(The statement requested is as follows:)

Public relations activities of the War Shipping Administration are handled through the joint services organization carried under the Maritime Commission budget. Thus no provisions are included in the War Shipping Administration budget for publicity or public relations other than those directly related to the recruiting, manning, and training operations. The following three employees of the War Shipping Administration are engaged in publicity work as part of their regular activities incident to the recruitment of seamen:

INCREASE IN ESTIMATE FOR CHARTER HIRE

Mr. WIGGLESWORTH. Your charter hire item shows an increase from about $346,800,000 to $367,100,000. Admiral LAND. That is right.

Mr. WIGGLESWORTH. That I understand from what you said this morning is based on $1.25 per dead-weight ton per month for all the ships except tankers, which are based on $1.15 per dead-weight ton. Admiral LAND. That is right for freighters and tankers. There is an increase in the number of ships of about 23 percent.

Mr. WIGGLESWORTH. In the number of ships?

Admiral LAND. Yes; there are 4,600 ships and 49,000,000 tons, in round figures.

Mr. WIGGLESWORTH. Has that same rate prevailed during the past year?

Admiral LAND. That rate was established as a result of the difficulties we had originally, and it was established pursuant to the rules of the Advisory Board.

Mr. WIGGLESWORTH. How long has it been in effect?

Admiral LAND. A little over a year.

Mr. WIGGLESWORTH. That applies to all types?

Admiral LAND. That applies to those two types. It does not apply to passenger ships or special-type ships. That basically is the cargo rate and the tanker rate.

Mr. WIGGLESWORTH. Does it apply to all ships, regardless of age or character?

Admiral LAND. No. There are differentials there, depending on speed, engine types, and various other elements that go into the formula. But that is the base.

Mr. WIGGLESWORTH. How many ships did you have under charterhire in this last fiscal year?

Admiral LAND. On table A-3, page 67, is the charter-hire by types, and types of charter, showing the tonnage and dollar amounts for the years 1945 and 1946, for comparative purposes, and it is broken down into four categories. The total is 874 ships, with 9,009,200 deadweight tons.

Mr. WIGGLESWORTH. That includes dry-cargo, passenger, tankers, and miscellaneous types?

Admiral LAND. Yes.

Mr. WIGGLESWORTH. Does this $1.25 rate apply to dry-cargo ships? Admiral LAND. Yes.

Mr. WIGGLESWORTH. And also to passenger ships?

Admiral LAND. Passenger ships are in a special category, depending on speed, age, and general characteristics, such as, for example, refrigeration.

Mr. WIGGLESWORTH. The tankers have the $1.15 rate?

Admiral LAND. Yes.

Mr. WIGGLESWORTH. What about the miscellaneous types of ships? Admiral LAND. They have to be considered on their merits. The smaller ships carry a higher rate, especially if they have higher speed. If they have refrigeration or other characteristics that entitled them to special consideration additional allowances are made following along what I think is sound business methods. Some categories are applicable to only one or two ships.

Mr. WIGGLESWORTH. Could you give us a table for passenger ships and the miscellaneous types of ships for the fiscal year 1945, to show the age, the tonnage and the charter hire in each instance? Admiral LAND. Yes, sir.

(NOTE. A comparative statement of current passenger ship rates with World War I rates and with 1939 earnings will be found in Admiral Land's opening statement.)

(The statement requested is as follows:)

Vessels under standard charters as of Dec. 20, 1944, and those under special charters as of Dec. 29, 1944 with changes as of Apr. 1, 1945

Mr. WIGGLESWORTH. The insurance item is a little less this year, dropping from $142,000,000 to $121,100,000.

Admiral LAND. Yes.

Mr. WIGGLESWORTH. Is that due to the reduction in the rate which you now propose?

Admiral LAND. It is due to the reduction in the rate and also due to the reduction in hazards, and it follows the standard business practice. The reduction is due to those conditions.

Mr. WIGGLESWORTH. The rate at present is $56.25 per dead-weight ton above 25 percent below previous rates, as I understand it. Admiral LAND. Yes. It goes down 12% percent per year.

Mr. WIGGLESWORTH. That went down to $47 per dead-weight ton as of April 1 of this year?

Admiral LAND. It went down, as of April 20.

Mr. WIGGLESWORTH. Is the insurance paid out of insurance funds exclusively, or has it come at times out of the revolving fund?

Admiral LAND. Insurance premiums are paid out of the revolving fund and insurance losses come out of the insurance fund.

Mr. CHUBв. There is one exception; certain insurance was written under the 1920 act and cannot be paid out of the insurance fund under the law.

Mr. WIGGLESWORTH. Are the British paying insurance on comparable ships at this time?

Admiral LAND. The British are paying or providing insurance; yes. Mr. WIGGLESWORTH. Do you know whether the rate is higher or lower than what we are proposing to pay?

Mr. CHUBB. The British provide war-risk insurance to their owners in the commercial war risk insurance and P. and I. clubs, and the values are based on 1939 values plus 25 percent.

Mr. WIGGLESWORTH. Do you know how that works out on a dollars-and-cents basis? Is it more or less?

Mr. CHUBB. I would imagine it would be less.

Mr. WIGGLESWORTH. Would you say that the British comparable rates were more than one-third of the rates we are paying?

Mr. CHUBB. British values vary as between individual vessels. I would not want to express an opinion on that.

Mr. WIGGLESWORTH. It has been represented to me that for comparable ships on the Atlantic the insurance rate paid by the British was about one-third of the rates we are paying.

I should like to know whether that is a fact, and if that is not the fact, what is the fact.