Capt. DALY. They are boats used by the Coast Artillery in connection with mine planting. Mr. SHERLEY. Two steam launches, at $10,000 each, $20,000; five artillery water boats, at $75,000 each, $375,000; running supplies, repairs, fuel, water, and incidental expenses for operation for one year, $132,500, making a total of $627,500. Who prepared this estimate? Capt. DALY. I am quite certain it was prepared on a request from the Chief of Coast Artillery. Mr. SHERLEY. How many mine planters have they now? Capt. DALY. They have a good many of those mine planters, but I can not tell you the number offhand. Mr. SHERLEY. Are these D. B. boats supposed to be mine-planting boats? Capt. DALY. They are small boats used in a harbor. Col. LITTELL. They use them to plant junction boxes; there is a junction box where all the wires and mines are connected, and that is called a distribution box; that is the reason they call them "D. B.” boats. Mr. SHERLEY. They are really not mine-planting boats, then? Col. LITTELL. They are used in connection with the mine planters. Mr. SHERLEY. You do not know anything about the need of these boats? Col. LITTELL. No. Capt. DALY. I do not know that myself, but we could get that data for you. Mr. SHERLEY. Do you know whether they can be had and when they can be used? Capt. DALY. I can get all of that data for you. Mr. GILLETT. What is an artillery water boat? Capt. DALY. It is used for furnishing water to those posts that have no water connections. Mr. SHERLEY. I understand that the Chief of Coast Artillery is to appear before the committee, and we can probably get the details from him. VESSELS FOR THE TRANSPORTATION OF TROOPS. (See pp. 299, 305, 438.) Your next item is for the purchase and charter of transports for the movement of troops, $163,266,000. What money have you allotted for that purpose now? Capt. DALY. I have not the figures here, Mr. Sherley, but I will get those figures for you and put them in the record. 1. Appropriations for the fiscal year 1918 were made as shown in the following tables; subdivisions, by items of the total amounts shown in the first statement, are given in statement No. 2 hereunder : Statement No. 1. Wharfage (item 218). solidated) Maintenance and operation of harbor boats (item 235 consolidated) – $56, 600 618, 500 633, 666 Item A. T. 235-H (miscellanecus expenses, harbor boats). Total____. Item A. T. 236-B (repairs, other vessels). Item A. T. 236-C (fuel, other vessels) --- $80,000 105, 000 50,000 355,000 2,500 16,000 10, 000 618, 500 94, 500 100,000 Item A. T. 236-D (supplies, other vessels) Item A. T. 236-E (employees, other vessels). Item A. T. 236-F (water, other vessels). Item A. T. 236-G (charter or hire of other vessels) Item A. T. 236-H (miscellaneous expenses, other vessels). Total 55, 000 265, 366 1.600 13, 600 3, 600 633, 666 2. The funds appropriated by the act of Congress, approved June 15, 1917, were For harbor boats__ For Coast Artillery boats_ For employees, harbor boats_. For employees, Artillery boats_ $5, 679, 500 7, 375, 000 600,000 484, 430 The first two of the lumped items listed above cover procurement of the following: Running supplies, repairs, fuel, water, and incidental expenses of operation for one year___. Harbor boats_. Coast Artillery boats: 6 mine planters, at $350,000_ 2 cable steamers, at $400,000__ 30 tugs, at $100,000__. 8 60-foot steam launches, at $20,000. 4 60-foot gasoline launches, at $25,000. 3 64-foot D. B. boats, at $20.000. 19 gasoline launches, at $10.000_ 2 steam launches, at $10, 000_ 24 32-foot D. B. boats, at $4,000. 44 power mine yawls, at $1,000. 75 rowing yawls, at $500_ Running supplies, repairs, fuel, water, and incidental expenses of operation for one year- Coast Artillery boats... $332, 000 3,300,000 400,000 1,647, 500 5, 679, 500 2, 100, 000 800, 000 3, 000, 000 160, 000 100, 000 60,000 190, 000 20,000 96.000 44, 000 37,500 767, 500 7,375,000 3. $1.927,500 was included in the deficiency estimate now under consideration for the maintenance and operation of harbor boats, and $627,500 was included for maintenance and operation of Coast Artillery boats. Items of $75,000 and $40,570 were also included to cover payment of crew hire for additional harbor boats and additional Artillery boats, respectively. The items of $1,927,500 and $627,500 referred to above comprise the following: Additional harbor boats: 3 freight and passenger steamers, at $150,000_ 4 steam lighters, at $100,000– 3 water and freight supply ships, at $200,000.... $450,000 400, 000 600, 000 Running supplies, repairs, fuel, water, and incidental expenses of operation for one year.. Additional harbor boats Additional Coast Artillery boats: 2 60-foot steam launches, at $20,000.. 2 64-foot D. B. boats, at $30,000. 