Senator WHITE. I understand that the committee, when it has bad an opportunity to familiarize itself with this information, will determine just what use to make of it? The Chairman. That is the understanding of the chairman of the Committee on Commerce. Is that agreeable to the chairman of the Committee on Education and Labor? Senator THOMAS of Utah. I think so. Of course your committee would act in any way it wished, regardless of our wishes in the matter. The CHAIRMAN. May I say in that connection, Senator, that I feel that it is only fair, just, and right that whatever we do we do cooperatively. Senator VANDENBERG. I should prefer it, because I should like the benefit of the experience of Senator Thomas and his group in dealing with situations like these, so that I shall not be sucked into a blind alley by some self-serving situation. The CHAIRMAN. I feel the same way; and I know that so far as Senator Thomas and I are concerned, we will act as Christian gentlemen. Senator VANDENBERG. Lest it be subsequently overlooked, Senator, The CHAIRMAN. Without objection, it will be received. (The newspaper clipping referred to and submitted by Senator Vandenberg is read into the record at this point.) LINER HOOVER'S CREW CENSURED BY PASSENGERS DRUNKEN SAILORS ARE (By Wireless to the Hearld Tribune) (Copyright, 1937, New York Tribune, Inc.) MANILA, Dec. 15.-One hundred and thirty-four cabin passengers and 309 third-class passengers from the grounded Dollar liner President Hoover arrived here today aboard the Dollar liner President McKinley, the majority of them bringing high praise for the conduct of the Hoover's captain, George W. Yardley, and his officers, but condemning the behavior of some of her crew after the ship struck a small island near Taiwan (Formosa) last Friday midnight. An American passenger representing a large United States publishing firm, who declined to permit use of his name, said: "With the exception of a few older hands, the majority of the crew, most of whom were recruited from hiring halls, were a disgrace to American shipping." This passenger charged that fully 50 percent of the crew never had been seamen before and did not know how to man the lifeboats, as a result of which the first two boats transferring passengers from the stranded liner to the nearby island of Hoishoto were capsized. He said the passengers were landed safely only when the boats were pulled to shore by cables. TELLS OF TERRORISM As soon as the passengers were safely ashore, he continued, many of the crew members, most of whom were drunk, mingled freely with the passengers and did not recognize the authority of the officers. During the first night on shore, this passenger asserted, drunken members of the crew broke into the makeshift quarters of the women passengers, terrorizing women and children, some of whom ran out asking for protection of the men passengers. Finally some officers and older members of the crew succeeded in quieting the intoxicated men, he said. 3 Mrs. Charles Salmon, wife of an insurance executive, who was returning after an extended visit to her two daughters in New Jersey and New York, corroborated the story of this passenger, saying that as soon as the ship grounded, crew members broke into the Hoover's bar, taking possession of all liquor. She said that later, on the shore, drunken crew members walked among the passengers "eating sandwiches and drinking champagne," and saying, "Pretty soon we will control the ship." Mrs. Salmon added that in two or three instances members of the crew tried to break into the women's quarters, and later marched to the village, where they created disturbances. She said she watched the work of the crew after the stranding of the Hoover, and was convinced that many "never saw the sea before." The Hoover passengers, after boarding the McKinley, held a meeting and approved a resolution thanking Captain Yardley and his officers "for the safe and efficient landing of the passengers under hazardous conditions." JAPANESE GIRL IS HEROINE MANILA, Dec. 15 (UP). The President Hoover's passengers who arrived here today all praised the work of the crew of the Hoover and the kindness with which they were received by the natives of the Japanese island of Hoishoto. Dr. George Corbett, of London, said "the experience of going aground was decidedly unpleasant but the splendid morale of every one helped tremendously." "We were forced to wade ashore in knee-deep water when the lifeboats took us to the island," he said. "The sea was covered with oil dumped by the Hoover to calm the seas. After getting ashore most of the men made themselves shorts by cutting off their trouser legs.' "" The Hoover passengers mostly wore soiled and borrowed clothing. Heroine of their brief stay on the island, American passengers agreed, was pretty, young, English-speaking Miss Kiyo Koyama, who was dubbed "the Hoover's Florence Nightingale" because of her tireless work in translating and in arranging accomodations on the island, which has a population of only 2,300 and which was taxed sorely to care for the refugees. Miss Koyama, a native of Kobe, Japan, also assisted in treating passengers who were cut and bruised as they were transferred from the Hoover to the island. "As soon as we got ashore,' Mrs. Benjamin F. Allison, of Mason City, Iowa, said, "Miss Koyama began rounding up food for the children of the Hoover. After that some hams were brought ashore from the ship, and Miss Koyama directed the roasting of 'ham a la Hoover'." Jess Storey, of Bremerton, Wash., who was accompanied by his wife and daughter, said that on the island "the villagers escorted many of us to the school in the center of the village of Milehal where we slept on the floors." "Others," he said, "were taken into the humble homes of the Japanese on the island. The natives fed us with fish and rice, a diet that we quickly abandoned once the lifeboats from the Hoover furnished us with provisions." "I slept in a bunkhouse with Japanese marines," R. B. Marsh, of San Francisco, reported. "They seemed like pretty good fellows. The best guy on