COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION AND LABOR UNITED STATES SENATE STANFORD

LIBRARIES SEVENTY-FIFTH CONGRESS

A BILL TO AMEND THE MERCHANT MARINE ACT OF 1936

AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES

PART 4

DECEMBER 15, 1937

Printed for the use of the Committee on
Commerce and the Committee on Education and Labor

COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE

ROYAL S. COPELAND, New York, Chairman MORRIS SHEPPARD, Texas

CHARLES L. McNARY, Oregon JOSIAH WILLIAM BAILEY, North Carolina HIRAM W. JOHNSON, California HATTIE W. CARAWAY, Arkansas

GERALD P. NYE, North Dakota BENNETT CHAMP CLARK, Missouri ARTHUR H. VANDENBERG, Michigan JOHN H. OVERTON, Louisiana

WALLACE H. WHITE, JR., Maine
THEODORE G. BILBO, Mississippi

ERNEST W. GIBSOX, Vermont
VIC DONAHEY, Ohio
JOSEPH F. GUFFEY, Pennsylvania
FRANCIS T. MALONEY, Connecticut
GEORGE L. RADCLIFFE, Maryland
CLAUDE PEPPER, Florida
JOSH LEE, Oklahoma
GEORGE L. BERRY, Tennessee

GRACE MCELDOWNEY, Clerk
ROGER WILLIAMSON, Assistant Clerk

COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION AND LABOR

ELBERT D. THOMAS, Utah, Chairman ROYAL S. COPELAND, New York

WILLIAM E. BORAH, Idaho DAVID I. WALSH, Massachusetts

ROBERT M. LÁ FOLLETTE, JR., Wisconsin JAMES E. MURRAY, Montana

JAMES J. DAVIS, Pennsylvania
VIC DONAHEY, Ohio
RUSH D. HOLT, West Virginia
CLAUDE PEPPER, Florida
ALLEN J. ELLENDER, Louisiana
JOSH LEE, Oklahoma
DIXIE BIBB GRAVES, Alabama

EARL WIXCEY, Clerk

KENNETH C. ROBERTSON, Assistant Clerk

CONTENTS

Page

121

Statement of R. V. Fletcher, general counsel of the Association of American

Railroads, Washington, D. C.
Further statement of Mort. Borow, secretary American Radio Teleg-

raphists' Association, New York, N. Y.
Statement of Edgar N. Gott, assistant to the president, Consolidated

Aircraft Corporation, San Diego, Calif..

122

124

you, sir.

Mr. Borow. Well, we have certain feelings with respect to this legislation; and that happens to be one of them.

The CHAIRMAN. Is that one trouble with the whole business: That there are too many feelings?

Mr. Borow. It may be, sir, on both sides.
The CHAIRMAN. All right.
Senator VANDENBERG. I think that is a fair statement.
Mr. Borow. Thank

For instance, the vice president of the Moore & McCormack Steamship

. Co., Mr. Robert C. Lee, in speaking before the Women's Organization for the Advancement of the American Merchant Marine, at the Hotel Commodore, New York City, on December 8 stated paraphrased: a large fleet of modern merchant vessels would be useless unless properly trained and disciplined men were furnished to man these ships.

And while literally hundreds of bona fide seamen were, in the seamen's parlance, “on the beach,” on the other hand agents for the company, in the summer of 1936, actually engaged and retained in its employ known criminals and fugitives from justice; Manny Moore, wanted for assault and murder, in Houston, Tex.; Louis Factor, wanted in Port Arthur, Tex., for carrying dangerous weapons and inciting to riot. When this untoward condition was complained of to Captain Ebby, port captain of the company, in Philadelphia, he stated:

We're not going to let these men go and permit a bunch of radicals to get control of our ships.

Then again, in the month of November of the same year, and with thousands of real seamen available up and down the Atlantic seaboard, that company, rather than submit to fair labor practices-practices since upheld by the Supreme Court of the United States-actually engaged circus hands in the place of experienced sailors, firemen, and stewards, as the following affidavit will show.

And I shall submit this affidavit for the record, with the permission of the chairman (reading]:

PHILADELPHIA, PA., November 21, 1936. To whom it may concern:

On the Steamship Commercial Alabaman of the Moore & McCormack Lines (Moore-Mack Lines) at the port of Port Tampa, Fla., on or about the 10th o November 1936 the crew of about 12 men left ship on strike. These men were replaced by mostly inexperienced men, for the most part circus hands from Ringling Bros. Circus, which was partially disbanding for their winter quarters at Tampa, Fla.

These men were issued union books on short notice, without proper procedure, by the I. S. U. delegate in Tampa, Fla., according to dictations of the steamship company's agent in Tampa, Fla. Four of these inexperienced men, engine-room helpers, left ship in Miami about 2 days later and again replaced by men, mostly inexperienced and without proper union credentials.

According to my observations, personal contact and conversations heard, most of these men were inexperienced as seaman, without union affiliations. Signed, FRANK FREY, formerly Radio Officer of Steamship “Commercial Alabaman.”'

PHILADELPHIA, PA., November 21, 1936. STATE OF PENNSYLVANIA,

County of Philadelphia, 88:
Affirmed by Frank Frey before me this 21st day of November 1936.

Ellen E. DEADY, Notary Public. My commission expires March 25, 1937.