2 steam launches, at $10,000_ 5 Artillery water boats, at $75,000 Running supplies, repairs, fuel, water, and incidental expenses for operation for one year. $477,500 1,927, 500 40.000 60,000 200,000 375,000 132,500 Additional Coast Artillery boats--- 627,500 Attention is invited to lists submitted herewith. These lists cover all vessels chartered or hired in connection with the harbor-boat service since April 6, 1917 (excluding the lighthouse tenders that were temporarily transferred to the War Department at the outbreak of the war). It is impossible for the branch to state just what vessels are under charter at the present time, the data in this connection not being furnished until after the charter is completed. The following statement is furnished in regard to owned vessels of the Coast Artillery service: NOTE. It will be noted that in some cases the length of service and the charter rate is left blank. In hese cases the information has been called for, but has not as yet been received in this office. 1 First 3 days, $150 per day; next 5 days, $138 per day; thereafter, $75 per day. NOTE.-It will be noted that in some cases the length of service and the charter rate is left blank. In these cases, the information has been called for but has not as yet been received in this office Mr. SHERLEY. What do you propose to do with this money? Capt. DALY. It is for the refitting of six additional German vessels at $100,000 each. The CHAIRMAN. Is not that being done by the Navy? Capt. DALY. We made the estimate, and I do not know that the Navy is doing it. The CHAIRMAN. Has not all the transport business been turned over to the Navy Department? Capt. DALY. It may have been turned over to them, but we are to reimburse them for what they do. The CHAIRMAN. I do not know about that, because they are asking for this same money, and we want to find out about it; we do not want to give it in two places. Capt. DALY. That is the theory on which we made this estimate. The CHAIRMAN. How is this $163,266,000 segregated? Capt. DALY. $600,000 of it is for refitting six additional vessels at $100,000 each. The CHAIRMAN. Are they to be materially altered? Gen. SHARPE. They will have to put in bunks for the men, and considerable alterations will have to be made. Urinals and means of ventilation will have to be provided. The CHAIRMAN. How was that estimate arrived at? Was it based on a survey of the ships? Gen. SHARPE. It was based on a survey and on what it cost to make these same changes in other vessels. Capt. DALY. Those are six ships that the superintendent of the transport service in New York is actually refitting. The CHAIRMAN. And this estimate is based upon his report? The CHAIRMAN. You estimate $600,000 for refitting those ships; what else is there? Capt. DALY. For reimbursement of the Navy Department for operating expenses of these six ships at $900,000 each, $5,400,000. The CHAIRMAN. Is that for a year? Capt. DALY. Yes, sir. The CHAIRMAN. How is the estimate of the operating expenses arrived at? Capt. DALY. By taking the average daily consumption of fuel, oil, water, and of all of the things that are required in the operation of ships, including the crews, or the payment of the crews. The CHAIRMAN. Are they civilian crews? Capt. DALY. Yes, sir. The CHAIRMAN. The statement has been made that these crews will be naval crews. That is on the basis of civilian crews? Capt. DALY. Yes, sir. The CHAIRMAN. What other items are there? Capt. DALY. The next is to charter 16 American commercial vessels for three months, at $82,000 per month each, $3,940,000. The next is the charter of 14 American commercial vessels for six months at $82,000 per month, each, $6,888,000. The next is the charter of 10 American ships to meet probable requirements for nine months, at $82,000 per month each, $7,380,000. The next is the charter of 60 American ships to meet probable requirements for one year, at $82,000 per month, $59,040,000. Then, the wages, crews, and operating expenses of those ships will be $50,868,000. The next is to reimburse the owners of American chartered vessels under the terms of their charters for vessels submarined or otherwise destroyed by the enemy $22,490,000. Then, for shore expenses at the port of embarkation at New York, $360,000; at Newport News, $300.000; and at the port of debarkation in France, $500,000. The CHAIRMAN. Does that make up the $163,266,000? Capt. DALY. Yes, sir. The CHAIRMAN. How many transports have you already taken over, or how many vessels have you already taken over for transport purposes? Maj. DRAKE. One hundred and eighty-seven. The CHAIRMAN. Wait a minute; suppose we take it up in a different way. You have turned some vessels over to the Navy already? Maj. DRAKE. None have been turned over to the Navy, so far as I know. The CHAIRMAN. None of these transport vessels? Maj. DRAKE. No, sir. The CHAIRMAN. Admiral Griffin testified that he was asking $2,160,000 for repairs to transports that had been turned over to the Navy. Then he was asked if these vessels had already been taken possession of by the Army, and he said that some of them had been and that some of them came from the Shipping Board. Gen. SHARPE. Those were German interned vessels. The CHAIRMAN. As to the first 14 German ships turned over, you never had them, did you? Capt. DALY. No, sir. The CHAIRMAN. Admiral Griffin then said that they had 16 other ships turned over to them by the War Department as transports, making 30 ships. Capt. DALY. They were probably German interned ships that had been turned over to the Army. The War Department may have had them, but they had not been turned over to the Quartermaster Department. |