the Hoover was Marc Marcovich, the chef. He commissioned supply boats and served 800 of us with three meals on the last day on the island." The CHAIRMAN. Yesterday I received a file of material from the Maritime Commission. At my request Mr. John W. Mann, adviser to the Commerce Committee, has gone over this material and put it in form for presentation. I will call upon Mr. Mann now to read such material as he has before him. Mr. MANN. If I take this and read it all through, Mr. Chairman, it will take quite some time. I think if it is to be printed, the materiaĺ should be gone over carefully in my office and the names deleted and also the routes deleted where there is only one American line on a route. the Senator WHITE. Any identifying evidence should be withheld at present time, I take it, the names as well as any other facts in the letter which would serve to identify the writer of the letter. For the time being I suppose that would be withheld? At the same time. I do not quite ** are making this a matter of record, I *OLA * Kided in the record, and then the a ore from a passenger dated October 13, 1937 69 KV. 4 row's new heen very similar to his, there being Cent durer on the part of the crews, who show a definite cra fun and the company itself. I can best describe what I Line coming from to ** *e* 120 Landed me the ship's newspaper to read at breakfast na lew moments, another waiter came over and snatched the de with a remark that it was ble paper. "Go and get your own." gnored the matter to the Captain who stated it was unfortunate the he could do except to move the waiter to another job on was forced to take the crew which was sent to him. agomea 96, the, one of the first tasks of the Maritime Board should be to see enforced on board ship and eliminate such men who will not e pabuse in a courteous manner, or who endanger passengers' lives by rad va og to carry out safety regulations. The American public will refuse to ** on American ships unless effective discipline can be enforced by officers on board abip. (The letter referred to was marked "Exhibit 1.") Senator WHITE. The letter is identified by a number, and it will be available to the committee, and if it becomes desirable for us to know just what this particular ship was and just who the captain was who made this statement, the information will be available to Of course the moment you put that captain's name into the record, you hold him up as a target. 114, Mr. MANN. I have here a letter from another passenger, dated November 1, 1937. The CHAIRMAN. From the same ship? Mr. MANN. No, sir. The CHAIRMAN. The names will be deleted. Regarding the service, there was a lot to be desired in discipline and proper courtesy toward the passengers. For example, when a deck steward addressed Mrs. - in this manner, she didn't much appreciate it—"Say, Toots, wouldn't you like to sit over here now?" Then when the waiter at the table addressed the four women who were in the party, saying "All the girls at this table are nice," it wasn't exactly discourteous, but it was just out of order, showing a woeful lack of good discipline and training. I take the liberty of dropping you this note because I thought you might like to have a check-up on your organization once in a while. I hate to see good American business lost to foreign lines, but this is one sure way to push it into the hands of the competition and, as I understand it, there is plenty of competition in the shipping business. (The letter referred to was marked "Exhibit 2".) Mr. MANN. Here is a letter from another passenger on another ocean dated October 14, 1937. [reading]: Recently the writer left for a business trip to this part of the country and, being intensely American, naturally took an American vessel, namely a boat. It is with the keenest regret that I must say that as far as returning to via an American boat I am certainly not going to do so, prefering to travel all the way to Vancouver and travel via Canadian Pacific Line. Why? So unionized have the American lines become that the waiters are uncouth, rude, and frankly tell passengers that they must act the way the waiters want them to act during eating hours or they will get no service. Bell boys, bath boys, deck stewards, in fact every white man other than officers aboard the ship, made it decidedly unpleasant for passengers. The only civility seen came from the Chinese boys. Waiters demanded tips, deck stewards refused to give service without extra individual remuneration, bell hops actually wait with extended hands for tips. Were the service rendered worthy of tips we would be happy to give, but when members of the crew actually crowd passengers off the rail so that they can wave to their friends on the dock, when waiters are surly, snatch plates from under the noses of passengers and throw knives and forks, etc., on the tables if asked for extra helpings, it is our belief that such service calls for a severe reprimand rather than a tip. Every passenger on the with friends in the Orient ready to leave for the United States cabled said friends to travel on British, Japanese, or foreign vessels, of some type. If these conditions as described continue, the writer, as an American businessman, feels that nothing but shame and bankruptcy can reward the American merchant marine. (The letter referred to was marked "Exhibit 3.") Senator VANDENBERG. ter, relating to discourtesy? Are all of these letters of the same charac Mr. MANN. No, Senator. I have some here that are different, but I have not arranged them in any particular order. I have just taken them as they came. Here is one from the State Department forwarding a report from the American Consul General, Naples, Italy, dated August 24, 1937 [reading]: The crew threw potatoes at the Carabinieri, one of whom fired in the air. It is also alleged that members of the crew shouted various epithets against the Fascist Government. The lack of discipline at present prevailing among American seamen on vessels employing members of the west coast unions and, to a lesser degree, on ships employing seamen from the