Seafarers Log: Vol. 19 No. 14 (1957-07-08)

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SEAFARERS LOG
• OFFICIAL ORGAN OF THE SEAFARERS INTERNATIONAL UNION • ATLANTIC AND GULF DISTRICT • AFL-CIO •

'\A- 'The Juggler'

SOPR^Rr
OPLL.A.
AOAIN^
AflrdIO

SUPPOltT _ _

APk-dO \ \

li

50c Increase Package:

BAIT. TUGS
YIELD BIG
PAY BOOST

Story On Page 3

Pictured above is an individual who purports to be a Trade Unionist.
While giving lip service to AFL-CIO policy, he has worked tirelessly to
undermine it. He plugged for the expelled ILA and called for long­
shoremen to vote against AFL-CIO. He ordered seamen across AFL-
CIO marine officers' picketlines while he supported a District 50 com­
pany union.

This same individual lauded the "great and wise" Stalin from a
Moscow podium and never apologized for this or any other similarly
nauseating act. Now this past master of the Stalinis't-stooge technique
sets himself up as an authority on ethics and a paragon of trade imion
morality. It is high time that he stopped embarrassing the labor move­
ment by his tactics. He should resign promptly from the AFL-CIO
Ethical Practices Committee.

New 55 Harry Lundeberg
Honors Founder Of SHIN A
Red, whits and blue bunting shoots upward to reveal the
name of the largest bulk-ore-carrier built for West Coast
service as Mrs, Harry Lundeberg, widow of the late founder
and president of the SIU of North America (above, on plat­
form), tugs on a line leading from the ship. Simultaneously,
hundreds of colorful balloons were sent aloft as the large
crowd of friends, Sailors Union members, maritime leaders
and trade unionists stood silent. The christfening ceremonies
last Saturday at Redwood City, Calif., were addressed by Ed­
gar Kaiser (left), president of Kaiser Industries, operators of
the modern, 16,()()0-ton ship. It was launched earlier as the
SS Kaiser Gypsum. (Other Photos on Page II.)

IN THIS ISSUE: A four-page supplement carrying the annual report
of the Seafarers Welfare Plan filed with the NY State Insurance Dept.

-C-.-v-;'." ^ • • ^
•M



Page Two SEAFARERS 100

•Y' •• :;

S, 1957

Five American Coai
Vesseis in, Take
On Repiacements

NORFOLK—The fight for a majority of the crews aboard
the American Coal ships is still continuing at this writing
with one ship in last week and four more crewing this week.
At this writing, final results^

New York Children 'AdoptV Reamer

are not yet available.
The five ships in were the

Walter Hines Page, the Casimir
Pulaski, the Martha Berry, the
Cleveland Abbe and the Thomas
Paine, Replacement calls were
heaviest on the Pulaski on which
Seafarer Claudio Barreioros was
the victim of a stabbing. Italian
police have NMU member V. Goy-
enechea under arrest in the case.

Another significant development
on the coal shipping dispute is a

. meeting scheduled for July 8.
George Harrison, president of the
Brotherhood of Railway Clerks, and
Jacob Potofsky, president of the
Amalgamated Clothing Workers
who were appointed by AFL-CIO
President George Meany to medi­
ate the dispute, will meet with the
officer's unions involved.

Representatives of the Marine
Engineers Beneficial Association
and the Masters Mates and Pilots
will meet with Harrison to present
their grievances against the com­
pany union. United. Mine Workers
District 50, and against the Nation­
al Maritime Union which so far
has supported the company union
against the AFL-CIO affiliates.

Also on July 8 the National La­
bor Relations Board is scheduled
to take up unfair labor practice
charges filed by the SIU against
the company. The charges of dis­
crimination against the company
were further highlighted this week
by the news that several more SIU
men have been fired.

The firings will most certainly
be the subject of SIU action before
the Labor Board as part of a pat­
tern of continuing and open com­
pany favoritism for the NMU.

Meanwhile, men from the SUP,
MCS, MFOW and A&G District are
continuing to go aboard the Ameri-1
can Coal ships and are staying '

Coal Box Score
Complete returns on the re­

placements for the four Ameri­
can Coal ships in Norfolk this
week were not available at
LOG press-time, but unofficial
figures indicated an SIU edge of
103 to 93 over the NMU. These
figures are based on Jobs called
for all but the Thomas Paine,
which is due to take several re­
piacements tomorrow (Satur­
day).

with the beef until it is won. Men
from all affiliates with old dis­
charges can help in this important
campaign. See any patrolman or
port agent for details.

A further weakening of coal
rates was reported In the past two
weeks with the rates sliding to
$fi.50 a ton. Shipping rates on coal
usually fluctuate heavily but the
recent declines have raised ques­
tions as to the future of the coal
shipping operation.

At the time American Coal took
out the first of its six ships char­
tered from the Government, coal
rates were $12 or more a ton.
Since the decline, two of the ships
have gone into the grain and ore
trade. The company also has one
ship of its own, the SS Coal Miner.

Sixth graders from Public School 63 in Ozone Park, Queens, crowd
gangway of SlU-contracted Alcoa Roamer (Alcoa), which they
"adopted" last September. School children from 35 states have
adopted the majority of American ships as part of a school-sup­
ported program designed to promote interest in the US merchant
fleet. Reamer's skipper, Captain Don Sweeney, Js center of at­
traction.

CG Protilingl Pops Up
In Sea Security Proposal

WASHINGTON—Undaunted by its' failure to win approval three years ago for its "brain-
body" profiling system which would have imposed rigid controls on seamen, the US Coast
Guard appears ready to try again, this time by lumping roughly similar requirements un­
der a "security" program.

The Coast Guard has appar-

Breakout 'Knot' Fleet For
DEW Line Duty In Arctic

SAN FRANCISCO—Breakout operations are almost com­
pleted on seven vessels assigned to West Coast companies for
Distant Early Warning operations (DEW Line) in the Arctic
area. The ships will be-*-
manned by Sailors, Firemen

m

SCHEDULE OF
SIU MEETINGS

SiU membership meet­
ings are held regularly
every two weeks on Wed­
nesday nights at 7 PM in
all SIU ports. All Sea­
farers are expected to
attend; those who wish to
be excused should request
permission by telegram
(be sure to include reg­
istration number). The
next SIU meetings will be:

July 10
Jujy 24

August 7
August 21

and Cooks from West Coast
SiUNA affiliates.

Three vessels of the "knot" fleet
will be operated by the Alaska
Steamship Company. They are the
Honda Knot, the Sailors Splice,
and the Anchor Hitch. Olympic
Steamship Company was assigned
the Flemish Knot, the Jumper
Hitch, the Reef Knot, and the
Clove Hitch. All are expected to
leave Seattle around July 15 and
are due back from the Arctic from
September 14 to October 1.

96-Shlp Fleet
The vessels are part of a 96-ship

armada which is to carry construc­
tion materials and other supplies
for the Far North radar network.
All of these defense stations are
icebound most of the year, and it
is necessary to carry in most of
the supplies during the brief three-
month navigation period.

Although originally planned for
1855 and 1956, the project was ex­
tended to this year and is j.-ii SCted
to be needed again next year. The
ships are operated under offshore
agreements. . , , , . .

ently persuaded a special
Presidential Commission on Gov­
ernment Security that seamen's
physical characteristics, living
habits, social behavior and associa­
tions are all related somehow to
Government security. As a result
the Commission has recommended
that seamen come under standards
that would not only bar men for
subversive associations (a condition
accepted by the SIU and other
unions) but also for personal ha­
bits, conduct and other non-politi­
cal and non-subversive reasons.

'Screenoes' Have More Rights
What's more, the seamen barred

for non-political reasons would
actually have less rights under the
proposal than the "screenoes" —
the Communists and party-liners
who have heretofore been the ini-
mary targets of the Coast Guard
screening program.

The "screenoes" In njost Instan­
ces would have the right to con­
front accusers, but the non-political
targets of the "brain-body" system
would not have that right.

Here are some of the additional
items for which a seaman could be
bcured under the new proposals
in addition to the usual grounds
of subversion, espionage, loyalty to
Communism or a foreign power or
advocacy of violent overthrow of
the Government:
• Illnesses which may cause a

"significant defect^ in perform­
ance, judgement or reliability"
Including "mental conditions."
(The recommendations specifical­

ly avoid use of the words mental
Illness or insanity.)

• "Behavior, activities or associa­
tions which tend to show that
the individual is not reliable .. ."

• ". . . immoral or notoriously dis­
graceful conduct"

• "habitual use of intoxicants to
excess . . ."
By contrast, under the old

screening program for ships, crew-
members could only be knocked
out for specific acts of subversion
or membership or affiliation with
subversive groups. The old port
security program applying to wa­
terfront workers but not to sea­
men was broader and provided
that a man could be ruled off on
additional counts of "having been
adjudged insane, having been le­
gally committed to an Insane
asylum, or treated for serious
mental or neurological disorder
^thout evidence of cure," as well
as "drunkenness on the job," These
counts are much more specific than
the ones in the new recommenda­
tion.

The original Coast Guard profil­
ing system was first put forth
three years ago in November, 1954.
It called for seamen to pass a series
of seven tests, including examina­
tions dealing with incapacitating
diseases (past and present) and
mental and emotional stability.
Failure on the tests would result
in "voluntary" surrender of sea­
men's papers. An uproar by the
SIU and other unions against the

, , (Continued on page 8) '

MCS Ado^
Constitution
In 9-1 Vote

SAN FRANCISCO—Results of
the referendum vote held by the
Marine Cooks and Stewards of the
SIU of NA have shown almost
nine-tenths of the members vot­
ing in favor of the proposed new
constitution. Final totals were
1474 members approving the con­
stitution, 167 against and 9 void.

The overwhelming approval of
the new constitution, effective July
1, 1957, clears the way for
the first election of offi­
cials. Nominations will open in
September and voting will take
place In November and December.
The vote also approved an in­
crease in dues from $20 to $25 a
quarter, and an initiation fee of
$150.

Voting in all MCS ports began
March 18 and ended June 15.
Rank-and-file tallying committees
handled the ballot count and cer­
tified the results to membership
meetings which, in turn, ratified
the final report. The original con­
stitutional proposal had been pre­
pared on the basis of recommenda­
tions by an agent's-conference and
various suggestions by the MCS
membership at sea and ashore.

With the adoption of the con­
stitution and the installation of the
officers In January, 1958, the
MC&S will become a fully autono­
mous union. Chartered by the
Seafarers International Union of
North America, MC&S was recog­
nized as bargaining agent for ma­
rine cooks and stewards on the
Pacific coast after a 4-to-l NLRB
election victory over Local 100
of Harry Bridges' west coast long­
shore union.

Since then the union has com­
pleted contracts with west coast
shipowners, has opened a new
headquarters hall in San Francisco,
and has dedicated a modern train­
ing center for aspiring marine
cooks and stewards.

Fight Fire On
Natalie In Yoke.

YOKOHAMA—Seafarers aboard
the freighter Natalie got a hot wel­
come on arrival here Saturday
from San Francisco when an un­
explained blaze broke out in one
of the cargo holds.

They helped bring the blaze un­
der control after a 15-hour fight.
The ship was beached and then
refloated again in the course of
the fire-fighting efforts. No esti­
mate of the damage could be ob­
tained, but several crewmen suf­
fered burns and other injuries.

The Natalie, a C-2, is operated
by Intercontinental Transport. The
company also has one other ship,
the Rebecca, also a C-2. Both are
under SIU contract.

SEAFARERS LOG
July 5, 1957 Vol. XIX No. 14

PAUL HALL, Secretary-Treasurer
HERBERT BRAND, Editor. BERNARD SEA­

MAN, Art Editor. HERMAN ARTHUR, IRWIN
SPIVACK, AL MASKIN, JOHN BRAZIL, Staff
Writers. BILL MOODY. Gulf Area Repre­
sentative.

Publishad blwAekly at the headquartcrt
of the Seafarers International Union, At­
lantic & Gulf District, AFL-CIO, 675 Fourth
Avenuo, Brooklyn 32, NY. Tel. HYaclnth
9-6600. • Enterett as second class matter
at the Fost Oflico in Brooklyn, NY, under
tho Act of Aug. M, 1913.

120



Jnly 5, 1957 SE'Af'ARERS too Par* Tlire*

Contract Talks Continue
Talks iare still going on between the SIU negotiating

committee and representatives of SlU-contracted steam­
ship companies over improvements in the SIU agreement.
The items under discussion include a wage increase as well
as other significant contract gains in non-wage items.

The SIU agreement was reopened by the Union under a
unique clause which permits such action at any time dur­
ing the life of the contract. The agreement itself does not
expire until September 30,1958.

Watch future issues of the SEAFARERS LOG for further
details, .

Win 50-Cent Raise
For Bait. Tugmen
In Three-Year Pact

BALTIMORE—Sparked by two overwhelming election victories, the SIU has
hailed down the: best agreement by far in the history of the Baltimore tugboat
industry. The contract, which provides for a package increase of 63 cents an

thour over three years and^

Crewmembers of BalHmoro tog$ register to vote on the ratification of their new SlU-HIWD contract.
In the foreground are other members using the voting booths to mark their secret ballots. The men
adopted the agreement, the best offered to tugmen in the port of Baltimore, by a vote of 187 to 18.

T-H Law 10 Years Old; Has
Hampered Labor Organizing

June 23 marked the 10th anniversary of the Taft-Hartley Act. It was on that date in
1947 that Congress voted to override President Truman's veto and put on the books a legal
means for hamstringing the labor movement.

Three days before the sign->
ing of the bill, Truman
warned that effects of the bill
"for good or 111, will be felt for
decades to come" and that the
measure "is a clear threat to the
successful working of our demo­
cratic society."

But despite strong protest from
labor, 273 Republicans and 126
Democrats in both Houses Joined
to override the President.

The bill's basic effect has been to

Sf Enjoys
Brief Boom

SAN FRANCISCO—"Shipping
has been much better than ex­
pected here," reports Marty Breit-
hoff, port agent, with 101 jobs go­
ing out. But this may be short­
lived for the future looks slow
with no payoffs scheduled as of
now.

The Steel Advocate (Isthmian),
Coeur D'Alene Victory (Vietory
Carriers), Ocean Evelyn (Ocean
Transport) and the Iberville (Wa­
terman) paid off while the Afoun-
dria (Waterman) and Ocean Evelyn
(Ocean Transport) signed on. The
Mary Adams (Bloomfield); Alamar,
Texmar (Calmar); Steel Advocate
(Isthmian), Hurricane and Topa
(Waterman) were in transit. .

retard the growth of labor unions.
It has not done loo much damage
to the stronger unions, but has
been effectively employed against
unorganized, low wage workers.
Taft-Hartley's restrictions placed
serious limitations on union or­
ganizing effectiveness, and for ex­
ample, served as a shield for
Southern textile owners to prevent
the organizing of theii* workers,
and the raising of living standards
in their industry.

Union Growth Slowed

As a measure of the T-H's effect
on union growth, during the 12
years in which the Wagner Act
was law, union membership
jumped from 3.72 million in 1935
to 14.9 million in 1946. In the 10
years the T-H act has been law,
union membership has increased
by only 2.5 million while the labor
force has grown by 8 million.

One of the major by-products of
the measure has been the enact­
ment of "right to work" laws in
18 states. Section 14(b) granted to
the states the right to enforce leg­
islation stricter than the originat­
ing act itself. The use of the in­
junction, once difficult to apply
under the Wagner and Norris-
LaGuardia acts, increased under
T-H. The closed shop was
banned, secondary boycotts out­
lawed, (yonomic strikers barred
from -casting a vote in an NLRB
election, and the entire stren ?th of
the Government was placed on the
side of the employer in "national
emergency" strikes.

attempts to amend Taft-Hartley
there has been only one amend­
ment in 10 years. The requirement
of special NLRB elections before
a union could even ask for union
security was removed. The provi­
sion had been based on the theory
that the union shop was a sort of
tyranny imposed on the workers
by "evil labor leaders." The rec,-
ord shows that in four years the'
NLRB held 46,119 special elections
on union secm-ity. In them 5,547,-
478 valid ballots were cast and 91
percent of them favored a union
security clause.

major improvements in
working conditions, was
ratified by the tugboat
crews last Saturday, by a
vote of 187 to 18. The
contract covers th® licensed
and unlicensed crewmembers
of five of this port's major
towboat operators. Fifty cents of
the package was in wages.

Signing of the agreement came
on the heels of SIU certification by
the National Labor Relations
Board as bargaining agent for the
mates, engineers and unlicensed
crews of six Baltimore harbor
companies. SIU was certified
after its Harbor and Inland Water­
ways Division crushed District 50,
United Mine Workers, In two elec­
tions held among the tugboat
crews last month.

The highlights of the agreement
are;
• A $.50 cents an hour wage

package increase. The increases
are $.30 effective July 1, $.12 ef­
fective October, 1958 and $.08 ef­
fective October, 1959. The con­
tract calls for time and a half for
any time over eight hours or on
Saturday, and double time for
Sundays.

• SIU welfare coverage. Under
their previous contract, the compa­
nies had been contributing $.05 an
hour into an inactive pension plan.
The proceeds in this plan will be
put into a welfare plan to set up
a fund to make available some im­
mediate benefits for the member­
ship. The operators will also con­
tribute $1.05 a day per man to the
plan.
• No work on Christmas Day

and no unnecessary work on New
Year's Day.

Seniority rights.
Use of the hiring hall.
Grievance and ai'bitration

procedure.
• Recognition of the tugboat

workers' rights to respect picket
lines and refuse to cross any.

