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462 section of the country has a right to call upon the government. perpetually to operate ships at a loss, but some local communities may be willing to join with the government in an ex- periment longer than might other- wise be the case. “10. To our view it is vital if we are to go on, that we provide a form of administration of the government fleet that will reduce losses on those routes which the government must op- erate pending trade growth, and to provide methods which will facilitate these lines being disposed of to private enterprise. “11. The shipping board was origi- nally conceived largely for regulation of discriminations and other bad prac- tices in ocean traffic. It was estab- lished upon a bi-partisan and later a regional basis. It was afterwards loaded with the most gigantic admin- istrative task in the government. The necessarily divided minds of the best board on earth has always resulted in failure in executive work. Without considering the result of this case, which must be evident at every turn, I may point out certain characteristics which make it doubly hopeless as a form of organization to build up and administer the merchant marine. Each member has a four-way independent responsibility. He is responsibile for every act. of the board to the country as a whole, to his particular con- stituency, to his political party and finally to congress. Responsibility to the President, the one responsibility which every administrative officer of the government should acknowledge under the spirit of the constitution, is denied by the board. “Every member of the board, if left alone, could probably have made a success of the merchant marine before now. However, such a set up of joint and divided responsibilities, even if comprised of consummate genius, is the negation of possible success in busi- ness management and even of the very plan of our government—that there should be single-headed responsi- bility in executive and administrative functions. It is admirably constituted for semi-judicial or regulatory func- tions where a number of minds are needed and deliberative action is an advantage. “12. Therefore our view has been that: The whole fleet and other property should be transferred to the Emergency Fleet Corp., and the presi- dent thereof should be appointed by the President of the United States, subject to confirmation by the senate and should be solely responsible to the President. This function should MARINE REVIEW not be incorporated into the department of commerce which is a service agency to the whole merchant marine whether private or governmental. “13, We believe that for certain major questions of policy an advisory board to the Emergency Fleet Corp.,. is desirable and this board should rep- resent and co-ordinate the great gov-- ernment departments for they are very largely involved in merchant marine questions. Such an advisory board should comprise the secretaries of the treasury, war, navy and commerce, the postmaster general, the president of the Emergency Fleet Corp., and chair- man of the shipping board. “This advisory board should be called upon for approval or recom- mendation in the following. major questions. “a, Inauguration of new routes or abandonment of those being operated and the sale of ships or routes. “b. In order to facilitate operation and disposal, authority should be given to the President upon approval of the advisory board to create subsidiary corporations for special lines and to offer stock in them to private opera- tors or communities. “ce, We consider that the adminis- tration of the construction loan funds should be transferred to the treasury and loans made under the authority of the President upon recommenda- tion of the advisory board. “14, As many questions concerning the continuation or disposal of trade routes have a vital regional interest, and regional interest and views must be maintained, we suggest that region- al committees should be established of important and experienced men in those regions which committees should sit with the advisory board in the consideration of such regional ques- tions. This method has proved highly successful in the Federal reserve sys- tem and would entail no expenditure on the part of the Federal government and would secure a more effective regional representation in the develop- ment of the* American merchant ma- rine than at present, because such com- mittees would take vision of the whole problem of overseas transporta- tion in their region and its co-ordina- tion with the rest of the country. “15. The various service functions of the government to the merchant marine which now lie principally in the department of commerce, should be further consolidated by the addition of those minor items scattered through some five other departments and placed under the direction of an under secre- tary of merchant marine.” December, 1925 Commissioner Appointed LS: Shipping Board John Henry Walsh, general man- ager of the New Orleans port com- mission, who has been appointed the Gulf district regional representative on the shipping board to take the place of former Commissioner Fred- erick I. Thompson, resigned, will shortly arrive in Washington to begin his duties. He took his oath of office in Washington but returned to New Orleans to close up his affairs with the port commission before taking up his work with the shipping board. Commissioner Walsh, who was rec- ommended to President Coolidge by JOHN HENRY WALSH Recently Appointed Gulf District Representa- tive on the United States Shipping Board Senator Ransdell and Broussard, of Louisiana, is a graduate of the United States naval academy at Annapolis. He retired in 1919 from the navy, and has been with the New Orleans port commission since 1921. He is the second former naval officer to be on the shipping board, Admiral W. S. Benson having been a member for some years. Commissioner Walsh has been active in waterways activities. He was twice president of the American association of port authorities, and is a member of the National Merchant Marine association, and the Rivers and Hartors congress. He also is a member of the board of directors of the Marine association. He is a native of Wisconsin, but spent a large part of his earlier years in the state of Washington. His port work in New Orleans ought to give him a_ broad vision on maritime matters.