Evening star., 1934-02-20

tract was let by the Postmaster Cen
eral at the highest rates, OF course,
to the Tacoma Oriental Steamship Co.
Several Routes-As to routes 40, Al
AZ, 43, A. As and 46-these were let
in an advertisement of January IT,
1880. OF course, all OF these were
arranged beforehand so that only one
bid could go for each contract and 1t
was at the highest rates.
| When 1t came to route 46, from
Baltimore to Hamburg, Mr.. Franklin
of the International Mercantile Ma
rine was the favored bidder. There
was no competitition.
New Orleans and West African
Ports,-On March 10, $780, bids were
called for on a route from New Or.
leans to West African ports. This
African Line. OF course there was
but one bidder, who got the contract
at the highest rates of pay.
San Francisco to Orient.
The next route, No. 48, was from
San Francisco to the Orient, and it
was let to the Oceanic SS Oriental
Navigation Co., without competition
and at the highest rates.
The same is true of route No. 40,
from San Francisco to Saignon, by
Shanghai, which was let to the same
company
New York to Yarmouth.-Route No.
So from New York to Yarmouth was
let to the Eastern Steamship Co. In
the advertisement a large number of
requirements were made, and, of
course, conditions which made it i'm
possible for any one except one COM
pany to get the contract and that
company got it without competition
at the highest rates.
New York to Rotterdam.-In like
manner, Route No. SO, New York to
Rotterdam, was let to the American
Diamond Lines, and the advertisement
here, on July IA. was so arranged that
only one line could bid on it and only
one line did bid on it, and got it at
the highest rate of pay.
! Mobile to Havre-The Mobile and
Havre route was let in the same man
ner.
Seattle to Porto Columbia and
Tampico.-Route SIS from Seattle to
Porto Columbia and Tampico was
let on an advertisement especially ar
ranged so that only one line could
bid on it.
Sea Train Lines.-But one Of the
worst travesties upon the Government
was about a sea train line from New
Orleans to Havana. Two mail lines
had already been subsidized from
New Orleans to Havana. These two
lines carried about 1,500 pounds of
mail, and, as I recall, were receiving
and are receiving therefor $40O, 900 per
year, or about 100000 in all for
hauling 1,500 pounds of mail per year.
But this was not sufficient, and
a third line was arranged to help
carry this 1,500 pounds of mail.
Mr.. Brush, of the Sea Train Line,
seemed to have the ear of the de-
partment although at the time he
first applied he was running under the
British flag and his ship was built
with British or Canadian money.
However, there was prepared an ad-
Vertisement under which only Mr..
Brush could bid. Not having an
American ship, it was then arranged
by the chairman of the Shipping
Board that the chairman of the Ship
ping Board would lend him enough
money to build an American ship
and then they let him bid. He bid and
got the contract for carrying the mail
between New Orleans and Havana.
Congress, after bitterly waged fight.
declined to appropriate the money to
| carry out the contract. have been
| informed that, notwithstanding this
virtual cancellation of the contract by
the Congress itself-certainly its con-