Evening star., 1938-02-19
LAND PRESENTED
SH|PP|NGPR0BLEM
Named to Succeed Kennedy
as Truitt Gets Post on
Commission.
BY the Associated Press.

~ tAaS fhoSoSAStSu EtSbo
Rear Admiral Emory 8. Land, q
Colorado born sailo. and aviator, took
over today the task Of revitalizinx
Americas merchant marine.
President Roosevelt. who described
the assignment as headache" ap-
pointed Admiral Land to succeed
Joseph p. Kennedy as chairman Of the
Maritime Commission. He accepted
yesterday the resignation Of Mr.. Ken
nedy, who will 60 to London as AM
bassador.
The new chairman, 59-year-old re-
tired chief Of the Navy's Bureau Of
Construction, has been q member Of
the commission since last April As
such, he has helped wrestle with mari
time subsidies, labor troubles, high
construction bids and other difficulties
encountered in the attempt to build
up the Nations foreign trade
Truitt Named to Commission.
To fill out Mr.. Kennedy's unexpired
term on the commission, Mr.. Roose-
welt appointed Max O'Rell Truitt of
st. Louis, now commission counsel.
Aides said it was temporary appoint
ment. pending the selection Of . rep
resentative of the West Coast.
President Roosevelt yesterday out
lined three courses the Government
could follow If it undertook to build
merchant ships itself.
1t could finance existing private
shipyards, he told reporters, and have
the work done under private manage
ment. The President recalled the fixed
fee system of World War days, under
which a fixed fee in addition to actual
building costs was agreed upon by ne
gotiation between the Government and
private builders.
Some administration officials assert
ed that such system would remove
a tendency to run up the cost of q ves-
sci. The tendency would be en-
couraged, they added, by the more
familiar cost-plus- of profit
system.
Lands Advancement Steady.
A second course the President mem
toned was to build the ships in exist
ing Government yards and finance
them with Government funds.
Still another was to build new ways
and equipment in the navy yards.
Admiral Lands 80 years in the Navy
included steady advancement in the
Construction Corps to head Of the bu-
reau. a period of duty in the Bureau
Of Aeronautics and another as an at
tache to the Embassy at LONDON.
He was awarded the Navy Cross in
the World War for distinguished serv-
ice IN connection with the design and
construction of submarines and for
work in the war zone
Hill new job will pay $4,000 a year.
Subsidies for Seaplanes.
Associates said Admiral Lands ex-
perience as qualified pilot, IS assist
ant chief of the Bureau of Aero
nautics and as vice president of the
Gusgenheim fund for promotion of
aeronautics, qualified him particularly
to direct development of transoceanic
air travel.
The Senate Commerce Committee
approved Maritime Com
recommendations that SUBJ
sides be made available for giant pas
senger planes to fly the Atlantic and
Pacific.
Meanwhile. publication of testimony
by MI. Kennedy before the committee
disclosed that the administration, in
an attempt to reduce construction
costs for an expanded Navy and mer-
chant marine, is considering financial
aid to small independent shipyards.
Mr.. Kennedy had complained that
bids submitted by big yards were too
high. He said it was questionable
whether small yards could handle
commission orders for cargo vessels.
Senator Lee, Democrat, of Okla
homa. suggested that high bids from
the larger yards indicated "collusion."
and Senator Clark, Democrat, Of Mis-
souri,, added:
They have been robbing the Tress-
ury for years and apparently want
to continue to rob it,"