Under the new contract, a deck­
hand's base pay wiU Jump from
$1.57 to $1.87 an hour. He will

receive $2.75 an hour for overtime
and $4.74 an hour for work on
Sundays.

The five companies signing the
agreement are Baker and Whitley,
Baltimore Towing and Lighterage,
Curtis Bay, Harper, and Atlantie
Transport Tug Company. The con­
tract wiil expire on September 30,
1960. The tugboat workers* nego­
tiating committee was headed by
SIU Assistant Secretary-Treasurer
Robert Matthews. Two more com­
panies, not classified as tug com­
panies, are now negotiating for a
separate contract.

The contract is the result of a
long campaign by SIU organizers
among the tugboat crews. The SIU
handed the United Mine Workers
District 50 two convincing defeats
covering the unlicensed crewmem­
bers and the mates and engineers.
The Union scored a 146 to 9 NLRB
election victory for representation
of the unlicensed men, and three
weeks ago, despite threats and
paint bombings, the mates and en­
gineers voted 64 to 0 in favor of
the SIU's HIWD.

The crushing defeat came after
(Continued On Page 15)

10 Waterman Ships Aim
For 100% Safety Record

Officers and crewmembers aboard ten Waterman-Pan At­
lantic ships are keeping their fingers crossed as they enter
the second half of 1957. Latest results announced by the
company's safety department
show that so far in 1957 the
ten ships have no lost-time in­
juries.

The results are an impressive
tribute to the joint SlU-operator
safety program on SIU ships indi­
cating that it is achieving very
significanf results in saving Sea­
farers from injui-y or death. By
comparison, in the full year of
1956, just one ship in the fleet, the
Wild Ranger, had but one lost time
accident, and that was considered
quite an achievement.

Of - course the figures could
Although thevo many i change drastically between now

and December 81, but all hands
are hoping for the best.

The ten vessels free of lost time
accidents so far are the Almena,
Bienville, Coalinga HiUs, DeSoto,
Fuirport, Hastings, John B. Water­
man, Maiden Creek, Morning
Light and Raphael Semmes. They
have registered between 96,000 and
142,000 man hours of work thus
far.

Despite its ^ex<^^lent perform­
ance last year, lor which tlie ship
earned a special plaque from the
company, the WUd Ranger is -not
in the running for 1957 honors.

Vote 24-Hr.
Quarantine
At Co. Cost

WASHINGTON — President
Eisenhower has signed a bill au­
thorizing 24-hour Quarantine serv­
ice by the Public Health Service if
requested and paid for by the ship­
ping company.

Under the bill. Quarantine serv­
ice will be made available to any
ships on an overtime basis with the
company footing the bill. The
operator will have to pay time
and a half after the normal 8-hour
day and double time on Sundays.

It is estimated that the new bill
will save shipping companies al­
most $10 million a year. The ships
will now be able to proceed to
their piers after the quarantine in­
spection and be ready the follow­
ing morning when the longshore
gangs start to unload the vessel.
Under the old basis, vessels' which
arrived after hours were forced to
wait until the next morning, or if
they arrived late Saturday, until
Monday mroning before they could
be inspected. This delay would
hold up the unloading and would
add to the company's expenses.

Four vessels, in New York filed
requests for service only hours
after the signing of the bill. Al­
though all of»the administrative
details were not worked out, tiie
service was rendered as requested.

Shipping companies have been
paying for overtime work by Cus­
toms and Immigration officers in
order to speed up the unloading
and loading of their vessels.

The signing of the bill came after
two years of Congressional jug­
gling before provisions were work­
ed out to everybody's satisfaction.



Pare Four g g ;iF-^ R gRSv L O G July B. 19S7

Seafarer Rocus "Dutch" Vellinga (right) shows off "fit for duty"
slip from USPHS after he underwent operation for an ailment dis­
covered during routine check-up at new SlU health center. SlU
welfare rep. Milton Flynn congratulates Vellinga on his good for­
tune in finding the trouble in time.

Sm Health Center
Licks Hidden Ills

Seafarer Rocus Vellinga was one who took a physical at
the SIU Health Center—and today he is thankful that he took
the trouble. For doctors at the center discovered he had a
thyroid condition which re-"^
quired treatment lest it de­
velop into a serious health
problem. Now after a brief stay at

Seattle Hustles
To Find Crews

SEATTLE—It was very busy in
this port during the past period
with shipping again outstripping
registration in all classes. Port
Agent Jeff Gillette and staff were
kept hopping to meet calls for 158
berths, one of the highest totals
ever i-ecorded in this port.

16 Vessels Hit Port
There were a total of 16 ve.ssels

In port for the last two weeks.
Seven paid off, six signed on and
three were in transit. The vessels
paying off and signing on were the
Afoundria, Choctaw, Yaka i Water­
man); Armonk (New Jersey Ind.*;
Ames Victory (Victory Carriers)
and the Ocean Joyce (Ocean Trans­
port). The Lewis Emery Jr. (Vic­
tory Carriers) paid off before going
foreign.

The Yorkmar, Losmar, Alamar
(Calmar) stopped into port to lie
serviced. There were no major
beefs and all vessels were reported
in good shape.

Gillette declared the SIU is
getting full cooperation from its
West Coast affiliates on the coal
deal with oldtimers turning to
from all the unions.

Staten Island hospital, Vellinga is
fit for duty and ready to ship
again.

The 48-year-old Seafarer, who
ships black gang ratings, reported
that he got off the Suzanne on May
3 and went to New York to reg­
ister. "When I registered the dis­
patcher asked me 'Why don't you
get a cheek-up at the center while
you're waiting to ship?' I told him
that I felt wonderful but I figured
I had nothing to lose so I made an
appointment.

Possible Future Lay-up
"After they examined me I was

told that I had a thyroid deficiency
which could possibly lay me up in
the future for a long time. They
sent me over to Hudson and Jay
and from there I went to Staten
Island. After a whole series of
tests, the chief surgeon recom­
mended an operation because
otherwise I might have developed
a tumor.

"I was operated on June 7 and
got my fit for duty in less than
three weeks. Now I can ship any­
where without worrying about the
condition."

"The thing I want to empha­
size," he added, "is that I've been
examined on the ships by doctors
many times and they never found
out anything. But down at our
health center they have the equip­
ment and the men to do a very
thorough job. As far as I'm con­
cerned, any seaman would be fool­
ish not to take such an exam if he
had the chance."

June 12 Through June 25
Registered

port Pack Pecu Eng. Eng. Staw. Stew. Total Total Total A B A B A B A B Reg.
Boston ............... 14 2 5 3 3 1 22 6 28
New York ..............'a 91 13 58 21 46 15 195 49 244
Philadelphia .... ......'a........ 13 7 16 5 17 2 46 14 60
Baltimore .. 51 21 43 26 34 IS 128 62 190
Norfolk •**••••••*• 8 4 5 5 3 4 16 13 29
Savannah 4 1 2 1 6 0 12 2 14
Tampa . a . a a a a . . a 9 1 3 6 11 1 23 8 31
Mobile ..........aaaaf 43 5 21 8 33 8 97 21 118
New Orleans ... ............. .. 75 13 64 16 51 13 190 42 232
Lake Charles ... 6 16 9 8 7 37 22 59
Houston 13 15 11 10 5 46 29 75
Wilmington ...., 7 15 16 10 4 41 27 68
San Francisco .. 10 24 15 17 7 68 32 100
Seattle ............. .. 30 16 17 14 24 8 71 38 109

Pack PacH Bng. Eng. Staw. staw. Total Total Total
A B A B A B A B Rag.

Total ..' 119 304 156 273 90 992 365 1357

Shipped
Port 0«ck Pack Pack Eng. Eng. Eng. stew. Stew. Staw. Total Total . Total Total

A • C A B C A B C A B C Ship.
Boston 0 i 9 1 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 3
New York 12 19 62 13 17 39 8 10 166 S3 46 245
Philadelphia ..... 2 3 13 5 9 13 4 2 - 43 11 14 68
Baltimore 24 . 10 42 31 12 37 19 12 139 74 34 247
Norfolk 112 2 1 1 1 0 7 4 2 13
Savannah ....... 10 4 2 0 1 0 0 11 3 0 14
Tampa 7 2 4 5 4 7 3 5 16 15 11 42
Mobile ..; 3 7 27 8 7 32 6 4 94 17- 18 129
New Orleans .... 13 2 51 11 18 49 13 4 162 37 24 223
Lake Charles .... 9 0 16 8 3 3 2^r 3 33 16 6 55
Houston 22 14 3 18 17 9 18 6 1 58 87 13 108
Wilmington 3 2 5 6 7 4 4 2 17 13 11 41
San Francisco .., 13 0 22 8 2 • 19 6 0 72 27 12 101
Seattle ...... 37 27 2 23 18 16 20 12 3 80 57 21 158

D«Ck Pack Pack Eng. Bng. Eng. •taw. Staw. Staw. Total Total Total Total
A E e A B C A B C A B C Ship.

Total 368 125 51 290 135 105 243 84 46 901 844 202 1447

New 'Wreck' Bill Device:
Town-By-Town Ordinance

Right-to-work advocates in California, defeated on a state­
wide basis, are now focusing their attention on having the
law passed on local levels. Two counties so far have adopted
"wreck" laws, and it is re-"*^"

Break Out The Suds, A Cop's Coming
The "delights" of vacation travel in the Soviet Union are optimis­

tically put forward in a Moscow dispatch in the June 27 "Daily
Worker." Headlined "Foreign Tourists May Bring Cai's Into USSR"
it gave several revealing glimpses of life under Communism.

"Vast qs this country is," the "Worker" burbles, "there is no
chance of getting lost." Why? "For one thing he must stick to
one of the two trunk highways. To make sure he does, an
Intourist Agency guide will join him at the frontier and accompany
him throughout the trip." No sticking your nose up any of the
back roads or getting too curious about the hinterlands. You can't
tell the guide to "get lost" either.

The "Worker" adds, "the highways . . . are excellent by Soviet
standards and in most places, good by European ones." For shame,
DW, does that mean that Soviet standards of excellence are only
"good" by anyone else's definition?

But there's more, "Gas stations . . . are to be found about every
hundred miles . . . Traffic is vei-y light . . . When'Soviet people,
travel . . . they usually go by train. Few have prWate cars."

And finally. "Drivers must keep their cars clean. If a police­
man spots a dirty, muddy car, he has the right to stop it and
fine the occupants,"

Shipping inched further ahead this period as eight out of 14 SIU ports showed increases.
The total number of men dispatched was 1,447; registration was heavier than in the pre­
vious period but still lagged behind shipping. It totalled 1,357.

Ports which listed improved"^
shipping included New York,
Baltimore, Timpa, Mobile,
New Orleans, Lake Charles, San
Francisco and Seattle. Baltimore,
in fact, ran ahead of New York
during the period. Lake Charles
showed a considerable gain, but
damage from Hurricane "Audrey"
may cut short its prosperity. The
Louisiana - Texas border area
aiound Lake Charles was hard hit
in last week's blow.

Declining shipping was reported
for Boston, Philadelphia, Norfolk,
Houston and Wilmington. This was
not too unexpected in the case of
Houston, which enjoyed phenome­
nal shipping in the previous period.
Norfolk has been relatively slow
all along. Savannah remains the
same: slow.

Job activity was greater than
registration in all departments dur­
ing the two weeks, especially in the
engine department. The black gang
also took the laurels for the largest
number of class C men shipped.

In the case of shipping by sen­
iority groups, class A men ac­
counted for 62 percent of the jobs,
•class B for 24 percent and class C
for the rest. This represented a
loss for the C group which was split
among A and B men.

The following is the forecast
i>ort by port:

Boston: Slow . .. New York: Fair.
. . . Philadelphia: Fair . . . Balti­
more: Good , . . Norfolk: Slow . . .
Savannah: Slow . . . Tampa: Fair.
. . . Mobile: Should slow up . . .
New Orleans: Good . . . Lake
Charles: Fair . . . Houston: Good.
.. . Wilmington: Fair . .. San Fran­
cisco: Good . . . Seattle: Good.

IS
ported that groundwork is
now being laid in 12 more of
the state's 56 counties.

The first attempt to bar the
union shop at a local level origi­
nated In Palm Springs. Employers
there, fearing the loss of tourist
trade due to the picket lines of the
Hotel and Restaurant Employees
at resort hotels, and failing to
have legislation passed on a state
level, pushed through a local right-
to-work ordinance. A Superior
Court Judge ruled that the or­
dinance was invalid but the city
has appealed the decision.

Taking the lead from Palm
Springs, Tehama County enacted
the first county wreck law. Two
weeks later San Benito County
passed a similar resolution. Cam­
paigns following the same pattern
are now going on in other Califor­
nia counties.

Both of the California coun­
ties are predominantly rural.
They have no large concentra­
tion of industrial workers and
there is no effective union political
machinery to combat the passage
of the laws.

Citizens' committees" had been
organized in both counties for the
passage of the law. Each of these
committees, it was found, retained
Nathan Berke, a San Francisco
lawyer, as legal counsel.

Berke also represeis^.s the Cali­
fornia Association of Employers
which has some 1,700 companies
in the smaller cities of California
and Nevada as its members.

Although the association active­
ly participated in the successful
campaign to bar the union shop
in the passage of a right-to-work
law in Nevada, association presi­

dent Winston M. Caldwell denies
that the group Initiated or inspired
the county moves against the
union shop.

The association, Caldwell said,
helped only to "aid and assist any­
body who is Interested, with edu­
cational material and informa­
tion."

The Tehama ordinance, passed
less than a month ago, is now fac­
ing its initial test. Its provisions
are being used to bar organiza­
tional picketing by locals of the
Machinists, the Retail Clerks, and
the Hotel and Restaurant Employ­
ees. An injunction petition is now
being considered by the Superior
Court, but attorneys for the coun­
ter, the California Association of
Employers and the California
State Federation of Labor have
announced that the basic issues
involved will be taken to the high­
est court.

Tampa Sees
Job Upturn

TAMPA—Job activity took «
turn for the better in this port
during the past period. Although
there were no vessels signing on,
there was one paying off and five
others called in port to be serv­
iced.

The Bienville (Waterman) paid
off. The in-transit vessels were
the Steel Scientist (Isthmian);
Bradford Island (Cities Service);
Alcoa Roamer (Alcoa) and Arizpa
and Madaket (Waterman). All
were reported in good shape with
all beefs settled.



July S, 195T SEAVARERS LOG Par* Fiy«

SlU Welfare Plan Pays Out
$7.5 Million In Seven Years

Seven years of self-insured operation by the Seafarers Welfare Plan has produced more
than $7% million in no-cost cash benefits and other items for Seafarers and their families
since payments began on July 1, 1950.

Despite its modest begin­
nings at that time, the plan
has enjoyed spectacular
growth and stability. It has mush­
roomed into a program of 14 sepa­
rate benefits ranging from mater­
nity payments to college scholar­
ships. The plan dispensed $1.3
miilion in benefits during 1956
alone and currently holds over $5
million in cash, bonds and other
assets.

f

A special four-page supplement
In this issue of the SEAFARERS
t-OG includes a progress report on
the Seafarers Welfare Plan along
with the annual report for the cal­
endar year 1956 to the New York
State Insurance Department.
Publication of the annual report Is
now required by law for all union
welfare plans in the state.

Figures in the annual report
show that the plan's total adminis­
trative expenses during 1956 were
4.9 percent, well below what would
be considered "average" for this
type of prgoram. Total Income of
the plan was $3.1 million, virtually
all of it in contributions from the
ahipowners. Expenses for the year
were listed as $152,080.13.

Total benefits paid out in 1956
were 41 times greater than those
paid in 1950, when $31,733 was paid
out in 3,123 claims. Last year, 16,-
457 claims totalling $863,092.42
were paid out in direct cash bene­
fits to Seafarers and SIU families,
and an additional $438,806.40 in
other benefits and services.

Included in.the cash benefits
are payments for death benefits,
disability-pensions, maternity, hos­
pital benefits and the medical-
aurgical program for Seafarers'
wives, children aiad dependents.
The $438,606.40 covers scholar­
ships, training schools, recreational
and dormitory facilities, the meal
book plan, the health and safety
program and other items.

In addition, a no-interest loan
program for Seafarers on the
beaeh disbursed $104,395.65 in
4,105 loans received by SIU men
during 1956. The loans were pro­
vided at no interest to the men in­
volved, some ranging as high as
$100 each. The average overall
was $25.43 per man.

One of the first union plans to

Disabled Seafarers ErnesI Ekiund, James Hamilion and Edward
Hansen (standing) look on as Burton Frazer counts out increased
cash benefits all received under SIU disability-pension program.
They were among the first SIU men to enjoy the $150 monthly
benefit rate when it went into effect two years ago. The rote had
been $100 monthly.

operate on a selfrinsured basis, the
SIU plan originally began with a
$7 weekly benefit rate for Sea­
farers in the hospitals and a $500
death benefit. These rates have
since been increased to $21 weekly
and $4,000, respectively. The dis^
ability-pension benefit was origi­
nally $15 weekly In 1952 and has
since gone up to $150 per month.
The level of other benefit pay­
ments has remained the same,
while a variety of other unique
benefits has been added and ex­
panded.

The plan's low administrative
costs and its savings through self-
insurance and administration by a
joint board of SIU and manage­
ment trustees are generally cred­
ited as the basis for its sound condi­
tion and growth through the years,
while sacrificing nothing in bene-,
fits to SIU men and their families.

Following the SIU's lead, many
other plans, as In the National
Maritime Union, recently switched
to a self-insured basis after years

of operation and extra cost for
premiums to private insurance
companies. Seafarers, however,
have enjoyed the advantages of
these savings since .1950 in the form
of higher and broader benefits and
welfare services.

