COLUMBIA STEEL Co., Portland, Oreg., April 13, 1940.

Shortage of coastwise and intercoastal cargo space.

Mr. PHILIP H. CARROLL,

Executive Secretary, The Commission of Public Docks, Portland, Oreg. DEAR SIR: In reply to your letter of April 3:

The only shortage of space intercoastal or coastwise we have experienced was during February and March just after the close of the strike on the Pacific coast when many vessels were delayed here and not available for eastern loading.

This was also true of our shipments from Chicago to New Orleans during that period.

At this time we have no knowledge of any shortage and are not encountering any difficulty in promptly clearing shipments from either the Atlantic coast or Mobile, although the withdrawal of the service of the Gulf Pacific Line from New Orleans has resulted in some delays.

This is about all the information I can give you covering this point.

Yours very truly,

C. C. JOHNS, Manager of Sales.

MONTGOMERY WARD,

Portland, Oreg., April 6, 1940.

GENTLEMEN: Acknowledging the receipt of your letter of April concerning the meeting of those interested in water transportation to be held in San Francisco shortly.

It is indeed an appropriate subject at this time and demands immediate relief in order to keep up the pay rolls of the lumbering, papering, and milling industries on the Pacific coast as well as others.

Our recent experience in obtaining space to move traffic in due time from the east coast is that the space is hard to obtain. We have had several delays to our less-than-carload traffic due to shortage of space as we understand the east coast sea ports are allotted a definite amount of space on ships for less-than-carload shipments when this space is taken by those shipments delivered first, subsequent deliveries are held for the next sailing. It may be true the steamship company may notify the delivery man that all available space for that particular sailing has been taken. But as you know many of our shipments originate at inland points consequently there is no alternative for the inland carrier than to deliver the freight for a future sailing. We have known of one occasion where the American Hawaiian Steamship Co. passed up one of their eastern ports, as a result all our shipments on hand were delayed.

We are attempting to secure space at the time of placing orders for all of our larger shipments. So far, we have been able to obtain space for these shipments possibly because of being in a position to request space so far in advance.

We have experienced no trouble to date in connection with coastwise movements. We have experienced considerable trouble in moving plywood from our source of supply the M & M Plylock Corporation here in Portland to our eastern houses at Albany, N. Y., Baltimore, Md., and Jacksonville, Fla. We have moved several hundred tons of this commodity so far this year, however none of this was shipped according to our shipping schedule due to delay in obtaining space by 15 to 30 days on every shipment and we are at present attempting to arrange for space to ship 100 tons, but it is quite apparent that we will not be able to move it by water in order to meet our requirements.

We hope that you and the Pacific Coast Association of Portland Authorities will be able to suggest and put into realization some relief of this very critical situation.

Yours truly,

MONTGOMERY WARD,

C. T. KATHRENS,
Traffic Manager, Portland House.

EXHIBIT N

PACIFIC COAST CEMENT INSTITUTE

INDEX TO MEMORANDUM OF APRIL 10, 1940

Potential business and lack of steamship service and discriminatory freight rates from Pacific coast ports to Panama Canal Zone, Republic of Panama, and points in Central and South America (Statement to Pacific Coast Association of Port Authorities meeting held in San Francisco on Thursday, April 11, 1940)

Page

No.

1. Bill H. R. 5129-appropriating $277,000,000 for new locks at Panama Canal: $15,000,000 initial appropriation for 1940_under above bill reinstated in Senate appropriations committee War Department civil functions bill April 9, for immediate start of construction on a third set of locks. Estimated cement quantities required in_construction of new locks. Effect on economic life of Pacific coast, if Pacific coast cement manufacturers successful in securing order for cement for new locks.

2. Bids called for March 6, 12, and 14 aggregating $18,000,000 for Army construction work at Panama Canal:

Cement shipments to Panama Canal Zone, Republic of Panama, and Central and South America-from Europe and the United States.

3. Steamship service from Atlantic and Pacific coast ports to Panama Canal Zone (pp. 3 and 4).

4. Steamship service from Atlantic and Pacific ports to east coast of South America taking Buenos Aires and Rio de Janeiro as typical ports.

5. Steamship lines maintaining regular service to foreign countries from Valparaiso, Chile and statement of American Consul at Valparaiso regarding said steamship services numbering 28 in all.

6. Population of Central and South American countries.

7. Potential business in Central and South America.

8. Imports into Central American Countries-and shipments through Los Angeles Customs District amounting to only six-tenths of 1 percent of total imports of $147,579.000:

Conclusions (p. 8 and 9).