east coast, has been consistently creating difficult situations at this post, and this disturbance on the S. S. President Adams, unfortunately, is only an indication of what is going on and not a case of an unusual occurrence on a particular ship. (The report referred to was marked "Exhibit 4.") Here is another consular report forwarded through the State Department, American Consulate General, Shanghai, dated July 2, 1937. Mr. MANN [reading]: I have the honor to bring to the attention of the Department the serious, not to say deplorable, lack of discipline prevalent on American vessels touching at Shanghai. The almost complete lack of a sense of responsibility and discipline among American seamen has made American shipping almost a laughing stock in this country. It is well to mention, however, that these conditions are as yet largely confined to vessels whose crews are shipped in Pacific coast ports as comparatively little difficulty is experienced with crews shipped in Atlantic and Gulf ports though there is evidence that the latter are beginning to emulate the Pacific coast seamen. * It has become rare for an American vessel to leave port without leaving behind some one to six or seven seamen. It is true that the men are not as a rule outright deserters, but they are so totally irresponsible and undisciplined that they are unable to take their duties seriously. They realize also, that the companies must maintain them and arrange for their repatriation or employment on other vessels or that in certain cases the Consulate General must grant them relief. As a result of the number of men left behind here and in other ports of the Orient, this office at times resembles a labor exchange with ships needing men to replace those left in a previous port and in turn leaving a few more when they sail. * * * It is not only that deserters and stragglers are so numerous that is injuring the reputation of American ships and seamen but that the seamen are constantly making absurd demands which are usually conceded by the companies, as they realize that the men are prepared to strike or to refuse to work until their demands are granted. * * * Early in June the union delegates representing the deck, engine, and steward's departments of the S. S. Admiral Wood called at this office and stated that the The CHAIRMAN. I agree to that. At the same time, I do not quite agree with Mr. Mann. If we are making this a matter of record, I think the material should be included in the record, and then the deletions may be made accordingly. Mr. MANN. Here is one from a passenger dated October 13, 1937 [reading]: My experience on board U. S. vessels has been very similar to his, there being an absolute disregard of courtesy on the part of the crews, who show a definite lack of loyalty to the officers and the company itself. I can best describe what I mean through one instance recently on the Line coming from to My waiter had handed me the ship's newspaper to read at breakfast table when, within a few moments, another waiter came over and snatched the paper from my hands with a remark that it was his paper, "Go and get your own." I immediately reported the matter to the Captain who stated it was unfortunate but that there was little he could do except to move the waiter to another job on the ship. He was forced to take the crew which was sent to him. It seems to me, one of the first tasks of the Maritime Board should be to see that discipline is enforced on board ship and eliminate such men who will not serve the public in a courteous manner, or who endanger passengers' lives by refusing to carry out safety regulations. The American public will refuse to sail on American ships unless effective discipline can be enforced by officers on board ship. (The letter referred to was marked "Exhibit 1.") Senator WHITE. The letter is identified by a number, and it will be available to the committee, and if it becomes desirable for us to know just what this particular ship was and just who the captain was who made this statement, the information will be available to us. Of course the moment you put that captain's name into the record, you hold him up as a target. Mr. MANN. I have here a letter from another passenger, dated November 1, 1937. The CHAIRMAN. From the same ship? Mr. MANN. No, sir. The CHAIRMAN. The names will be deleted. Regarding the service, there was a lot to be desired in discipline and proper courtesy toward the passengers. For example, when a deck steward addressed Mrs. in this manner, she didn't much appreciate it-"Say, Toots, wouldn't you like to sit over here now?" Then when the waiter at the table addressed the four women who were in the party, saying "All the girls at this table are nice," it wasn't exactly discourteous, but it was just out of order, showing a woeful lack of good discipline and training. I take the liberty of dropping you this note because I thought you might like to have a check-up on your organization once in a while. I hate to see good American business lost to foreign lines, but this is one sure way to push it into the hands of the competition and, as I understand it, there is plenty of competition in the shipping business. (The letter referred to was marked "Exhibit 2".) Mr. MANN. Here is a letter from another passenger on another ocean dated October 14, 1937. [reading]: Recently the writer left for a business trip to this part of the country and, being intensely American, naturally took an American vessel, namely a boat. It is with the keenest regret that I must say that as far as returning to via an American boat I am certainly not going to do so, prefering to travel all the way to Vancouver and travel via Canadian Pacific Line. Why? So unionized have the American lines become that the waiters are uncouth, rude, and frankly tell passengers that they must act the way the waiters want them to act during eating hours or they will get no service. Bell boys, bath boys, deck stewards, in fact every white man other than officers aboard the ship, made it decidedly unpleasant for passengers. The only civility seen came |