Notify Union
About Sick Men
Ship's delegates are urged to

notify the Union immediately
when a shipmate is taken off
the vessel in any port because
of illness or injury. Delegates
should not wait until they send
in the ship's minutes but should
handle the matter in a separate
communication, so that the Un­
ion can determine in what man­
ner it can aid the brother.

It would also be helpful if
the full name, rating and book
number was sent in. Address
these notifications to Welfare
Services at headquarters.

Tell Ship Polity^
Pentagon Urged

WASHINGTON—A call for some plain talk on the Gov­
ernment's merchant marine policy has been issued to top
Administration officials by Rep. Herbert C. Bonner, chair­
man of the House Merchant"^
Marine Committee. The North
Carolina Democrat wants
Commerce Secretary Weeks and
Navy Secretary Gates to tell Con­
gress whether the Government is
interested in a strong merchant
marine, and in effect, whether it
has a shipping policy. Bonner also
wants them to clear up the confu­
sion that lower-ranking naval offic­
ers and officials of the Maritime
Administration have expressed
when asked about the govern­
ment's policy.

Bonner, in a strongly-worded
letter, asked in effect if it wasn't
inconsistent for the Defense De­
partment to say that it was for a
strong merchant fleet, and that it
also preferred runaway-flag ships
for defense needs. He noted that
a Navy official had made that point
at recent hearings on transfers.

Bonner also asked why the De­
fense Department now says there
is no tanker shortage, when only
a short time back, it was asking
Congress to pass legislation to en­
courage construction of new tank­
ers. He also pointed out that
tankers are now being transfered
in return for vague agreements for
the construction of new tonnage.

Haynes

"Vote of thangs to fireman
Coner Haynes for getting man out
of water," was the report from the
Feltore while the vessel was in
Baltimore. But
the story behind
the vote of
thanks has much
more to it. It
seems that
Haynes was lying
in his bunk when
he heard cries
and yells from
the side of the
ship. Looking out
the porthole, he saw Seafarer El­
mer Baker floundering in the
water. He ran to the deck, tossed
Baker a preserver, tied a lifeline
around his waist and dove in after
him. Coner puUed Baker to the
dock where the shor4 gang helped
him get the drowning seaman
ashore.

» » $
Realizing the need of a good

ship's delegate, the crew of the
Robin Tuxford
voted to refuse
the resignation
of James A. Oli­
ver. When Oliver
offered his resig­
nation at a meet-
in g, "Brothers
said that they
wished Brother
Oliver to remain
as ship's dele­

gate." This was accepted by ail
present with a vote of thanks.

3^ t 4"
Leading the honor list for good

cooking is Bryan Varn of the Flor­
ida State. "He serves up the best
in the fleet," said the ship's re­
porter. Also contending for honors
are the steward departments on
the Bents Fort, Beatrice, Robin
Tuxford, Seatrain Texas, John B.
Kulukundis, Alcoa Pioneer and the
Morning Light.

Oliver

Also questioned was the Govern­
ments policy of permitting con­
struction of tankers with speeds
lower than 20 knots, and its failure
to help build new passenger liners.

The request^for information fol­
lowed the temporary hMt of hear­
ings on the Government's maritime
policy. It is understood that the re­
quest is aimed at checking reports
that the Administration has down­
graded the merchant marine in its
defense thinking.

Tug Victory
Sparks New
Balto. Drive

BALTIMORE—"Our organiza­
tional activities here in this port
are continuing in high gear," re­
ports Earl Sheppard, port agent.
"We had a.clean sweep of the tug­
boat men and landed them the best
contract they have ever had."
Now the Union intends to turn its
attention to other unorganized out­
fits.

Although registration exceeded
shipping, most of the men regis­
tering were newcomers in the
class C group. Otherwise, he said,
shipping itself has been very-good
for the period. There were 12
ships paying off, 10 signing on, and
19 in transit.

Paying off were the Santore, Cu-
bore, Marore, Chilore, Venore
(Ore); Jean, Mae; Emilia (Bull);
Wm. Carruth (Transfuel); Matthew
Thornton (Grainfieet); Madaket
(Waterman) and the Chickasaw
(Pan-Atiantic).

The Santore, Cubore, Marore,
Chiibre, Venore (Ore); Orion Clip­
per (Colonial); Matthew Thornton
(Grainfieet); Chickasaw (Pan-
Atiantic); Council Grove (Cities
Service) and Steel Rover (Isthmian)
signed on.

The vessels in transit were the
Portmar, Bethcoaster, K e n m a r,
Oremar, Fiomar (Calmar); Venore,
Baltore, Santore (Ore); Robin Tux­
ford, Robin Locksley (Robin); Alcoa
Pegasus, Alcoa Planter, Alcoa
Runner, Alcoa Planter, Alcoa Part­
ner, Alcoa Roamer (Alcoa) and the
Steel Scientist (Isthmian).

Vote Deep Sea
Canada Strike

MONTREAL — Members of the
SIU Canadian District have voted
to strike the West Indies division
of Canadian National Steamships
over a company refusal to accept
union wage demands. The company
first responded by locking out •
crews of two ships, the Canadian
Leader and the Canadian Chal­
lenger, before any strike was called.
Later, a company spokesman said
that it would resume service on the
West Indies run.

The union strike vote came after
company rejection of union wage
demands. The company's ten per­
cent counter-offer, as called for m
a conciliation board report, was
turned down by the SIU.



Pare SIX SEAFARER'S IPG lulr ». lUT

Steward OnRobinTuxford
Tells Of Hold-Up, Beating

Now on the mend, Seafarer Lowell E. Harris, chief steward,
related his account of the unsuccessful attempt to hijack the
payroll on the Robin Tuxford which sent both him and Cap­
tain Kenneth Chambers to the
hospital.

Harris suffered a cracked
Buper-orbital ridge as a result of
the beating he received at the
hands of the gunmen. He was still
Bporting an impressive shiner two
Weeks after the incident when he
stopped into headquarters on his
way from the Jersey City Medical
Center to the Staten Island Public
Health Service hospital for fur­
ther treatment.

At the time of the hold-up, Har­
ris had gone up to see the skipper
about ordering replacements in his
department. He was in the cap­
tain's office with his back to the
door when "in rushed two stock­
ing-faced men. One stuck his gun
in the skipper's stomach and an­
nounced it was a hold-up. The
other one whacked me just over
the eye with some kind of weapon,
I don't know what, and knocked
me to the deck. I struggled to my
feet, half-dazed and was knocked
down again."

Meanwhile, the captain was
down in the corner with the other
man on top of him. I heard one
shot fired and the gun clicked
again. Then the old man kicked
the gunman off him, jumped up
and ran out and down the ladder
hollering for help while the gun­
man ran after firing shots.

Tried To Stop Bleeding
"I ran into the skipper's room,

locked the door and then into the
bathroom. The blood was squirt­
ing out of the wound in my head
and I grabbed some towels and
soaked them in cold water to try
to stop the bleeding. I heard more
shooting going on down'below.

"Later I opened the door and
came out. I was still on my feet
feeling a little groggy but helped
search the ship looking for the
gunmen. As for the skipper, he
didn't realize he had been shot
until it was all over. Right now I
feel pretty good but still a little
weak and my eyesight is fuzzy."

Harris was taken to the Jersey

Isthmian Gets
Subsidy Study

WASHINGTON — The Maritime
Administration has set a tentative
date of January 7, 1958, for public
hearings on Isthmian Line's bid
for operating subsidies on three of
Its regular trade routes. The public
hearings would be proceeded by
submission of data and exhibits.

The announcement of the Jan­
uary date was made at a pre­
hearing conference held at the
Maritime Board in which repre­
sentatives of several companies
opposing the application partici­
pated. Arrangements were made at
the hearing for the companies in­
volved to supply the examiner with
information about their operations
on the various trade routes for
which Isthmian is seeking sub­
sidies.

'Can-Shakers'
Have No OK

The membership is again cau­
tioned to beware of persons
soliciting funds on ships in bei-
half of memorials or any other
so-called "worthy causes." No
"can-shakers" or solicitors have
been authorized by the SIU.

Seafarer Lowell E. Harris,'
steward, still shows effects of
brutal beating last month by
holdup men who boarded the
Robin Tuxford in Jersey City.
He's now at Staten Island
marine hospital.

City Medical Center Aj'here he was
operated on and the wound
stitched up. He was in there for
ten days before switching over to
Staten Island.

Police are still looking for the
reputed "mastermind" of the hold­
up, who was identified by his con­
federates as Ronald Spencer
Steele. Harris said he identified
this man as a messman who had
been on the ship four days last
summer. As far as the records
show, the man has not worked on
any SIU ships since then.

Ship Biz
Small Fry,
Mag Says

When it comes to the transporta­
tion business in the United States,
the steamship industry is strictly
small fry. That's the" word from
Fortune" magazine which pub­

lishes a yearly directory of major
American and foreign companies.
Only four steamship companies
rate among the first 50 transporta­
tion outfits in the US with rail­
roads and airlines running away
with the honors. The biggest
steamship company, US Lines, is
32nd on the list of the first 50,
which hardly puts it at the top of
the class. It is followed by two
West Coast companies, Matson
Navigation in 36th spot, • and
American President Lines, 40th.
American Export Lines brings up
the rear in 45th place.

The "Fortune" ranking is based
on total cash income. The first
nine biggest companies are all rail­
roads, led by the Pennsylvania
and New York Central. In 10th
and 11th spot are two major air­
lines, American Airlines and Pan
American World Airways.

No major trucking concerns are
on the list of the big 50, While
Greyhound upholds the honor of
the bus industry by placing 17th.

With the railroads dominating
the list, it's no wonder that
steamship companies have such a
hard time of it before the Inter­
state Commerce Commission and
other agencies in which railroads
are part of the picture.

I

Whq become a

GROUND WIRE ?

Power tools ore a handy way to get repairs done fast
and accurately, providing you use them properly. The
electric chipping hammer, scraper, hand drill or similar
gadget can take a lot of the strain out of jobs that other­
wise kill lots of time and energy.

But they also introduce an extra hazard that can make
a has-been out of a handyman. These tools are always
safest when they're grounded; most of them have built-in
devices which, when used, make them practically fool­
proof.

The little bit of extra time it takes to attach a ground
wire is a guarantee against electrical shocks and accidents,
especially on a ship. The unexpected roll or lurch of the
ship, the ever-present dampness and the chance of spray
or full sheets of water coming over the decks and into the
passageways dictates caution at all times. Get your
shocks at the "horror" movies instead of on the job. ^

i An SIU.Ship is a Safe Ship ,• ! •



ltdy 5, 1957 ^liAtAnEKS 109 Par* Seroi

E' •

YOUR MllAR'S WORTH
Seafarer's Gaide To Better Buying

By Sidney Margolius

Phony TV Drug Ads
When you watch that television screen, you'd better watch your

pocketbook, too. There is increasing evidence that high-pressure ad­
vertising of drugs, toiietries and cosmetics on television has been
highly successful in persuading people to spend more money for prod­
ucts sometimes of dubious value, and that a number of deceptions are
being used by television advertisers of drugs and toiletries. Not only
small manufacturers but some of the best-known names are using
tricky commercials that are sometimes actually untruthful and some­
times cleverly skirt the borderline between truth and deception.

So misleading is much television advertising of drugs and toiletries
that a number of public organizations have gone into action to try to
stem it. Here are the facts about this increasingly successful raid on
your family's pocketbook:

1—The Federal Trade Commission has set up a special unit to moni­
tor television and radio commercials and recently issued its first com­
plaints against three well-known television advertisers for claiming
their products were effective for treating the aches and pains of ar­
thritis, rheumatism and related diseases. They're not adequate, effec
tive or reliable treatment for these ills, FTC charged.

2—Even the retail druggists who sell the drug products have become
worried about the exaggerated advertising that fools their customers
The American Pharmaceutical Association has just set up a special
committee to report misleading drug advertising.

3—Kenneth Wilson, president of the National Better Business Bureau
which has been doing yeoman work to try to get drug advertisers vol­
untarily to keep their advertising truthful before the legal authorities
move in, reports there has been an increase in the use of false and
deceptive advertising claims for certain drug and cosmetic products

as alieged obesity remedies, arthri­
tis preparations, skin creams, etc.
"The Bureau is seriously con­
cerned about this trend in adver­
tising," Mr. Wilson told this de­
partment.

4—US Senators Magnuson and
Potter both have urge(L-investiga-
tion of ads for tranquilizer drugs
on TV and radio, which they
charge are a "complete fraud on
the public," • the Cooperative
Health Federation of America re­
ports.

5—All sales figures indicate the
public is definitely succumbing to
the heavy television advertising
for drugs and toiletries. Retail
sales of cosmetics and toiletries
reached a record $1.3 biilion last
year, ten percent over 1955. Big­
gest gains were in deodorants,
make-up items and toothpastes, all
heavily advertised over TV. Excise

taxes on toilet preparations Jumped 15 percent in the last six months
of '56, indicating sales have increased and also, prices of these prod­
ucts have gone up.

Television lends itself especially well to advertising of drugs and
toiletries because it can show pseudo-scientific demonstrations and
use such devices as actors in white medical jackets who can con­
vincingly talk like doctors, dentists and scientists. In fact, the white-
jacketed actors who seem to be learned doctors have become one of
the sore points. That's why you now see on the screen or hear, a little
while after the white-jacketed pitchman has made his spiel, this state­
ment; "This is a dramatized message." This statement, given in small
print or a low voice, is supposed to indicate that the white-jacketed
figure is not really a doctor or scientist.

Some authorities are also concerned that some "scientific" demonstra­
tions shown on TV commercials may be faked. Evidence on this point
Is more difficult to find, except that one commercial film-maker has
reported he refused to make a television film for a large advertiser
who wanted to film an exaggerated "scientific" demonstration.

Products claimed to help arthritis and rheumatism sufferers have
become one of the most worrisome types of television advertising.
Mentholatum Rub advertised: "These are arthritic hands . . . You're
looking at them now as they experience a totally new kind of pain
relief . . . The difference is a new formula . . . giving extra deep
penetration power . . See how it disappears into the skin . . ." White­
hall Pharmacal Co., maker of InfraRub, advertised: "Now science
announces a new way to relieve pain—of arthritiSi rheumatism, back­
ache and muscle aches—without pills . . . Rubbed gently into the
painful area it penetrates so deep that it actually vanishes . . . Speeds
up the flow of fresh rich blood . . . drives away pain-causing con­
gestion . . ."

Omega advertised on radio: "You know how I suffered ... I talked
to my druggist and he told me to rub my aching back with Omega
Oil . . . next morning I felt like a boy again ... It contains an active
ingredient that actuaily penetrates the skin . , ."

Sonie of the same type of advertising appeared in magazines.
The FTC's complaint charges that these products give only tempo­

rary relief of the minor aches and pains of these ills.
These companies and their ad agencies so far have not revealed

their answers to these charges.
A useful booklet available from local Better Business Bureau's for a

dime, called "Health Quackery," says no known drug, preparation or
device may be truthfully advertised to the public as a cure or remedy
for arthritis. This is too complicated and serious a condition for self-
treatment.

The fishing vessel Three Brothers rests high and dry on a roadbed in Cameron, Louisiana, alter it was
picked up and thrown there by Hurricane Audrey. Many other vessels were washed ashore or sunk
by the hurricane which cut a path through towns on the Texas-Louisiana border.

Hurricane Whips La. Coast; 350 Dead
LAKE CHARLES—A 105-mile-an-hour hurricane, followed by a huge tidal wave, engulfed

the Cajun country south ,of here killing 350 or more people, most of them in Cameron Par­
ish. Some death estimates run as high as 1,000. The big blow left this port drenched, damaged
and without communications
for almost two days.

Hurricane Audrey did its
worst right on the coast some 50
miles south of here. In the city
proper it tore down telephone
poles, blew over trees and lifted
roofs off the houses. Thousands
of people from Cameron and other
waterfront towns took shelter In
Lake Charles where they were
hastily housed in school buildings.

At last report, Leroy Clarke,
port agent, said that there were
no Seafarers or members of their
families injured or lost during the
storm. But casuelty figures keep
mounting by the hour as rescue
workers explore the drowned and
littered country south of here.'

Tugs and other small boats
manned by Seafarers are engaged
in the rescue operations.

No Ships In Port
There were no SIU vessels In

port when the storm hit as Cities
Service tankers rode it out In the

Gulf. Several coastal vessels were
driven ashore and wrecked.

On the shipping side, everything
was fairly quiet in this area be­
fore the winds hit. Shipping had
picked up some over the past two
weeks, but enough men are around
to handle any expected calls.

The Chiwawa, Royal Oak, Brad­
ford Island, Bents Fort, Govern­

ment Camp, Winter Hill, Cantigny
(Cities Service): Del Aires, Del Sol,
(Mississippi); Pan Oceanic Trans­
porter (Penn. Nav.) were in port
during the past period.

The sea-going tug Ocean Prince
of T. Smith & Sons was in to pick
up a tow for Venzuela. The tug
Lisha R of the Blue Stack Towing
Co. also stopped in.

Quit High School, Now
Wins SIU Scholarship

Alcoa Shifts To
Pt. Newark Pier

Alcoa Steamship Company is
gifting its New York operations
rom Pier 6, Bush Terminal, to

Berths 20 and 22 in Port Newark.'
The shift takes place July 10 with
the sailing of the Alcoa Puritan.

The Port Newark facilities ad-
oin those currently tenanted by

Waterman Steamship Company,
which also had docked in Bush
Terminal before its move across
the Bay about three years ago.