Excerpt from Joint Assembly Resolution No. 9 (passed February 5) and
Senate Joint Resolution No. 2 (passed February 6).

Date of completion: July 31, 1939.

Date of mailing: August 8, 1939.

From: Renwick S. McNiece, American Consul, American Consulate, Valparaiso, Chile.

STEAMSHIP LINES MAINTAINING REGULAR SERVICES TO FOREIGN COUNTRIES FROM VALPARAISO, CHILE

1

The following pages 1 indicate the names of steamship lines maintaining services to and from Valparaiso, the names of the agents, the destinations of the vessels, the periodicity of sailings, and the passenger fares.

Within the past few years, the greatest advances in steamship services to Valparaiso have been made by the two German lines-Nord Deutscher Lloyd and Hamburg-American. These two lines now operate to Valparaiso fleets of modern vessels which have all been built within the past 3 or 4 years. Some new vessels have arrived on their maiden voyages during the current year. These are all motor vessels with a cargo capacity of 7,000 to 8,000 tons and a speed of about 14 knots. Most of the new ships have accommodations for about 28 passengers. The new Hamburg-American Diesel-electric passenger ship Patria of about 15,000 gross tons with accommodations for 300 passengers which arrived at Valparaiso in August 1938, has been the most outstanding addition to the German services to Chilean ports. The growth of German shipping to Valparaiso may be noted

The consul attached a lengthy statement showing names of 28 steamship lines maintaining services between various ports in Europe and Japan and New York to, and from Valparaiso. However, only one of these services flies an American flag with a once-a-month schedule out of San Francisco and Los Angeles to South American ports.

by the following figures of the number and net tonnage of arrivals of ships at Valparaiso for the countries indicated:

NOTE.-The foregoing figures for 1936 were supplied by the port administration; those for 1938 were compiled in the consulate from data in the daily Gaceta de la Navegacion.

The decline in the number and tonnage of American vessels is due to the fact that in 1938 two of the vessels in the service of the Grace Line did not come to Valparaiso, but turned back at Antofagasta. However, the increase in the number of vessels and the tonnage of German ships is impressive and indicates the strides that German shipping has made in its service to ports on the West Coast of South America.

FOREIGN AND DOMESTIC COMMERCE-VOLUNTARY REPORT

(Of possible interest to the United States Maritime Commission)

STEAMSHIP LINES MAINTAINING REGULAR SERVICES TO FOREIGN COUNTRIES FROM VALPARAISO, CHILE

Date of Completion: July 31, 1939

Date of Mailing: August 8, 1939

From Renwick S. McNiece, American consul, American consulate, Valparaiso, Chile.

STEAMSHIP LINES MAINTAINING REGULAR SERVICES TO FOREIGN COUNTRIES FROM VALPARAISO, CHILE

The following pages indicate the names of steamship lines maintaining services to and from Valparaiso, the names of the agents, the destinations of the vessels, the periodicity of sailings, and the passenger fares.

Within the past few years, the greatest advances in steamship services to Valparaiso have been made by the two German lines-Norddeutscher Lloyd and Hamburg-American. These two lines now operate the Valparaiso fleets of modern vessels which have all been built within the past 3 or 4 years. Some new vessels have arrived on their maiden voyages during the current year. These are all motor vessels with a cargo capacity of 7,000 to 8,000 tons and a speed of about 14 knots. Most of the new ships have accommodations for about 28 passengers. The new Hamburg-American Diesel-electric passenger ship Patria of about 15,000 gross tons with accommodations for 300 passengers which arrived at Valparaiso in August 1938, has been the most outstanding addition to the German services to Chilean ports. The growth of German shipping to Valparaiso may be noted by the following figures of the number and net tonnage of arrivals of ships at Valparaiso for the countries indicated:

NOTE.-The foregoing figures for 1936 were supplied by the Port Administration, those for 1938 were compiled in the consulate from data in the daily "Gaceta de la Navegacion."

The decline in the number and tonnage of American vessels is due to the fact that in 1938 two of the vessels in the service of the Grace Line did not come to Valparaiso, but turned back at Antofagasta. However, the increase in the number of vessels and the tonnage of German ships is impressive and indicates the strides that German shipping has made in its service to ports on the west coast of South America.

1 For German lines, passage money in Chilean currency payable as follows: 75 percent in registered marks at pesos 6.80; 25 percent in Chilean currency at pesos 10.

• Steerage. No passengers.

Steamship lines maintaining services to and from Valparaiso-Continued

Scandinavia S. P. Linje, K. Knutsen.