The Daily Alaska empire., 1942-03-09
Rate


 penses increased rapidly; the car- riers were required to secure war hull insurance, insurance of $5000G0 on each member of the crew and on the personal belongings of licensed officers for $30O00 and non- licensed personnel in the sum of $15000 each, repatriation and interment in- surance against capture and deten- tior by the enemy, payment of a large war bonus to the crew, the amount of which am not at hb- erty to quote, increased protection and indemnity insurance and to provide for other items all due to war conditions; on account of these extra ordinary costs the carriers claimed that operations under the old rates were impossible. The Alaska Steamship Company was the first to apply for and to be grant, ed permission to impose 45 per- cent surtax; soon after the North land Transportation Company was given the, same privilege and about the middle of February the AL aska Transportation Company fol- lowed suit, so that all the Alaska carriers, except the Canadian Pa- cific and Canadian National are now operating under the new rates.
 Deny Profits
 Throughout the hearings the car riers stoutly maintained that the surcharge was intended solely to cover the additional expenses and that they did not intend to and would not profit one dollar there from; that if ways and means could be devised to absorb them other wise, in whole or in part, it would be promptly reduced or entirely eliminated. They constantly held out this promise
 AS already stated, the Canadian lines continue to operate under the old rate, they do not impose any slirtaxs When I asked MT. Baker of the Alaska Steamship Company how this was possible he replied that he was glad the question had been put and proceeded to explain that the Canadian ships operate at much less cost than American ships, that the crews on these ships receive no war bonus such as is paid American seamen and that the war has only to a slight de- gree affected Canadian carriers as far as costs of operations are con- cerned. It may be stated here that the Alaska Steamship Company submitted a statement showing that while it's December 194l income was s54s,909.00 it's operating ex- pense during that month was $760,- 827 .00-showing a loss of $2ll l,9l8.00 for the first month of war opera tions
 "Spiraling" Charged
 MT. Kettle of the National Re- sources Planning Board submitted statement showing that while the increased freight charge would jus tify an increase of 3 percent on retail prices on most foodstuffs that many merchants had marked up some articles as much as 13 percent. He expressed the opin- ion that if it were simply mat ter of the surcharge the increased cost of shipping food for a fam fly of four for one year would be $l779 if the family resides at tu- neau, and $30.44 for family re- siding at Seward. But he also pointed out that the increased freight rate is the basis for all sorts Of other increases eliminating in what he described as "spiraling" of commodity prices which would soon become unbearable.
 The attorneys for the carriers seized upon these figures with great glee and attempted to show the Alaska merchants had grasped an opportunity to profiteer.. They ar gued that if the AS percent sur charge amounts to s1779 for the yearly food of a family of four