Alcoa's shift is based on the
greater availability of trucking
space, better road communications
via the turnpikes and savings in
lighterage time.

m pno-ros
^ ̂-romes,
^ ?oefizY

In the words of a popular ballad. Seafarer Ed Skorupski
was "all shook up" when he received the good news that ha
had been chosen as one of the five winners of the $6,000 SIU
scholarships. His elation was
understandable because a lit­
tle over a year ago, he did not
even have a high school diploma,
having been compelled by eco­
nomic circumstance to .quit school

in his third year.
Skorupski made
his scholarship
the hard way.

The 28-year-old
Seafarer was
raised in an or­
phanage and in
1946 at the age
of 17 was turned
loose into the
world. He started

shipping out then, joining the SIU
in the following year.

For the past ten years he has
been sailing regularly, usually as
electrician, but always regretted
that he had never been able to
complete his education. Then last

Skorupski

4-
year he learned it would be pos­
sible for him to receive a high
school equivalency diploma by
passing a series of examinations.
He headed for the offices of the
Connecticut State Board of Educa­
tion in Hartford and underwent
two days of intensive testing which
he passed with flying colors.

With the equivalency diploma in
his pocket, Skorupski entered the
University of Connecticut last fall.
Despite his ten year absence from
school he did very well, racking
up a B average in the first semes­
ter. Then his money ran out be­
fore he could go further. Now,
with the scholarship in his pocket,
he hopes to enter New York Uni­
versity this fall after a summer of
sailing on SIU ships. His ambition
is to enter the teaching field.

Skorupski was married last De­
cember and now lives in Brooklyn.
His last ship was the Seatrain New
York.

M'emioik

Fined For Late Taxes, He Shuts Plant
A newspaper dispatch last week reported that a farm equipment

manager in Columbus, Nebraska, closed down his plant for a week
to "get even" with the Federal Government. Reason? He was
penalized $80 for failing to turn in withholding taxes on time.

The manufacturer, Leo Sokol, who is president of the Irrigation
Pump Company, indicated the Government would lose $133 a day
in taxes and conceded that his shutdown "would hurt a lot of
people."

He charged he was fined because he was a few days late in
depositing his withholding tax money.

Under the withholding tax set-up the money deducted from an
employee's wages is his tax money and has to be turned over to
the Government at specified intervals. Many employers get into
trouble by holding on to the money as an interest-free loan from
the Government and using it to finance a part of their day-to-day
business operations.

It wasn't reported, but it's assumed that the company was prompt
about deducting the money from wages every pay day.



raff* Elffhl SEAFARERS 100' July 5. 19SV

4"
Rlon (Actlum), William Carruth
(Trans. Fuel), Robin Gray, Robin
Goodfellow and Robin Hood
(Robin) signed on. Ships in port
to be serviced were the Seatrain
New Jersey, Seatrain New York

(Seatrain); Maxton, A1 m e n a,
Chickasaw, Ideal X, Coalinga Hills
(Pan-Atlantic); Pan Oceanic Trans­
porter (Penn, Nav.); Petrochem
(Valentine), and The Cabins (Ter­
minal Tankers).

Seafarers crowd headquarters shipping counter to throw in for jobs on the Atlantic Producer, which
came under SlU contract last week. The grain-carrying tanker is operated by Pan-Oceanic S/S Co.

SIU Mans 3rd Atlantic Tanker
NEW YORK—"We picked up another T-2 tanker this week," reports Claude Simmons,

port agent, "when the charter to Atlantic Refining Company on the Atlantic Producer ex­
pired." The vessel is being operated by Pan-Oceanic Steamship Company.

The ship was one of five ves- '
sels chartered to Atlantic by
Pan-Oceanic. Two of them,
the Atlantic Transporter and the
Atlantic Importer, were returned
last year. It is expected that the
remaining two will be returned to
the SlU-contracted operator when
their charters expire. They are the
Atlantic Shipper and the Voyager.

There were , five Robin Line ves­
sels in port during the past period.
Two of them paid off and three
signed on. One of them, the Robin
Gray, went out on the Moore-Mc-
Cormick Scantic run up to the
Baltic countries.

There has been a fairly steady
turnover in jobs in this area during
the last two weeks. Job activity is
not booming, but some jobs have
stayed on the board for several
calls before finding a taker.

There were 22 payoffs, six sign-
on, and ten in-transit vessels in
port during the last period. The
vessels paying off were the Alcoa
Pegasus, Alcoa Puritan, Alcoa Run­
ner (Alcoa); Angelina, Kathryn,
Dorothy, Edith, Elizabeth, Beatrice
(Bull); Steel Artisan, Steel Rover,
Steel Voyager, (Isthmian); Seatrain
Louisiana, Seatrain Texas, Seatrain
Savannah, Seatrain Georgia, (Sea­
train); Robin Locksley, Robin Tux-
ford (Robin); Morning Light (Wa­
terman); Antinous (Pan-Atlantic);
Bents Fort, Royal Oak (Cities Serv­
ice).

The Steel Artisan (Isthmian),

English Channel Tnnnel
Studied; Seek US Assist

Interest fs again focused on the possibility of a tunnel un­
der the English Channel linking Britain and France.

Since the notion was first conceived by Napoleon as a pos­
sibility for the Invasion of*

Now under SlU contract Is the Atlantic Producer, shown here
on the Delaware River two years ago. The Producer is the
third of five tankers chartered to Atlantic that have been re­
turned to the SlU-contracted Pan-Oceanic S/S Co. since last
year. The remaining two ships ore expected back when their
Atlantic charters expire.

CG 'Profiling' Pops Up in New Security Plan
(Continued from page 2)

testing proposal killed the plan for
the time being, but at least a piece
of it is now being revived in dif­
ferent form.

Could Bar Militants

The broad wording of the com-
tnission-'s criteria such as "notori­
ously disgraceful conduct," and
"activities or associations which
tend to show that the individual
Is not reliable or trustworthy"
leaves plenty of room, if the poli­
tical climate was "right," at some
future time, for barring militant
union seamen who might be too
active in pressing beefs and griev­
ances. Personal dislikes could eas­
ily enter the picture in cases of
this kind.

In addition, it is a known fact
that some shipowners for years
have been seeking some weapon
for rejecting men who d;i not meas­
ure up to an arbitrary standard of
perfection.

In effect
recomiSifefiSi

be to inflict the same rigid security
standards to seamen and water­
front workers who are not Govern­
ment employees as apply to Gov-
erment employees in such sen­
sitive jobs as the foreign serv­
ice, where personal habits and as­
sociations are considered all-im­
portant in protecting Government
secrets.

The theory behind this program
has been that a Federal employee
who drinks to excess, "runs
around" or has relatives or friends
who are considered unreliable,
might be subject to blackmail
or other pressure which would
lead to qjvulging of important in­
formation. Seamen, of course, are
in no such crucial employment,
security-wise.

Seek Uniformity
In drafting its program, the

special commission has been at­
tempting to establish uniformity
of procedures in all screening sys­
tems. It proposes the establish­
ment of a Central Security Office
to supply hearing examiners for

man involved would get a written
statement giving the reasons for
denial of clearance, whether he ap­
pealed or not. All hearings would
now be secret.

The right to confront accusers
and have witnesses subpoenaed
would be limited to those categor­
ies dealing with subversive acti­
vities of various kinds as well as
to a new category, which is plead­
ing the 5th amendment before a
Congressional committee, Federal
court, grand jury or other author­
ized Federal agency. The latter
provision is open to attack on the
basis of recent Supreme Court de­
cisions.

An interesting feature of the
report calls for the Coast Guard to
bear the costs of subpoenaed wit­
nesses if the seamen is vindicated
but if he is denied clearance, the
seaman has to pay the freight.

However, in either case the sea­
men would have to post bond to
cover the costs.

The Commission's recommenda­
tions, of course, are not binding,

J 9, .Congressional
SetMiT.'US'*'.)i.

England, the program for an
underwater passageway be­
tween the two nations has been
revived and discussed among tech­
nical experts on both sides of the
channel. At present there Is a
new flurry of interest, with several
factors and conditions tending to
favor the tunnel.

Two major 'companies, the Uni­
versal Suez. Canal Company and
the British Channel Company, are
starting extensive surveys of the
many engineering, geological, fi­
nancial and political problems
that would arise with such a
project.

The Universal Suez Canal Com­
pany, the operator of the Suez
Canal until its nationalization by
the Egyptian Government, is sup­
plying the specialists for the survey.
If and when it settles its differences
with Egypt, the company will also
have a considerable amount of
capital to invest into the project.

Financial backing for the tunnel,
which is estimated to cost about
$280,000,000, is one of the major
obstacles to its construction. It is
hoped that the project will raise
some American interest and capi­
tal.

Diagrams and sketches of the
proposed underpass, as envisioned
by the British Channel Tunnel
Company, show twin railway tun­
nels 17 feet in diameter and about
30 miles in length. They would
run from a point near Dover to
Sangatte, near Calais.

Ventilation problems, they said,
make it extremely difficult to build
such a long automobile tunnel. But
this too will be taken into consid­
eration in the survey.

Another factor in favor of such
a tunnel is the movement toward
closer British-French unity, politi­
cally and economically. A tunnel
connecting the two nations would
seem to be a logical development
of this trend.

Teamster members of Local 743
in Chicago have turned down a
wage boost averaging five cents an
hour offered by Montgomery, Ward
& Co. The company's proposal was
submitted to the members here
without any recommendation from
the negotiating council. Only 30
of the local's 4,500 members voted
in favor of the offer. Similiar vot­
ing is expected from other locals
covering about 20,000 teamster
members who are employed in the
company's mail order and store
outlets throughout the country.
The old contract expired June 1
and the employees have been work­
ing on a day-to-day basis."

4" 4"
Investigators for the McClellan

committee are reported checking
up in Southern mill towns concern­
ing charges of employer-organized
violence as well as collusion be­
tween employers and police to keep
out unions. Last month in a letter
to committee chairman John Mc­
Clellan, Washington "Representa­
tive John Edelman of the Textile
Workers of America outlined eight
such incidents of violence while
city and town police stood by. One
incident occurred at the Lowen-
stein Mill in Gaffney, South Caro­
lina, where a fire hose was turned
on union organizers and company-
hired goons used baseball bats on
union representatives on a public
street. Other charges included
beatings of union organizers, in­
cluding women, and cases where
organizers were literally "run out
of town."

4 4 4
An arbitration board has blocked

efforts of Bates Manufacturing
Company to cut wages of 5,000
members of the Textile Workers
employed in its five New England
mills. Although all other employers
agreed to an unchanged scale,
Bates insisted on a pay cut when
contracts were reopened last
spring. "The decision is the only
one that could have been rendered
under the circumstances," declared
Victor J. Canzano, the union's cot­
ton-rayon director.

4 4 4
Thomas F. Fee, international

reprjBsentative of the Oil, Chemical
aha"Atomic Workers, has urged

the use of "radiation sentries" with
special detection equipment in all
plants using fissionable. material.
In a speech before labor leaders
attending the second annual con­
ference sponsored jointly by Ca-
nisius College and the New York
State Deptment of Labor in
Buffalo, Fee proposed over-aH
Federal control for nuclear instal­
lations. The Atomic Energy Com­
mission sets safety standards fo*
plants run for the Government by
private corporations, but all others
are under state control.

Officials See
Hub
Disrepair

BOSTON—A dismal picture of
Boston's waterfront was revealed
to state, city and Federal officials
during a tour conducted by the
city's harbor police.

The tour, an all-day survey of
Boston harbor from a police launch,
highlighted scenes of falling piers,
half-burned vessels and rotten
piles, many of which are ready to
break away and float into th*
harbor to menace marine traffic.
A tragic finish to the trip was th*
news of the death of a 13-year old
Charlestown boy who was elec­
trocuted by an exposed wire while
playing on an abandoned pier. Th*
launch, with the officials aboard,
vi^as ordered to check into th*
incident. -

The officials will confer within
a few days to determine what
course of action can be taken to
repair and revivify Boston's water­
front or to require demolition of
dangerous and unusable structures.
Most of the decaying piers wer*
privately owned.

Shipping has been slow during
the past two weeks, reports Jame's
Sheehan, port agent. There wer*
no vessels paying off or signing on.
The Government Camp, Winter
Hill (Cities Service); Robin Locks-
ley, Robin Gray (Robin), and the
Steel Rover (Isthmian) were in port
to be serviced.

ii:



Joly S. 1987 9EUFARERS LOG r«f« Nln*

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When the Steel Director
came in recently from a
long four-month trip the
Union representative went
aboard prepared to deal
with the usual quota of
beefs and OT disputes.
To his pleasant surprise,
he found that the ship had
come in with just three
hours disputed overtime
and a handful of repair
list items. What with a
heads-up crew and a good
gang of delegates the pay­
off, pictured here, was
smooth as can be.

Leon White, elect., (1) and ch. eng'r
John Fennell talk repairs.

New stores come aboard to replen­
ish stocks after 4-month trip.

C. A. Navarra, ch. cook and Simon
Bunda, pantry, in galley.

With many of the gang bringing back a load of souvenirs and other
purchases, from the run to India, US Customs inspector had a busy time
checking out declarations and collecting duty charges.

Andrew Sudol, oiler, (1) travels pretty much schooner-rigged, leaving
ship with suitcase and overcoat. Not so for Seafarer Carlos L. Sy, MM, who
makes way ashore with two pieces of wicker chair and table set he pur-
' th&sed b^4fsbas:' -»». =.. . ̂ ... •»11 M . •.. -



Face Ten SEAFARERS LOG Julr I, 19ST

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k--

ILO Treaty 'Bars' Slave Labor
GENEVA—The International Labor Organization killed a surprise move by an Ameri­

can union delegate that would put teeth into the proposed world ban on slave labor.
George P. Delaney, international representative of the AFL-CIO, made an unexpected

proposal for the establishment
of an international watchdog | "honor-system" draft treaty out-
committee to check on the
sincerity of the nations adopting
the ban proposal. The rules com­
mittee held that the idea had been
put in "too late" for consideration
at the present conference.

The delegates, representing gov­
ernment, industry and labor in the
78 attending nations, adopted the

2 More Seek
US Giveaway

WASHINGTON — Still on a
"giveaway" spree. Congress is now
considering two more bills which
would lengthen the list of foreign
nations anxious to get their hands
on surplus US tonnage.

One bill, just introduced In the
House, would authorize the sale of
10 Libertys, plus four smaller type
merchant vessels, to Pakistan. An­
other bill, introduced in the Sen­
ate, would authorize the sale of 10
Libertys and 20 Victorys to the
Philippines. Both bills are now in
committee.

US maritime unions and the
maritime industry, alarmed by the
growing clamor for US tonnage,
and the apparently benevolent
mood of the Government toward
the foreign requests, are girding
for a hard fight against the give­
away program.

lawing compulsory work as an in­
strument of political coercion or
economic development. Although
there was no negative votes, the
US employer delegate. Cola G.
Parker, board chairman of National
Association of Manufacturers, ab­
stained from voting.

Delaney read to the conference
excerpts from the United Nations
special report on Hungary and
questioned how the Soviet dele­
gates could stand before the con­
ferring member nations and "prat­
tle" of Moscow's de^re for peace
or its concern for workers' rights.
"How long do we propose to al­
low member states of the ILO to
violate at will every principle of
this organization and yet come here
to boast of the ratification of con­
ventions?" He asserted that with­
out the proposed checkups treat­
ies to protect labor would be just
"dead pieces of paper."

Hungarian Representatives Leave
The entire Hungarian delegation

walked out during the attack by
Delaney. They were soon followed
by Prof. Amazasp A. Arutiunian,
chief Soviet representative, who
objected to Delaney's charge that
Moscow had been guilty of "one
of history's greatest betrjiyals."

The NAM board chairman re­
fused to vote because it was his
belief, he said, that it was improper
for an international agency to
adopt conventions governing the
relations of an individual citizen

to his government. The treaty
raises questions of federal-state re­
lationships under the Cojistitution
which complicate ratification by
the United States.

Speaking on Russian capitaliza­
tion on his refusal to vote, Parker
said, "Everyone here knows the
Communists' support of this in­
strument is thoroughly and dis­
gustingly dishonest. They will
shout from the housetops that they
will ratify the instrument and seek
to point the finger at the free na­
tions as the violators of the instru­
ment. And they will cynically go
their way, continuing forced labor
in all its forms so long as the rul­
ing clique determines that it is
necessary to maintain their power."

Your Gear
tor ship • •. tor shore

Whatever you need, in work or dress
gear, your SiU Sea Chest has it. Get top
quality gear at substantial savings by buy­
ing at your Union-owned and Union-
operated Sea Chest store.

Sport Coats
Slacks
Dress Shoes
Work Shoes
Socks
Dungarees
Khakis
Frisko Jeens
CPO Shirts
Dress Shirts
Sport Shirts
Belts
Ties
Sweat Shirts
T-Shirts
Shorts
Briefs
Swim Trunks
Sweaters •
Sou'westers
Raingear
Caps
Writing Materials
Toiletries
Electric Shavers
Radios
Television
Jewelry
Cameras
Luggage

the SEA CHEST
J..1

Lk. Cruise
Ship In 4th
Dock Mishap

DETROIT — The Great Lakes
SIU cruise ship Aquarama, carry­
ing more than 1,500 passengers,
crashed into a dock and warehouse
causing damage estimated at $30,-
000. It was the vessel's second
mishap within a week, and her
fourth in less than a year.

