boston, was asked tt
refer the New Hampshire case "to
the proper officials with word from
you suggesting prompt action"
The letter, which asserted the writ
err had found it necessary to apply
to you for word to unsnarl the tan
gle" was referred to the shippins
board without letter Of transmittal
Chadles Piez. director general O
To-, mia
tract was made. in a letter dated
April so 1924, to James Talbert, board
attorney, declared "if there ever wa:
a contractor who was treated will
excessive consideration. 1t was TIL
Atlantic Corporation, and the onl!
complaint they have on any GROUND
to make lies in the fact that Mr.. Ty'
ler's most persuasive arguments die
not always succeed in wheedlinG
funds out of the treasury"
I'VE forgave much in the days o!
the greatest pressure before the ar
mistice," said Piez' letter, land par
doned repeated breaches of contrac
OF their part in the nope OF getting
some additional ships to meet thu
emergency"
But there was a change of condi-
tions after the armistice." the latter
added "and I would have considered
myself recrant to the trust imposed
in me il had not held this contract
or so far as disbursement Of the gov.
eminent funds are concerned. to thu
letter of the contract"
Previous witnesses before the com
nIittee have testified that on clever
differnt occasions the shipping board
has rejected the claims of the Ports
mouth company.