The Daily Alaska empire., 1947-02-04


 value of this insurance, for vessels operated by the Alaska Steamship Company and Northland Transpor- tation Company, at sl,l00,000 a year.
 Attacks Stand Of Chamber
 Mcdonald also attacked the stand taken by the Kodiak Chamber of Commerce, as expressed in a letter which was incorporated in the Sen- ate Journal on Saturday.
 The Chamber of Commerce is generally made up of merchants and does not usually represent the fishing and mining interests, Mo Donald said
 Although other lines of business have had large increases in their price structures in recent years, he pointed out, Alaskans seem to be- lieve that the steamship companies can continue to operate on l940 rates.
 The proposed 35 percent overall increase would cost Alaskans only about $1 a month apiece, Mcdonald said.
 In answer to questions by Sena- tor Brownell, Mcdonald said that he is a property owner and has mining and other interests in Alas ka. The proposed rate increase. he said would not hurt mining in the Territory.
 Answers Questions
 In answer to questions from the floor, Mcdonald said that cargo pilferage has been a great expense to the companies and they arc considering using collapsible freight packages holding five or six tons of cargo each to cut down this pilfer- age.
 The Alaska trade is seasonal and many of the vessels must te laid up in the winter, Mcdonald told the Committee. Because small vessels are required for the trade 1t is almost impossible to charter them out during the winter months in competition with vessels of great CT tonnage.
 The profit on One tourist busi- ness in the past has been little or nothing, Mcdonald said IT answer to question. he said that the cost of operating Canadian yes sells is. approximately only half oi that of American vessels. American merchant ships were driven from the Pacific by the Japanese after the passage of the LaFollette Mer- chant Seainen's Act which required that only American crews be em- ployed on American vessels.
 Mcdonald admitted that probably only a Is percent increase in rates would he required if passenger ser vice were discontinued and saio that possibly the business could be made to pay at present rates ii suitable ships were employed.
 The carriers would have no ob- jections to having excess profits over and above six percent paid tc the Territory instead of to the Maritime Commission, as presently proposed, Mcdonald said
 Attorney General Rivers gave a resume of the rate hearings held in the past. While the President does not have the power to sus- pend the provisions of the Jones Act. since the war has been off cially ended, Rivers said, Congress does have this power The ques- tion is, are we going to get the carriers to justify the rates they ask, or are we going to take il sitting down. Rivers said
 Final witness to appear before the Committee was George Rogers administrative assistant to the Gov ernor.
 Hits At Carriers Figures
 Rogers said that the picture drawn by the figures presented by the shipping companies as to rev enues and expenses is inaccurate
 The figures cover, he said, six month period during which south bound tonnage is low and does not include the period during which there are heavy shipments of both canned and frozen fish. In addi- ton, he pointed out, revenues re- ceived for carrying the mails and other government cargo, are not mentioned. These are not received at present, but will be when the lines are returned to private oper- ation. He also suggested that the eX- pense figures are inaccurate IT that they include amounts for re- troactive wages and overtime which were actually incurred in earlier periods.
 The 35 percent overall increase in revenues requested by the car riers would actually mean mucf higher percentage of increase 1T most freight rates, Rogers said. H. calculated that there would be th' following percentages of increas' in tariffs over the 1941 figure Automobiles, 5l; dairy products 66.5; coal, 60; cement, 54; freigh not otherwise scheduled, 68.5; fruits 66.5; potatoes, 50; dry groceries