The big reconverted ocean-going
freighter was turning in the De­
troit River to head for Lake Erie
when her bow hit the dock and
warehouse of the Detroit News.
A crane was knocked half-over and
a section of bricks shaken loose
from the warehouse. The big boat
pulled free and continued on to
Cleveland.

Captain John Ward of the fire-
boat Kendall said that the cruise
ship apparently had been caught
by winds as she was turning and
forced into the dock.

Other Mishaps
The ship had caused consider­

able damage to her bow last Sun­
day when she struck a dock in
Cleveland. Last year she had
crashed into a seawall at Muske­
gon, her home port, and later in
the year backed into a seawall on
the Windsor, Ontario, side of the
Detroit River while leaving a dock.

There were no reported injuries
in her latest incident. The Aqua­
rama was recently the target of a
Great Lakes District strike in a
dispute over fit-out job rights.

Money Exchange
Rates Listed

The following is the latest
available listing of official ex­
change rates for foreign cur­
rencies. Listings are as of
July 5, 1957, and are sub­
ject to change without notice.
England, New Zealand, South Africa;

$2.80 per pound sterling.
Australia I $2.24 per pound sterling.
Belgium; BO francs to the dollar.
Denmark: 14.45 cents per krone.
France; 330 francs to the dollar,
Germany; 4.2 marks to the dollar.
Holland; 3.7-3.8 guilders to the

dollar.
Italy; 824.8 lire to the dollar.
Norway; 14 cents per krone.
Portugal; 28.73 escudos to the dollar.
Sweden; 19.33 cents per krona.
India; 21 cents per rupee.
Pakistan: 21 cents per riipee.
Argentina: 18 pesos to the dollar.
Brazil; 8.4 cents per cruzeiro.
Uruguay; 32.63 cents per peso.
Venezuela; 29.83 cents per. bolivar.

ALCOA CORSAIR (Alcoa), May S<—
Chairman, M. T. Costallar Sacratary,
H. W. Miliar. Captain warned men
about missing fire and boat drills.
$213 In ship's fund. CoUected $18 for
sick crew mess. Talked about deck
chairs.

ALCOA PENNANT (Alcoa), June S—
Chairman, H. RIdgewayi Sacratary,
W. H. Hamby, Man taken off sick
In once. To see patiuhuan who Is
to clean laundry room.

plalnad about officer's pantry eontala-
Ing numerous fars of presarvas for
night lunch with tha crew pantry as
bare as Mother Hubbard's closet.
Steward said ha wlU sea to it that
JeUles are equally distributed. Dis­
puted overUme. Steward suggested a
change In regard to preparation of
food. A very hearty vote of thanks
to 2nd cook and baker, for his special
pastries for entire crew. Crew asked
to return all cups to pantry after us#
about tha decks.

ANTINOUS (Waterman), May 24—
Chairman, C. W. Champlln; Secretary,
C. Elliey. $49 In ship's fund. Vote
of appreciation to baker for coffee
time snacks. Vote of thanks to second
mate for chart and daily position data
posted' in messroom. Shower curtains
to be furnished aft. Hot water aft

STEEL ACE (Isthmian), June S—
Chairman C. A. Hancock; Secretary,
W. Webb. $18.50 in ship's fund. Sug­
gest that ship be exterminated for
roaches and that new mattresses ba
ordered. Everyone blowing top about
roaches. Chief cook complaining about
meat block. It needs trimming down.

STEEL KINC, (Isthmian), May 24—
Chairman, J. Keavney; Secretary, J.
Purcall. Galley range still not In
good working order. This is eld beef
not taken care of In shipyard. Night
lunch to be varied. Shower water
too hot. Too much fraternizing top
aide. Warning Issued if not stopped
vfiU be dealt with accordingly.

STEEL WORKER (Isthmian), May 7
—Chairman, J. E. SwIdarskI; Secre­
tary, N. Abernathy. Time limit on
clothes washing. Enough gear for
sanitary man. Each department to
clean laundry, library and cleaning
gear locker In turn.

not to be tampered with. Vote of
thanks to ship's delegate Orlando.

BALTORE (Ore), May S—Chairman,
R. King; Secretary, J. Mehaleu. $8.23
in ship's fund. Election of ship's
delegate. Fan in reacreation room to
be repaired. Night pantry te bs kept
clean. Washing machine wringer to
be repaired. Additional bench needed
In recreation room. Linen change
hours to be altered to suit the 13 to
4 watch.

ROYAL OAK (CItlst Service), May
12—Chairman, W, R. Thompson; Sec­
retary, D. Beard. Lake Charles agent
says cots have been promised by com­
pany. Delegate will push Issue In
Boston. Tough steaks are fUlhig up
the garbage can. Many complaints on
the sailing board. Please return cups
to pantry.

CANTI6NY( Cities Service), June 2
—Chairman, J. Phillips; Secretary, -R.
Deran. Safety reports to be made to
delegate.

SEAMAR (Calmar), May I*—Chair­
man, C. H. Sneif; Secretary, J. Swee­
ney. Repair list turned In and report
on payoff time given. Suggest that
patrolman see the skipper about fair
practice In draws on West Coast
ports. Find out If the captain writes
to our representatives about members
of the crew who disagree with him
on anything.

CHIWAWA (Cities Service), June 3
—Chairman, P. Raid; Secretary. P.
Keslan. Beef on discussing ship's and
Union's business In 'gin mills. Deck
delegate reported that brother had
discussed ship and Union business in
said gin mili. Union business should
not be discussed while drinking.

June i—Chairman, J. Maleney; Sec­
retary, F. Raid. Suggested ' that any
brother leaving for ACS duty should
have cash donation. Asked that prlv-
ilegp of swapping watches should not
be abused. Fans to be Installed in
galley. Meat block to be reilnished.
Larger variety of fresh fruit prom­
ised. Fruit and vegetables to be
ordered oftener and in smaller quan­
tities to avoid spoilage. AU crew
passageways were painted as prom­
ised. $30.15 in ship's fund. Request
for Instructions on flreHghting equip­
ment. Delegate instructed to Investi­
gate fast loading at Lake Charles.
All are satisfied with the Union's
effort, on ACS beef.

YAKA (Waterman), May 24—Chair­
man, J. A, Danals; Secretary, S. Jo­
seph. Benches to be made for crew
back aft. Screen doors put up back
aft. Money draws will be put out In
green backs and yen. Safety record
on here is at its highest, No injuries
due to working conditions have been
reported for many months. The crew
and skipper Bernardo working to­
gether on safety precautions.

TRANSATLANTIC (Pacific Water­
ways, May 17—Chairman, P. Conlsy;
Secretary, L. W. Pepper. Keep keys
of crew quarters on person to prevent
unauthorized persons from entering
foc'sles. Cautioned on . feeding na­
tives, especially baked bread, as bread
Is made fresh dally. Remove all cots
and blankets, pillows, etc., from
hatches prior arrival in India. Doors
to passageways to be locked. Crew's
recreation room not to be used.

COALINCA HILLS (Pan-Atlantic),
June 2—Chairman, P. Sheldrake; Sec­
retary, S. W. Nolan. Poor menu.
Crew made complaint to steward
about poor chow.

DEL MONTE (Mississippi), May 34—
Chairman, K. Winsely; Secretary, J.
McPhee. $81.55 in ship's fund. Ex­
pense for voyage $20 for shrimp party.
Same old ice-box meef. Motion made
to advance funds for baseball equip­
ment. Suggestion made to help keep
pantry cleaner. Steward asked to
turn In all supply lists.

VALCHEM (Valentine), May 25—
Chairman, C. L. Kersey; Secretary, W.
Nasta. $.30 used out of ship's fund
to send important documents to sea­
man. Balance on hand $29.50. All
crewmembers requested to keep the
messhall clean when eating between
meals. A discussion was held con­
cerning ordinary seaman and dayman.
Requested to have patrolman in Phila­
delphia settle situation.

VENORE (Ore), May 11—Chairman,
J. Wilaszk; Sacratary R. Kelly. Dis­
cussion on keeping night pantry
clean.

EVELYN (Bull), June 5—Chairman,
J. Tutwiiar; Secretary, J. Yuknas.
$54.36 in ship's fund. Talk of repairs
to be done th.it have been neglected.

WINTER HILL (Cities Service), May
2»—Chairman, H. Orant; Secretary,
F. Reese. Discussion on burned out
washing machine. $16 in ship's fund.
New Iron In possession. Discussion
on a change to assorted jams.

IRENESTAR (Traders) May 5—
Chairman, V. D'Angelo; Secretary, H.
A. Denten. ~ Quite a few brothers
are sick. The captain says he wiU
give either American mone.v or trav­
elers' checks. $15.70 in ship's fund.
Suggest that ship's delegate see cap­
tain about repairing decks in cook's
room. Old stack for galley range
was blown off. Everybody on ship is
happy. Good food. Vote of thanks
to steward department.

IRENESTAR (Traders). June 3—
Chairman, B. Hay; Secretary, R.
Avers. S11.52 in ship's fund. Steward
asked to get new sugar bowls for crew
messhall. Discussion about money
draws. Not enough American money
aboard. Had to take half Italian
money and half American money. A
hearty vote of thanks given to stew­
ards department on job well done.

JEFFERSON CITY VICTORY (Vic­
tory Carriers), May 24—Chairman, C.
Makuch; Secretary, E. Ceedwin. Sug­
gestion to settle all beefs with board­
ing patrolman. Vote of thanks to
steward department for job weU done.

MARGARET BROWN (Bleemfield),
June 1—Chairman, J. Alien; Secre­
tary, B. Porter. Money collected for
ship's fund $28.33, for magazines cost,
$15.09, telegrams, $14.81. $.57 in red.
To obtain new garbage cans for gal­
ley. To have icebox moved to mess­
hall. Dump ashtrays and put cups in
sink. Have dirty linen laundered in
Eui'ope.

OREMAR (Ore), May 1*—Chairman,
D. Waters. Asked to have new re­
frigerator for crew pantry. $39.65 in
ship's fund. Vote of thanks given to
sanitary men who cleaned recreation
room. Less noise in passageway so
that those off watch will not be dis­
turbed.

ROBIN CRAY (Seas), June 3—Chair­
man, D. Hail; Secretary, R. O'Brlan.
To turn ship's fund to O'Brian for
wedding present. New ship's dele­
gate elected.

DEL SUD (Mississippi), May 24—
Chairman T. Liber; Secretary, W.
Perkins. No bottles to be brought
aboard In St. Thomas and the beer
would be taken away if anyone fouls
up. Ship's fund contains $109. Need
an additional washing machine. Movie
projector to be given complete over­
hauling. Bartender asked all mem­
bers to help conserve bottles this
trip by returning as soon as empty.

ROBIN TRENT (Seas), May 12—
Chairman, W. Walker; Secretary, H.
W. Clemens. Discussion on why there
had to be fire drill over weekend.
Chief mate promised to paint rooms
and showers at beginning of trip.
Vote of thanks to steward depart­
ment.

STEEL FLYER^dshthmlan), June 2
—Chairman, C. E. Reynolds; Secretary,
D. Dryden. Suggestion to keep wash­
ing machine clean at all times. $59
in ship's fund. Baker to put out more
bakery goods at coffee time. A vote
of thanks to steward department.

SANTORE (Ore), May 23—Chairman,
C. Just; Secretary, C. E. RawMngs.
$4.60 in ship's fund. Poor mattresses
is present problem. Members com-

LAWRENCE VICTORY (Mississippi)
May 24—Chairman, P. Fox; Sec. S.
Rivera. AU have been well. Repair
list has been turned in. Most repairs
have been done. Others wiU be done
whUe the ship is in port. Some dis­
puted overtime on deck and engine
dept.



July I. 1957 SEAFARERS LOG Pare Elevea

I;

'Giant Step'

An overwhelming demonstration of SIU support among
Baltimore tugboat crews has produced outstanding economic
gains for the tugmen in short order. The dollars-and-cents
victory follows a double-barrelled ballot win by convinc­
ing scores of 64-0 and 146-9 over District 50 of the United
Mine Workers.

The latest advances by the tugmen are a far cry from the
nickel and dime handouts they've been accustomed to for
years. Out of an estimated 63-cent-an-hour package of pay
gains and other improvements in their new contract, 50 cents
represents direct wage increases. Of this, 30 cents goes into
effect immediately to help bring the wages of the Baltimore
workers in line with those in other Atlantic end-Gulf ports.
Baltimore previously had the worst conditions of any com­
parable harbor.

These gains by the SIU Harbor and Inland Waterways Di­
vision on.behalf of the tug workers follow the pattern of pro­
gressive improvements by the SIU down through the years
for workers in other harbors as well as deep-sea sailors. Sup­
port for the SIU in organizing campaigns and bargaining elec­
tions has always resulted in vastly improved conditions and
benefits for unorganized workers.

i" t

New-Style 'Security'
Somebody in Washington, whether in the Coast Guard or

some other agency, just refuses to give up hope that someday
they will be able to apply Annapolis-type standards to mer­
chant seamen. Three years ago, the Coast Guard came for­
ward with an elaborate physical-mental "profile" examina­
tion of seamen which would have barred all who didn't
emerge as Sir Galahads with muscles. That scheme quickly
evaporated following outraged protests by the SIU and other
maritime unions.

Now, under the guise of a revised security program, a spe­
cial commission is proposing that seamen be screened off the
ships as "security risks" for unspecified physical and mental
defects, for their personal associations and for vaguely de­
fined indecent conduct, immorality and "excessive" drinking.

The SIU has always supported the principle of a screening
program, with appropriate safeguards, when it is aimed at
keeping genuine subversives off American ships. But when
this program is broadened to include personal habits, person­
ality and character, it is time to call a halt. The job . of
weeding out gashounds, performers and similar undesirables
is one which the Union recognizes as a private affair be­
tween itself, the men and the shipping companies. It is no
business of Government, call it "security" or by any other
name.

Unlimited US Travel Via
Aqaba Endorsed By Gov't

WASHINGTON—US-flag shipping companies and captains
of US vessels have been notifi^ by the State Department
that in the Government's view, all ships have the right to
"free and innocent passage"
into the Gulf of Aqaba at the carried a cargo of oil from Iran.
head of the Red Sea. The
statement stressed that "The
United States position is that the
Gulf of Aqaba comprehends inter­
national water. That no nation has
the right to prevent free and inno­
cent passage in the gulf and
through the straits giving access
thereto.

"A denial of free and innocent
passage through those waters to
vessels of United States registry
should be reported to the nearest
United States diplomatic or con­
sular officer . . ."

The statement came after Rus­
sian naval units passed through
the Suez Canal headed for the Red
Sea, leading to rumors that they
would be used to support Egyptian
blockade operations in the Gulf.

Kem Hills First
The SlU-manned tanker Kern

Hills was the first major ship to
pass through the Gulf into the Is­
raeli port of Eilat on April 7. It

News of the Kern Hills voyage
came a few days after the SIU of
NA convention called for freedom
of the seas in the Suez Canal and
the Gulf of Aqaba.

The passage of the Kern Hills
raised a furore in the Arab world
and since then her activities have
been under wraps. But word was
received at SIU headquarters from
the ship that she was due to make
three or four more trips into the
Israeli port. Newspaper reports
last week confirmed that the Kern
Hills has carried a number of car­
goes of Iranian oil to Israel.

As a result of these voyages, the
Kern Hills has been blacklisted by
Saudi Arabia. Egypt and the other
Arab nations have followed a pol­
icy of blacklisting vessels which
service Israeli ports.

The Gulf of Aqaba had been
closed to shipping since 1950, ex­
cept for vessels going to the Jor­
danian port of Aqaba.

Honor Memory
Of Lundeberg

Newly-christened the SS
Harry Lundeberg, the huge
Kaiser Industries gypsum car­
rier rests at anchor in Red­
wood City, California. At
right, SUP Secretary-Treas­
urer Morris Weisberger is
shown with plaque presented
by the SUP to be placed
aboard the ship. Below,
Msgr. Matthew Connolly con­
ducts invocation. Behind him
is Mrs. Lundeberg and chil­
dren: center foreground, C. E.
Harper of Kaiser Industries,
who was master of cere­
monies. At far right Is Jack
Hatton, Marine Firemen's
Union vice-president. Many
personal friends of the late
SIU of NA president and
labor representatives were
among the crowd at the
christening.

lliiilil

|l

i|
•'t|



ISi. Twelve SEAFARERS LOG Juljr 5, 196T

h?i

Steel Seafarer Takes
A Beef By The Horns

SIU crewmen on the Steel Seafarer successfully licked a
restriction beef affecting half the crew and may have eased
the way for better treatment of seamen at Khorramshahr,
Iran, In the process.

Drab as the Persian Gulf
ports may be, they do offer a
change of pace from the ship.
Besides, a guy likes to be able to
make the choice himself on whether
he'll stick on the ship or try his
luck ashore. That way he's got
no squawk coming unless it's to
kick himself for taking the PG run
In the first place.

A special ship's meeting on the
Seafarer set things in motion for
an inquiry into the cause of the
restriction to ship in Kuwait and
the reason for the allotment of
only 15 passes in Khorramshahr.
An added mystery was the reason
for supper at 4:30 on weekends in
port.

The chief mate, who was called
Into the meeting, was unable to
come up with an excuse either on
the Kuwait restriction or the short
rations on passes. It seems the
mate got the word from the cap­
tain who was told by the agent, etc.
Unfortunately, he didn't have any­
thing in writing, but they'd try to
have "something" by the time of
the payoff. Since payoff time was
far off, this v/as little comfort.

On the matter of the early sup­
per hour, there was even less of an
explanation.

None of this sat very well with
the crew, which elected a com­
mittee to visit the American consul
and check on the passes as a mat­
ter of immediate concern.

"Passes?" said the consul. There
are no restrictions on the number
per ship, he pointed out. He also
extended greetings to the whole
crew through its committee, and
Issued a "warm welcome" to all

merchant seamen, which the gang
accepted with thanks. The consul
also delivered the goods in short
order.

"Passes for the entire crew de­
livered aboard ship at 11 the next
day," noted Calvin James, meeting
secretary. Eddie Parr was chair­
man. The overall restriction beef
will naturally be taken up in due
course at the payoff.

List Details In
Cables To Union
When notifying headquarters

by cable or wireless that a Sea­
farer has paid off in a foreign
port because of injury or illness,
ships' delegates should include
the following information:

The man's full name, his SIU
book number, name of the ship,
the port of payoff and the hos­
pital where he is being treated.

The response of ships' crews
to the Union's request for these
notifications has been very good.
Sometimes though, not all of
the above information has been
included. Be sure to list all of
this data so that the SIU can
act as promptly as possible.

'Sea-Spray' —By Seafarer Robert 'Red' Fink

"Best damn baker I ever sailed with

SEAFARERS IN THE HOSPITALS
USPHS HOSPITAL

MANHATTAN BEACH
BROOKLYN, NY

Manuel Antonana B. J. Martin
Eladio Aris Albert MartinelU
Fortunato Bacomo Vic Milazzo
Frank T. Campbell Joaquin Miniz
John J. Driscoil W. P. O'dea
Robert E. Gilbert George G. Phifer
William Guenther G. A. Puissegur
Bart E. Guranick George E. Renale
John Haas Winston E. Renny
Howard Hailey Samuel B. Saunders
Percy Harrelson George Shumaker
Taib Hassen Kevin B. Skelly
BUly R. Hill E. R. Smallwood
Thomas Isaksen Henry E. Smith
Ira H. Kilgore Stanley F. Sokol
Ludwig Kristiansen Michael Toth
Frederick Landry Harry S. Tuttle
Leonard Leidig Virgil E. Wilmoth
Archibald McGuigan Pon P. Wing
H. C. Mclssac Dexter WorreU

VA HOSPITAL
NEW YORK, NY

Loyd McGee

USPHS HOSPITAL
STATEN ISLAND, NY

WiUiard Blumen Frank LaRosa
G. E. Crabtree D. Ryan-McNeills
Raymond M. Davis Ahmed Mehssin
F. De Los Reyes Thomas Moncho
Rufus Freeman Jan E. Mozden
Burl Hairs Stefano Nappl

Hans Hanssen Frank S. Paylor
Henry Herkinhein Markos Potiriadij
Oskar Kaelep Jose Rodriguez
Alfred Kaju Robert Sojka
Michael V. Kicko R. Szczygiel
John Klepadlo

USPHS HOSPITAL
NORFOLK, VA.

Francis J. Boner Robert G. Sawyer
Charles Culpepper M. G. Shankls

USPHS HOSPITAL
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIF.

Roy J. Barker Alexander Lelner
Noah C. Carver Nareisos Yabot

USPHS HOSPITAL
SAVANNAH, GA.

Jose Blanco BiUie Padget
Jimmie Littleton J. A. Richardson
Fred MUier

USPHS HOSPITAL
BALTIMORE, MD.

Elmer Baker George LitchReld
Joseph W. Brodeur William Mellon
Estaban Conquet Harry Muches
Victor B. Cooper Raymond Perry
Claudius Fisher Edward Roberts
Gorman T. Glaze Thomas Rowe
WiUiam I. Healey Paul Strickland
Herman Kemp Claude Walker
Edward J. KnauS

MONTEBELLO
CHRONIC DISEASE HOSPITAL

BALTIMORE, MD.
Francisco Bueno

Editor,
SEAFARERS LOG,
675 Fourth Ave.,
Brooklyn 32, NY

I would like to receive the SEAFARERS LOG—
please put my name on your mailing list.

(Print Information)

NAME

STREET ADDRESS |

CITY ZONE STATE I
TO AVOID DUPLICATION: If you are an old subscriber and have a change •
of address, please give your former address below: J

ADDRESS i
CITY ZONE STATE j

USPHS HOSPITAL
BOSTON, MASS.

Alvoie Green August Eklund
USPHS HOSPITAL

GALVESTON, TEXAS
William R. Bates E. Manuel
Edward CaudUl James C. MltcheU
Eddie S. Game Harold J. Romero
M. N. Gendron Ernest T. Squires
G. B. McCurley

USPHS HOSPITAL
NEW ORLEANS, LA.

Lawrence Anderson Alvle Means
William Bargone George MitcheU
John W. Bigwood John A. Moloney
Albert M. Blazio Simon Morris •
Charles R. Bourg Michael Muzio
Herbert Chattom Randolph RatcUS
Henry Chemel Toxie Samford
James Crawford Toefd Smlgielskl
Serio DeSosa Wert A. Spencer
William DriscoU Gerald L. Thaxton
Evelio Gonzalez Lonnie B. Tickle
Leon Gordon Dolphus Walker
James Hudson Winon E. Walker
George Kasprzyk James E. Ward
Edward G. Knapp Ernest Wilson
Leo Lang Clifford Wuerti
William Lawless D. G. Zerrudo
Harry P. Lewis Jacob Zimmer
Robert McEvoy WiUiam HaveUn
B. E. McLamore

USPHS HOSPITAL
SEATTLE, WASH.

WilUam Caefato John J. Flanagan
WUUam Calefato Obert J, Morgan
Wayne T. Center

USPHS HOSPITAL
MEMPHIS, TENN.

Claude F. Blanks Charles Burton
USPHS HOSPITAL

FORT WORTH, TEXAS
Benjamin Deibler John C. Palmer
Siegfried Gnittke

VA HOSPITAL
HOUSTON. TEXAS

J. P. WRUamson

Chlwawa Backs
Coal Beef Fight
To the Editor:

Brother Allen W. Fitts gave
a first-hand account of what is
going on at Norfolk regarding
the American Coal beef at the
last ship's meeting on the Chl­
wawa. Fltts spent several
weeks waiting for employment
there but failed to score with a
1921 discharge.

A full discussion of the ACS
beef was held on here, which

letters To
The Editor

All letters to the editor for
publication in the SEAFAR­
ERS LOO must be signed
by the writer. Names will
be withheld upon request.

here, plus 14 officers and rooms
for 12 passengers. There are
11 men in the deck department,
12 in the engine and 11 in the
steward, but she seems to be a
little short In the steward de­
partment as there are so many
decks and it is very inconven­
ient to get around. Stan Schuy­
ler, the steward, is doing a fine
job getting the ship in shape
with the men he's got but he
could use at least one more util­
ity man.

We are hoping to bring, her
back to Jacksonville in fine
shape as she was a mess when
we joined her in Baltimore.

Eddie Eriksen

disclosed that all brothers are
completely satisfied with the
Union's efforts on this drive.

A motion was carried by a
100 percent hand vote to donate
cash for any brother leaving
for ACS duty,

Jesse Henry
Ship's reporter

if 4"

Offers Thanks
To Blood Donors
To the Editor:

The family of Mrs. Mamie
Lee and the George P. Llhhy
family wishes to sincerely thank
the members of the SIU who so
kindly offered to contribute
blood for Mrs. Lee.

We want to specially thank
Max E. Nims, who gave a pint
of blood, and Luther Mason,
who offered to keep an appoint­
ment on May 22nd if he did not
get a ship in the meantime.

Although Mrs. Lee passed
away on May 23rd, everyone has
the everlasting gratitude of the
family.

Winifred Murphy

4 4 4

Carib Queen is
Getting In Shape
.To the Editor:

We finally crewed the Carib
Queen in Baltimore on May
25th. She had been in the
Maryland shipyard for over a
month due to a breakdown on
her last voyage hack from Eu­
rope.

She Is quite a ship, a con­
verted LSD, that carries truck
trailers and automobiles. It's
quite a thing to find your way
around the ship. It took the
average new crewmemher a half
hour to locate his foc'sle. Be­
fore we left Baltimore, SIU pa­
trolman Eli Hanover came
aboard to see if everything was
in shape. We almost carried
him with us to Jacksonville he-
fore he finally found his way
hack to the dock.

We are now on our second
run to Puerto Rico and it looks
like we will have this ship In
fine shape once everybody gets
used to her. The skipper Is
Capt. Alexander Stewart and
the chief officer E, Olsen was
the former captain on the SS
Southport. We expect to make
a round trip between San Juan
and Jacksonville on a ten-
day schedule once everything is
set up right.

There is a large crew on

4 4 4

Urges Visitors
To Disabled Moii
To the Editor:

Well, 1 am out of the hospital
again for a while. I am staying
with my sister here in Florida,
and like It very much.

I don't see any of my ship­
mates since this place Is off the
beaten path, hut my heart Is
still in New Orleans, The doc­
tors and nurses there are tops.
They kept me alive when it
didn't seem at all possible.

I would like to make a sugges­
tion that when the Union wel­
fare representatives visit the
hospitals they should report the
brothers there who are on the
disability list. Otherwise, no
one knows we are there and we
get no visitors.

Believe me, I am proud to
belong to the SIU and grateful
for the assistance I receive.
Without it, I would be at a com­
plete loss. I cannot do any work
of any kind and may have to
return to the hospital at any
time.

I sure have lost quite a little
weight. My normal weight was

Taking It easy down In
Florida, "Biackie" Mason
sends regards to all hands.

210 or more, hut at present I
am down to 155 and feel very
weak. I cannot walk a block
unless I stop to rest in between,
so I don't walk much.

Here in Green Cove Springs,
the water is full of sulphur. It
tastes horrible to me and smells
worse, hut I think it may help
me, so here I am. My brother-
in-law is a naval officer sta­
tioned here, and I think he is
one swell guy. I spend most of
my time by the TV and also
take a short ride now and then,
though I could do just as well
without it.

In closing, let me wish all the
officers and members the best
of luck. Keep up the good work,
as we are still back of you and
pulling the best we can.

James "Biackie" Mason



luly i. 1957 SEAFARERS LOG PaiC« TUrtMiir;

OCBAN DBBORAH (OcMn Trans.)
April 28—Chairman, Hardlns; Set.
Walnberg. Mptlon to try and obtain '
canned milk aboard and wherever
possible to obtain fresh milk In cans.
Discussion on various Items. Two men
leaving ship. Keep quarters clean on
leaving ship or else be turned in to
the Union. Have arrangements made
for drinking water In foreign ports
for labor gangs.

MAXTON (Pan Atlantic) April It—
Chairman, J. Ollsei tec. M. Eschenko.
Suggested to buy Pepsl-Cola with
ehip's fund. A hand vote was taken
and the majority accepted. The ship
has been sold and will be taken over
by another company in the near fu­
ture. Repair list to be made out by
all delegates.

MOUNT VERNON (North Atlantic
Marine) May 2S—Chairman, None at
present. Former ship's delegate hos­
pitalized in Haifa, Israel. Meeting of
department delegates to be had prior
to next regular shipboard meeting.
Discussion on disputed overtime and
the division of overtime In the deck
dept. New York to be notified of the
man hospitalized In Haifa. Repah- list
to be sent to New York as the needed
repairs have not been taken care of.

OCEAN EVELYN (Ocean Trans.)
April 14 — Chairman, C. Alnsworthj
Sec. R. O. Masters. Everything run­
ning smooth, disputed overtime, to
be left to patrolman at payoff. Dele­
gates to repair lists in order. Dis­
cussion on bigger or more percolators
for coffee time. One solution to have
officers make own coffee or use their
pots. Silex mentioned, but voted down.
Left up to steward to correct situa­
tion. Men leaving vessel ito strip
bunks, and leave foc'sles clean. Vole
of thanks to steward department.

OCEAN JOYCE (Ocean Clippers)
April 18—Chairman, D. Edwards; Sec.
8. Malkln. The former ship's deleg.ate
having left the ship, there was no
report. A new ship's delegate was
duly elected. The chief electrician
requested that all electric fans need­
ing repair, or overhauling to be re­
ported to him personally, to save time.
The second electrician was Instructed
to adjust the washing machine so
that it was again in good working
order. It was voted by the member­
ship present that in Korea all doors
leading to outer decks are to be kept
closed: and wired fast, at all times
while the ship is in port. Any "trad­
ing" done by the crew, with the
Koreans is to be done outside on the
deck and not in the foc'sles.

OCEAN NIMET (Maritime Overseas
Corp.) Nov. 4—Chairman, W. Kenny;
See. L. B. Bryant. Food situation was
corrected. The steward claims now
we have a new chief cook and Im­
provement will be made. Good food
is on the ship and will be put out.
The last cook was incompetent and
mlolng good food. The steward is
willing to work with ship's delegate
on suggestions.

December 30—Chairman, Wm. D.
Kenny; See. L. B. Bryant. We have
had a pretty pleasant trip and there
has been no performing. Going in
with a clean payoff no beefs. Three

(3) men paid off 111 and two (8) men
in Japan and the deck engineer taken

.off at sea and put aboard USN8 Ed
Patrick. Repair list to be liiade up
day of payoff. All linen to be sent
below as soon as possible. Steward
department was complemented.

OCEAN EVA (Ocean Clippers) March
31—Chairman, W. Johnson; Sec. John
J. Doyle. Last ship's treasurer left
810.45 In the ship's fund with dele­
gate. Seen captain in regards to offi­
cers getting more cigarettes than
crew (he said it was the purser's
doing and he will have him issue the
same amount to all from now on).

May 26—Chairman, W. J. Anderson;

- PENNMAR (Calmar), May 24—Chair­
man, V. E. Monts; Sscrotsry, James
McLlnden. The deck department Is
working in harmony as a unit. There
is no beef and very little disputed
overtime. Ail communications are
taken care of. i^ch and every one
are on their best behavior so there
is nothing to report. Brother Noreb
was elected ship's delegate by ac­
clamation, a job he held temporarily
till he was officially elected. Every­
thing Is in order so there Is no com­
ment or suggestion in good and wel­
fare.

Sec. W. Tresembe. Ship's delegate
read American Coal reports. Vote of
thanks to men taking jobs on these
ships, and Union brothers helping out
with this beef, also vote of thanks to
the SlU brothers from headquarters.
Ship's delegate to see captain about
painting crews foc'les. Vote of thanks
to the steward's department for very
good food and menu. Steward F.
Fetcher and chief cook W. J. Ander­
son to keep up the good work.

REBECCA (Intercontinental), May
10—Chairman, S. Resoft; Secretary,
R. Hernandez. Nothing to report.
Everything is running smooth. Rec­
ommend to every one to clean their
foc'sles before leaving and to stay
sober for payoff. Paint deck dept.
shower and heads: also to finish paint­
ing the port holes at the crew mess
hail. To fumigate the ship for rats
and roaches. Ask the company for
another room for either the chief
cook or night cook and baker, as the
one now In use Is too crowded with
the three cooks. To pick up books
when the patrolman comes to ths
ship and not before; to let the ship
dciegate talk to the boarding patrol­
man without any ofte Interrupting in
their conversations. Vote of thanks
to the stewards department.

No data—Chairman, John Malkotkoi
Sacratsry, Marty Culp, Deck depart­
ment controversy over sandblasting
overtime. Is this overtime and a
half or what? Cleaning of laundry to
be done by departmcpts. Question on
floor regarding conversion of stew­
ard's head to electrician's repair shop,
also three cooks crowded in one
room. Electricians have separate
rooms.

MARY ADAMS (Bloemfleld) May S
—Chairman W. Rhone; Sec. J. F.
Austin. Everything is okay and all
repairs were made at the end of the
last voyage from the Far East. Some
disputed overtime in the steward
dept. Have it clarified in the LOG as
to whose duty It is to secure the linen
for the engine and deck departments.
Vote of thanks to the crew for its
cooperation with the service and
keeping the messroom clean.

ROBIN HOOD (Robin), May » —
Chairman, D. Hlghtowerr Secretary,
Red Brady. Ship's delegate reported
on the death of Snd elect, giving
details as to the disposition of the
body after the ship leaves this port.
It wiU be noted that body wiU be
returned to the USA aboard the SS
Robin Grey, now in the port of Beira.
A letter to headquarters in detail is
now undertaken.

MARYMAR (Calmar), May If—Chair­
man, M. Flood; Sec. W. Clegg. Report
on food situation, agreed food has
Improved since new steward has been
aboard. No disputed overtime in any
department. Suggested repair iist to
bo sent to headquarters from Panama,
also a letter to be sent to New York
in regard to safety conditions aboard
this ship.

ROBIN KIRK (Robin), May 4—Chair­
man, R. Collins; Secretary, R. V. An­
derson. A few minor bgefs all taken
care of to everyone's satisfaction.
Brought up the condition of the ship's
fund. It was suggested that a volun­
tary donation of 82 be made to the
ship's fund to bring It up to strength.
Hand vote 23 for. Practice of throw­
ing butts on the deck to be discon­
tinued. Each watch leaves the mess-
hail clean for the next man coming
on.

ROBIN MOWBRAY (Robin), March
3—Chairman, M. Flowers; Secretary,
A. Ooncalvas. The chief electrician
called a special meeting and reported
the following to the membership. "On
March 26th the chief engineer
knocked both electricians off cargo
watches between the hours of B PM
and 8 AM, stating that they could
go ashore or go to sleep as they
wished and that the electrician con­
cerned would receive the normal
overtime involved between those
hours. Ha said the purpose of this
was to eliminate rest periods the
next day and that he had been in­
structed by the Robin Line NY office
to follow this course thereby making
It a test case against rest periods, etc.
Since the above Is a direct violation
of our 8IU contract and without
precedent in my long experience, I
felt that the membership should be
Informed so that Headquarters can be
notified accordingly." Tha member­
ship after discussing the above at
length agreed and concurred that
since the matter is of direct concern
to every SIU man, it should be re­
ferred to Headquarters for immediate
action.

May I—Chairman, F. Shea; Secre­
tary, S. V. Johnson. One man missed
ship. Letter to be sent to LOG con­
cerning treatment given to Brother
Powell during illness on board en
route to home. Few hours' disputed
overtime. All brothers ask to return
cups to messhall after use. All broth­
ers were asked to wear pants when

itht entering messhall. Brothers were
also reminded to return all cups to
messhaU or pantry after using same.
A vote of thanks to the steward's
department. Steward asked member­
ship to back delegate up in trying to
gat more frozen food per voyage as
same was pretty low this trip.

WACOSTA (Waterman), April 28—
Chairman, J. Burehlnal; Secretary, E.

I, have Ray. Repairs are being attended,
new skipper this trip. Ports of call
are Yokosuka, Yokohama, Inchon, Ya-
wata, back to Pacific coast. In that
order. Due to the shortage of hot
water in crew's shower aft, chief
engineer is keeping log on his ad­
justments to determine causa so as
to know if tank needs replacing.
Ship's laundry to be kept clean by
the individual in conjunction with a
schedule to be placed by the dept.
delegates, also to have bulkheads and
deck clean. Vote of thanks go' to
acting ship's delegate Scott for doing
a fine job. All beefs to be settled
through the respective delegates of
the departments. A vote of Ahanks
was given to the Union officials, and
the OLD-TIMERS, for the splendid job
they are doing on the American Coal
beef.

STEEL AFFRBNTICE (lihmlan). May
12—Chairman, 1. Dora; Secretary, F.

" , done. Ferez, All repairs have been

A Boatman V Life on the Hoogkly
By Seafarer James "Pat" Conley

"The Hooghly Is my life, my home. I love this great river." And Rasool, who owns his
boat and has lived on this river all his life, stroked his white beard as he smilingly scanned
the row of boats lining the bank and, past them, the great ships that come from far-away
places.

Life for the boatmen on the
Hooghly is varied and inter­
esting; it is never dull. Early morn­
ing finds them cleaning and wash­
ing their boats, getting ready for
the day's work and preparing their
mid-day meal. The rice is already
boiling in the pot and the smell of
spices is in the air.

Their work mainly concerns the
ferrying of passengers and trans­
porting cargo up and down the
river. Country craft bring in an

"On the Transatlantic dis­
charging grain in Calcutta,
with a back-load of iron ore
for Mojl, Japan. Probable
sailing date July 2nd, but the
monsoon season is now pre­
vailing and seeing the start of
the rains noted for India. Port
time has been up to the pres­
ent time three weeks, with 13
days to go. The heat is ter­
rific and the city stinks with
filth, having a cholera and flu
epidemic with many fatal
cases ...

"Have watched these Hoogh­
ly River boatmen for days liv­
ing and sleeping on their sam­
pans and dhows. It is remark­
able how they survive on a
handful of rice and jug of
water , . ."

assortment of merchandise from
the country and bring hack all
kinds of goods for the villages.
Boatloads of green vegetables and
fruits such as bananas and melons
come by river. During the summer
it is usual to" see boats heavily
laden with water pots of various
sizes and shapes.

Riverside Hay Market
A wholesale market for hay has

been conveniently established on
the hank of the Hooghly. What
looks like a row of floating huts
from a distance, turns out to he
boats laden with this commodity.
Transactions between merchants
are carried out while the unload­
ing is being done.

It is fascinating to observe boat­
men hauling logs on the water.
Son ' of them, standing on the

Indian booiman and partner try to peddle off some "bargains"
in souvenir wore to the Alice Brown. A wooden chest ond some
decorotive plotters were omong the ofFerings, but no.one would
soy just how they mode out. Photo by Williom Colefoto.

floating logs chained together, dis­
play considerable skill. Their agil­
ity and sense of balance are de­
lightful to watch.

A strong community spirit pre­
vails. Hindus and Moslems work
side by side in perfect harmony,
whether they come from Bihar.
Orissa or West Bengal. If a boat
is in need of repairs, willing hands
do the job.

Afternoon Siesta
Mid-day is siesta time on the

Hooghly, The boatmen, after their
meal and a smoke, relax. All activ­
ity ceases and the boats are at rest.
Dhotis tied to the masts to dry
flutter in the soft breeze.

As the sun goes down Moslem
boatmen stand on their boats—it
is time for namaz or prayer. The
setting sun casts a reddish glow on
the praying figures. Then the
boats are anchored for the night.

With the coming of night on the
river, lights'are lit on boats and
ships, sending their gleams over
the darking waters. Howrah Bridge
wears a garland of lights. This is
the moment for the artist and lov­
ers of beauty.

In the words of Whistler: "The
evening mist clothes the riverside
with poetry, as with a veil, and
the poor buildings lose themselves

in the dim sky, and the tall chim­
neys become campanili, and the
warehouses are palaces in the
night, and the whole city hangs in
the heavens, and fairyland is he-
fore us, and Nature sings her ex­
quisite song to the artist alone,
her son and her master—her son
in that he loves her, her master
in that he knows her."

Now Rasool's day is done and so
to sleep, a rest hard-earned and
well-deserved is, the boatmen's life
on the Hooghly.

LOG-A-RHYTHM:

Sail Away
By William I. Terry

Are you blue, merchant seaman?
Are you homesick?
Do you long for a deck beneath

your feet?
Seems to me
There is nothing here can cheer

you.
Since you've been on this shore-

bound retreat.

Where Do You Start?

Pile of dishes from the passenger dining room inspires mixed feel­
ings from Seoforers on the Del Norte. Brother Willioms behind
the counter (he's the dishwosher) leoves no doubt qbout his views
on the motter, os golley delegote Bob Brown, butcher Felix Joro-
cinski, ship's delegote Joe Collins ond reporter George McFoll
(right) look on. The boys feel Willioms "eorns every ^ ond then
tome" of his twd hours per doy OT and thot there ought to be o
sliding tcole for the job, bosdd on the number of possengers
oboord. Photo by Leroy Rinker

Cast off all your spring-lines, me
hearty,

Make haste for the sea and away.
Then I'm sure you'll be happy

again, lad.
And your heart sing at each break

of day.

Just climb that familiar old gang­
way.

To the seamen's own heaven of.
rest;

Where the smile of God's glory
heairfb on you.

And your seamen's .heart fills with
a zest.

For the rain, and the wind
And the sunshine,
And the life you know you love

best!

So here's to Godspeed on your
trip, mate.

May you sail in His graces and
care.

And when you return from your
voyage.

Welcome home to a family that
cares.

Yes, welcome to friends and rela­
tions.

Who envy your gait and your dare.
But, who, when you're out on the

ocean
Whisper your name in each prayer.



w;-4|

Pace ^—

^se Your Razors, Fellas?

KK AF

July 8. W51

T!™"dio o'-» t!d fey

SID HAll WmORY

Poetry Volume
Halls Late Son
To the Editor:

Please send the LOG to our
home address. As a general
rule my husband, Richard R.
koWs brings the LOG homo
when he's in, but when he goes
to sea I don't get to read it, and
I do miss it.

I would also like to state that
I have a book being
by the Pageant Press of New
York which will be out late in

letters To
The Editor

All letters to the
publication in the SEAFAR­
ERS LOG must be signed
by the writer. Names will
be withheld upon request.

fX

SlU, A&G District
BALTIMORE . -
Earl Sheppard. Agent
BOSTON .. • • • • • • Vgent'" Richmond 2-0140 James Sheehan,. Agent
HOUSTON, . .; • • V; capital 7-6558
Kohert Matthews, Agem. ^
LAKE CHARLES, La HEmlock 6-5744
Leroy Clarke, Agent Lawrence St.
MOBILE A oVnt HEmlock 2-1754 Cal Tanner. Agent
MORGAN Cl^ -' Phone 2156
Tom Gould, Agent Bienville St.
NEW ORLEANS. ..•••• • • " 8626
Lindsey WdUams, Agent Brooklyn
NEW VORK 673 ^O'^Yacinth 9-6600

NORFOLK "MAdison"2-98M

PfflLADELPmA^ ®^Ilark"?7-16®35

d; TIERRA PB- -

i£'Wj?t»gent •

f^HSng ie^"^

Paul Hall
ASST. SECRETARY-TREASURERS

J. Algina. Deck ^ g^Tjoik""^
k More": l"d.- u: Mtlthews, Joint

SUP
HONOLULU 16 Kne'^

PORTLAND " CA^^^"43®36

RICHMOND, Calif....510 WacdonaW^.^^^^^

SAN FRANCISCO

SEATTLE =^®°Vat 0290

WILMNGTON '"lerm'naT 4-3131

NEW YORK 675 «h

Canadian District
HALIFAX, N.S 136|ho"n°JMi
MONTREAL 634 St. Jam^^St^West

"«r3"3l2'i
PORT COLBORNE 103

TORONTO, Ontario "In^pul 1-5719

VICTORIA, BC 617V4 Cormorant^SL

298 Main SL
Pacific 3468 VANCOUVER, BC

SYDNEY,

BAGOTVILLE, Quebec ^phwml' 545

THOROLD. Ontario 52 St.^Davlds^St.
OS cf PtArre St.

QUEBEC ,
SAINT JOHN ®'PS®'2-5M2

NB

Great Lakes District
ALPENA ««N-rhrel7^|i

BUFFALO, NY... • • j.jgygiaiid 7391

CLEVELAND
..1038 3rd St.

DETROIT Phone: Woodward 1-6857

OXn,UTH

SOUTH CHICAGO... • p^g^gS^E®^ wlld

Turnabout

"Shuiter-bug" T. W. Rogers,
wiper, has the tables turned
on him OS shipmate Merwyn
E. Watson catches him during
the last trip of the Fairland as
a conventional C-2. The ship
is to be converted into a spe­
cial containership.

June. The title ia Wle
Thoughts In Poems" by Dixie
Allen, which is the Pseudonym
I use. You will no doubt see
the advertisements in "The New
York Times" and "New York
Herald Tribune."

My son was also i'l
chant marine as a radio o^cer,
but passed on from » heart at­
tack four years ago aboard the
SS Yaka. His name was Coty
L. Allen, and you will find his
picture on the Jaeket coyer of
the book. He started it, and
after his death, with the en­
couragement of some of his
shipmates. I decided to finish
the book and publish it.

It is dedicated to him, and if
you do chance to see it and
read it, you will find it very in-
spirinSt I'Hi sure.

Best wishes to all the boys in
the SlU. ^

3^ 4-
Lauds Claiborne,
Pioneer Crews
To the Editor:

We would appreciate if you
would send our thanks through
the LOG to the crewmembers
and captains of the SS Clalbofne
and SS Alcoa Pioneer.

We are very thankful to them
for the beautiful fiowers and the
expressions of sympathy they
sent upon the loss of our be­
loved mother and wife, Mrs. G.
Danzey Vandersall. She died
on May 8, 1.957.

W. C. Vandersall
t 4 4

Yaka Boasts Top
Safety Record
To the Editor:

The safety record here on the
Vflka is at its highest. No in­
juries due to working condhions
have been reported for many
months. The crew and Capt.

Bemardl w# worUng togetoer
on safety precautions and hop# ^
to keep things this way.
*%h;fography Is the number
one hobby of this c«w. But
snorts cars, baseball, foreign af-

and Union activity gen-
orally count for their share of
the discussions on this long

^"we'especlally^ant to thank
the LOO for clarifying the
origin of the ship's name in the
Xpfll 26 issue, ft helped spice
up the conversation for a spell.

Sam Josepn
Ship's reporter

(Ed. Note: Okay, now how
about tome photos from all you
YAKA hobbyists. You must have
some we could use in print.)

*44
Robin Trent
in Good Shape
To ihe Editori

Enclosed are the minutes of
our last meeting here on the
Robin Trent. Everything is fine
on board, as you will notice
when you read the lutnutes.

Our meals are superb, pre­
pared by Danny Lippy. Nick
Gaylord and BUI Hand. our.
baker. Our steward is Harry
Trash, and very capable at it.
After arriving at Trinidad we
sailed on to Capetown, South
Africa, and wiU make every poit
UD to Mombasa, BEA,

We are looking forward to
receiving our LOGs and also the
"Report to Seafarers" from
Secretary-Treasurer Paul Haii,
which I trust you wiU send to

Capetown until we hear
from you, the best to you and
your staff on behalf of the crew
of the Robin Trent.

Peter Karas
ship's delegate

* 4 4 ^
A Helping Hand
Is Appreciated
To the Editor:

Recently I again had to call
for assistance from the SIU and
again the Union came through
with fiylng colors.

on May 18 I was rus^®d
the hospital. My son called Le-
roy Clarke, port agent at the
Lake Charles SIU ®*:
plained to him that my jiushand
was in the Persian Gulf and he
took care of all Particnla" He
advised my son what to do and
was a mountain of strength to
us. I was in the hospital until
May 29 and it was a wonderful
feeling to know you have a
friend when in need. I know
my husband will be very grate­
ful to know what the Union did
for me, and I want everybody
else to know, too.

So once again thanks to Le
roy Clarke and to the SIU for
the helping hand. It ts * com­
forting thing to know there 18
that hand to help you whi^
your husband is so far fiom

t^cme* Florence Adams

Sees Travelers'
Checks Useless
To the Editor:

We of the SS John C, in a
general meeting under good
and welfare recently discussed
the use of travelers' checks for
draws, which this ship has been
doing. . .

We believe this provision
should be taken out of the
agreement now that there is no
big demand for American
money. It is a lot of bother for
the crew to cash these checks,
as we have found in lots of the
ports of the world.

In Rouen, France, for in-
itance, there Is only one hotel
where you can cash a check and
you have ta have your seamen's
papers to do that. In Dunkerque
no small bar will cash them.
Only one nightclub that doesn t
open until 8 PM will handle
them. Even if you buy a drink
they still do you a big favor by
taking them.

In Turkey things were a little
better. You can go to the legal
exchange with them, but you
lose by not having the green
stuff. ,

Then we went to Peru, where
we arrived on a Sunday after­
noon. when the banks are
closed. It was just lucky there
was a souvenir shop that would

'cash them. Otherwise we would
have had to stay aboard the
ship. ..

In Kamaishi, Japan, even the
bank wouldn't take travelers
checks. We had to wait two
days for the yens to come from
Yokohama. In all or most ports,
US currency must be declared
and exchanged through legiti­
mate channels, which are only
open during our working hours.

Such things as ship's treasury
pools are virtually Impossible
because there is no small cur­
rency available. There also is
always some confusion about
signing the checks, etc., and
someone always ends up with a
check with only one signature

''"in short, these checks may
have been a good deal a few
years ago,'but times and condi­
tions have changed, and they
are now a pain In the neck.

Steve Szanto, Jr.
Ship's reporter

4 4 4
Praises Gain
In Tug Drives
To the Editor:

The crewmembers of the SS
Santore wish to extend a vote
of thanks to the organizing de­
partment, the negotiating com­
mittee and all concerned for a
job well done on their recent
accomplishments with the Hous­
ton and Baltimore tugboats.

The same applies to the work
being done in connection with
the American Coal beef.

E. J. DeBardelaben
Ship's Reporter

By Bernard Seaman



jTidy X, lflS7

•:m^:

SEAPAREnS LOG PV« FiftecB

All of the following SIU families have received a $200 maternity
benefit plus a $25 bond from the Union in the baby's name:

Susie Virginia Jones, born June
», 1957, to Seafarer and Mrs. Carl
D. Jones, Mobile, Ala.

it ii/
Ronald Battagiia, born May 30,

1957, to Seafarer and Mrs. Joseph
Battagiia, New Orleans, La.

if iCi iit
Paula E. Buck and Beverly A.

Buck born May 11, 1957, to Sea­
farer and Mrs. Ben D. Buck, Ever­
ett, Pa.

^ $
Gloria M. Cubano Mercado, born

June 3, 1957, to Seafarer and Mrs.
Jose Cubano, San Juan, PR.

4 4" 4"
Diane LaVcrne Bamette, born

May 13, 1957, to Seafarer and Mrs.
Floyd G. Barnette, Baltimore, Md.

4 4 4
Carlotta Estelia Greaux, born

May 16, 1957, to Seafarer and Mrs.
Louis F.. Greaux, Texas City, Tex.

4 4 4
John D. Milton, Jr., born June

7, 1957, to Seafarer and Mrs. John
D. Milton, Roanoke, Va.

4 4 4
Eileen Josephine O'Brien, born

May 31, 1957, to Seafarer and Mrs.
Francis J. O'Brien, New York City.

4 4 4
Martha Rae Wilson, born June

7, 1957, to Seafarer and Mrs. John
Ray Wilson, Hickory, NC.

4 4 4
Norbert J. Violante, born May

31, 1957, to Seafarer and Mrs. Jo­
seph Violante, New York City.

4 4 4
Denise Ellen Forster, bo'm May

30, 1957, to Seafarer and Mrs.
Keith Forster, Rochester, NY.

4 4 4
Randall Neat Bartlett.- born June

7,1957, to Seafarer and Mrs. Frank
L. Bartlett, Mobile, Ala.

4 4 4
Jerry Paul Jackson, born June

9, 1957, to Seafarer and Mrs. Jim-
mie Lee Jackson, Houston, Tex.

4 4 4
William-Daniels, born February

7, 1957, to Seafarer and Mrs. Peter
Daniels, Brooklyn, NY.

4 4 4
Dorothy May Viera, born May

27, 1957, to Seafarer and Mrs. John
Viera, New Orleans, La.

EVERY
SUNDAY

I
I
IDIRECT VOICE
IRROADCAST
I
I

TO SHIPS IN ATLANTIC EUROPEAN
AND SOUTH AMERICAN WATERS

"THE VOICE OF THE MTD'
WFK-39. 19850 KCs

WFL-65, 15850 KCs

WFK-95, 15700 KCs

Ships in Caribbean, East Coast
of South America, South Atlan­
tic and East Coast of United
States.

s

Ships in Gulf of Mexico, Carib­
bean, West Coast of South
America, West Coast of Mexico
and US East Coast.

Ships in Mediterranean area.
North Atlantic, European and
US East Coast.

Meanwhile, MID 'Round-The-World
Wireless Broadcasts Continue . . •

Every Sunday, 191-5 GMT
(2:15 PM EST Sunday)
WCO-13020 KCa
Europe and North America

WCO-16908.8 KCa
- . . East Coast South America

WCO-22407 KCa
West Coast South America

Every Monday, 0315 GMT
(10:15 PM EST Sunday)

WMM 25-15607 KCs
Australia

WMM 81-11037.5
Northwest Pacific

MARITIME TRADES DEPARTMENT

Good 'n Welfare

Seafarer Jack Farrand takes
the floor under Good and
Welfare at hq meeting to
voice his satisfaction at the
complete medical examination
he received in the health
center.

Navy Opposed To Liberty
Ship Sales To US Allies

WASHINGTON—With foreign interests now bombarding
this country with bids for surplus tonnage, and a number of
bills now pending in Congress to authorize such sales, the
Navy has come out in oppo--^
sition to the sale of any re­
serve fleet Libertys to friend­
ly foreign countries.

The Navy contends that there is
already an indicated shortage of
110 dry cargo ships for mobiliza­
tion purposes, and it says that in
case of an emergency, the US
would stand a better chance of
recovering ships transferred to the
so-called "flags of convenience"
like those of Liberia, Panama and
Honduras.

These ships, the Navy claims,
remain under effective American
control, but this is not true of the
ships sold to "friendly" countries
like Belgium, West Germany and
Italy.

One. of the Congressional bills

Mayflower II Gets Hoopla
Reception In NY Harbor

The Mayflower II, picturesque reproduction of the original
vessel of the Pilgrims, completed another stage of her good
will journey to the United States pulling into tb6 Fort of
New York, with the aid of
tugboat.

The vessel received a tre­
mendous harbor reception from
tugs, small craft, and pleasure
ships as she rounded the Statue of
Liberty. As she pulled away from
the Statue, two helicopters
dropped in close to her sides. The
uptake from their blades emptied
the wind in the sails of the ship
causing her to lose speed and turn
around. Within minutes the May­
flower II was reluctantly heading
back to Staten Island, and the open
sea.

Police launches accompanying the
vessel radioed the pilots to keep
clear after they heard Captain Alan
Villiers request the 'copters, in
nautical language to "go away."

Villiers then ordered all sails
furled and called for the tug which
had towed them from Plymouth.

The city gave an official welcome
to the captain and his 21 man crew

50-Cent Raise
On Bait. Tugs

(Continued from page 3)
frantic attempts on the part of
District 50 to wreck the SIU cam­
paign. When the unlicensed men
voted in favor of the SIU, the
"catchall" district called a strike
and set up pickets around the tug
companies. But within a few days,
most of the tugs .were sailing.

Some of the mates and engineers
later reported phone threats warn­
ing them not to sail on the tugs.
Paint bombs were also thrown at
the homes of two officers who
Ignored the threats.

Then, on the eve of the officers'
election, police officers raided the
Baltimore hall and arrested port
agent Earl Sheppard on charges of
gambling. The barber in the hall's
barbershop was also taken Into
custody. The warrant, police said,
was signed after they received an
anonymous phone call.

When Sheppard appeared be­
fore the court the police admitted
that they had no evidence against
him and the charges were dropped.

The Baltimore Federation of La­
bor has demanded an investigation
of the phony charges against Shep­
pard.

with a ticker parade up Broadway
to city hall. Mayor Wagner ex­
tended the city's greetings and
presented citations to the pilgrim
costumed seamen.

The vessel and its barkers have
had much publicity lately with ac­
cusations of excessive commercial­
ism in the handling of the project.
It was originally intended as a good
will gesture from the people of
England to the United States. Vil­
liers implied that those responsi­
ble for the criticism of the scheme
were jealous of Us success.

The Mayflower II is being exhi­
bited at the Hudson Day Line pier
at the foot of West 42 st. where ex­
hibits and a reproduction of a Pil­
grim village have been set up.
There is an admission charge of
95c for adults.

Trcmaine, Oiler
Would this man and other Sea­

farers who sailed in World War II
convoy PQ-17 please get in touch
with Edward F. Oliver, 2216 F
Street, Eureka, Calif.

4 4 4
A1 Case

Please get In touch with Lyne
Bailey at 12029 Aurora Ave., Seat­
tle, or phone—Emerson 9878.

4 4 4
Oscar Kalep

Get in touch with Walter Nelson
at TA 3-9517. • He has information
concerning Arnold Raymond.

4 4 4
Jerry King

Contact your wife at 35 John
Street, Amityville, LI, NY.

4 4 4
Julius J. Swykert

Get in touch with Rafaela Osorio
at 4726 Vermont Ave., Los Angeles
37. Calif.

4 4 4
Would Seafarers who have color

slides of life at sea please get in
touch with Laurence Stern, Chris­
tian Science Monitor, 1 Norway
Stre^et, Boston, Mass.

now pending would authorize the
sale of ships to Belgium to c^ry
coal from Philadelphia to Antwerp,
and Germany and Italy, among
other countries, are also seeking
tonnage.

The Navy testimony was given
by Rear Admiral Thomas Burrowes
in a hearing on bills which would
authorize the sale of reserve fleet
vessels to American citizens as
well as to foreigners.

The deaths of the following Sea­
farers have been reported to the
Seafarers Welfare Plan and the
SIU death benefit is being paid to
their beneficiaries:

Joseph I. Stringfellow, 45: On
March 19, 1957, Brother String-
fellow died of a heart ailment in
the Duval Medical Center, Jack­
sonville, Fla. He joined the Union
on November 28, 1938, and sailed
in the steward department. Brother
Stringfellow is survived by his
wife, Margaret Stringfellow, of
Mobile, Ala.

4 4 4
Orville E. Abrams, 64: Brother

Abrams, died on April 22, 1957 in
the USPHS Hospital, San Fran­
cisco, Calif. Death was caused by
a malignancy. He joined the Union
May 1, 1956, and sailed in the
steward department. Brother Ab­
rams is survived by Ray Pedersen
of Seattle, Wash. Burial took
place In Golden Gate National
Cemetery, San Francisco, Calif.

Set Waterman
Subsidy Study

WASHINGTON—A pre-hearing
conference on the Waterman
Steamship Corp.'s subsidy appli­
cation has been set for July 17 by
the Federal Maritime Board. The
meeting will determine what kind
of information the SlLF-contracted
operator will have to produce at
the public hearings, which will
probably be held early next year.

Waterman is asking for subsidy
on runs between the Gulf Coast
and the United Kingdom and Eu­
rope; the Atlantic and Gulf Coasts
and California and the Far East;
the Pacific Coast and the Far East;
the North Atlantic Coast and Eu­
rope; and the Gulf Coast and the
Mediterranean.

Use Only One
Mail Address

Seafarers with beefs regard­
ing slow payment of monies due
from various operators in back
wages and disputed overtime
should first check whether they
have a proper mailing address
on file with the company. SIU
headquarters officials point out
that reports received from sev­
eral operators show checks have
been mailed to one address
while a beef on the same score
is sent from another, thus cre­
ating much difficulty in keeping
accounts straight.

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SEAFARERS LOG
• OFFICIAL ORGAN OF THE SeAFARERS INTERNATIONAL UNION • ATLANTIC AND GULF DISTRICT

Seafarer-Crews
Protect Offshore
Oil Supply Line

MORGAN CITY, La.—Seafarers are playing an important
role in one of the nation's newest and most significant indus­
tries—the development of fabulously rich oil resources off
the Louisiana coast under thie floor of the Gulf of Mexico.

The tidelands oil operation,

• AFL-CIO •

as it is known, may, in the
long run, prove to be the coun­
try's primary source of pe­
troleum products. Already tenta­
tive plans have been announced
for exploiting possible tidelands
oil deposits off Alabama and other
states, and many in the industry
are convinced that we have just
scratched the surface of the off­
shore operation.

Should the tidelands oil industry
reach major proportions in the
next few years, it would mean that
seamen would play a key role in
the huge oil production industry.
That is why the SIU Harbor and
Inland Waterways Division has
undertaken an organizing drive in
the tidelands area and already has
a contractual relationship with a
major oil company—Phillips Pe­
troleum.

Won NLRB Election
The contract with Phillips was

executed after the SIU won a Na­
tional Labor Relations Board elec­
tion among the marine employees
of Phillips, a fast-growing indus­
trial giant whose "Phillips 66"
trademark is well-known through­
out the midwest and southwest.

The SIU, incidentally, is the
only union to succeed in establish­
ing such a contractual relationship
so far.

In the offshore operation, pros­
pecting, drilling and maintaining
a steady flow of oil is the job of
landlubber crews of geologists,
drillers, roughnecks and gangers,
but the task of safeguarding the
lives of personnel at sea and main­
taining the vital lines of supply
falls to experienced seamen.

The Phillips Seafarers serve as
AB's, deckhands and engineers
aboard.the company's non-self-pro­
pelled drilling tender, the barge
K. S. Adams, and as crewmembert.
of tugs, small cargo ships and
launches that transpox't personnel
and such materials as fuel, water.

New Attack
Bonus Pact

A new agreement covering at­
tack bonuses and war risk insur­
ance has been reached by all
maritime unions and shipowner
groups. The new pact also in­
creases coverage for loss of per­
sonal effects from $300 to $500.

Area bonuses have been dropped
and have been replaced by a new
scale of attack bonuses covering
such waters as Saigon, China
coast, Formosa and the Suez Canal
ai-ea, including the Red Sea, Gulf
of Suez and Aqaba.

In discontinuing the bonuses the
maritime unions made it clear that
they reserved the right to ask for
their' resumption in the event of
the outbreak of hostilities. Attack
bonuses remaining under the re­
vised program provide for $100
and $150 for attacks in port and
at sea.

pipe and various supplies used in
drilling operations.

SIU men on the fleet of small
boats work a schedule of seven
days on, seven days off. Tender
crewmen wcrk ten days on and
five off.

The SIU has been working for
some time in this area to secure
union representation for unorgan­
ized seamen and assist them in ob­
taining improved working condi­
tions and greater job security in
this booming industry.

In order to service the Phillips
fleet and to facilitate the organiza­
tional campaign in the area, the
SIU has opened a hall in Morgan
City, La.

SlU-manned fog moors alongside self-contained Phillips Petroleum drilling platform 40 miles offshore
in 85^ feet of water. The 690-ton platform supports the drilling rig (partially-assembled at left) stor-
age, crew quarters and helicopter landing deck. Pilings support the platform.

Shippers Drool
For Open Door
To Red China

There have been plenty of clear indications in recent weeks
that the US Government is edging toward resumption of
trade with the Chinese mainland—and the shipping industry
can hardly wait for the day.-t

Alrview (above) shows supply barge K. S. Adarns, manned by
SIU men, moored alongside Phillips drill rig five miles offshore
from Cameron Parish, La. Below, close-up reveals'gangway and
ramp hook-up between barge and the rig.

Shipowners aren't talking out
loud, but it's no secret that
they are becoming restive at the
sight of British, French and other
Allied ships steaming heavy-laden
in and out of Chinese ports,from
which US ships are barred. The
recent relaxation of trade restric­
tions by the British has made it
pretty obvious that the day of US
trading with Red China is coming
closer. The SIU has always op­
posed trade with Red China.

West - Coast shipowners, whose
natural trade routes take in the
Far East, are champing at the iblt.
The "Pacific Shipper," a West
Coast maritime magazine, has been
outspoken in demanding that the
administration face up to trade
with China. The publication holds
that there is no sense in maintain­
ing a US embargo while other na­
tions, who are allies of the United
States, grab off a lion's share of
trade by supplying the Chinese
with items we refuse to sell them.

Congress Sentiment
President Eisenhower at a re­

cent press conference indicated a
degree of sympathy with demands
for relaxation of trade bans. In
addition, sentiment seems to be
building up in . Congress for re­
examination of the China trade
policy with Senator Warren Mag-
nuson stating that his Senate For­
eign relations Committee intends
to look into the matter.

Although the Korean armistice
was signed four years ago, estab­
lishment of peaceful trade rela­
tions has been stymied by the re­
fusal of thfe Chinese to free im­
prisoned Americans and the build­
up of Chinese forces in the vicinity
of North Korea and Formosa.

Of course, the new moves for

trade with Red China have been
welcomed, vociferously by the do­
mestic Communist press and by
Harry Bridges' International Long
shoremen's and Warehousemen's
Union. •

Opponents of trade with Red
China have argued that any relax­
ation of existing trade bans would
of necessity mean recognition of
the Red Chinese government. Nor­
mal trading would mean that US
businessmen and US consular rep­
resentatives would have to be es­
tablished once more on the Chi.
nese mainland. They further claim
that such trade would only serve
to strengthen the shaky Commu­
nist economy,

US representation on the Chi­
nese mainland would weaken bar­
riers to the admission of Red
China to the United Nations. Keep­
ing Red China out of the UN has
been a basic fixture of US foreign
policy.

At present, US ships are per­
mitted to trade with the British
colony of Hong Kong which is a
spit and a holler from the Chinese
mainland. Theoretically, trading
regulations keep US goods in Hong
Kong and out of Red China, but
for practical purposes It is hard to
see how leakages of such goods
could be prevented.

Shorthanded?
If a crewmember quits while

a ship is in port, delegates
are asked to contact the hall
immediately for a replace­
ment. Fast action on their part
will keep all jobs aboard ship
filled at all times and elimi­
nate the chance of- the ship
sailing shorthanded.



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THE

3,123
BENEFIT

PAYMENTS

$31,733
GASH

BENEFITS

This supplement carries the 1956 Report filed by the Sea*-
farers Welfare Plan with the Superintendent of Insurance of the
State of New York. It includes a graphic presentation of the
nature and number of benefits the Plan provides. The unusual
Variety of these benefits was made possible by the fact that the
Plan has been self-insured from its inception.

V Self-insurance was adopted for two reosonsi 1) It possessed
the flexibility to cope with the special circumstances under which
seamen live and work (some of these benefits could not be
offered under insurance company operation)/ and 2) It made
possible operation at lower cost than a company-insured plan,
thus effecting savings that were put into expanded benefits.'

Starting payments July ly. with two
modest benefits, the Seafare^^Welfan
has vastly increased the scope ©Ms coverag
Last year, the plan offered more thWa dozen
benefits to take care of the needs of seamen
who spend most of their lives away from home
ond their dependents.

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Fare Two—Supplement

DEATH BENEFIT

The death benefit started at a mod­
est $500 figure In 1950 and has been
increased several times since then to
the present $4,000 level. It is pa/able
directly to beneficiaries named on the
Seafarer's beneficiary cord upon pres­
entation of a death certificate.

1956
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1955

1953

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SEAFARERS LOG

HOSPITAL BENEFIT

The SlU hospital benefit plan for
Seafarers was the first to poy'seomen
weekly benefits for as long as they
were hospitalized. Present payment
levels ore $21 a week compared to the
original $7 weekly.

WEEKLY

1955

Jilly 5. 1951

1950

DISABILITY-PENSION

Disability-Pensions go to Seafarers
of any age who ore unable to work
because of permanently-disabling in­
jury or. illness. The original $15 weekly
benefit fios since been increased to
$35. In conibination with Social Secur­
ity it can provide benefits as high as

$258 monthly.

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$ 35 WEEKLY

*

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July 5, 1957 SEAFARERS LOG
s,.

Supplement—Page Three: • ''"' J

FAMILY HOSPITAL-SUR6ICAL
Among the more recent SlU Welfare^

benefits (it went into effect in 1955)
the family hospital-surgical benefit has
proven of great value in helping meet
the cost of medical emergencies. Bene­
fits ore provided to cover hospital costs
and hospital extras, surgical fees and
doctor's visits to the hospjtal. In 1956,
the plan was expanded to provide hos­
pital coverage past 31 days and to
include dependent parents of Seafar­
ers under the plan, as well as the wives
and children.

SCHOLARSHIPS

Each year a board of college admin­
istrators selects five scholarship award
winners entitling them to the $6,000
four-year college scholarships. Both
Seafarers and children of Seafarers
are eligible for the awprds which are
based upon their school records and
their performance on standard college
entrance examinations. The SlU schol­
arships leave the students free to pur­
sue any course of study at any recog­
nized college or university and ask
only that they maintain a high level
of academic performance.

LOAN PROGRAM
A unique and popular feature of the

Seafarers Welfare Plan is the interest-
free loan program for Seafarers on the
beach. Qualified Seafarers registered
on the shipping list are entitled to these
loons which are repaid after the man
ships out. In 1956 these loans amounted
to $104,385.65. In addition . to the
loans. Seafarers, waiting to ship can
take advantage of temporary lodging
and low-cost meals in the ports which
offer these facilities. This Is particularly
vital in light of the fact that Seafarers
are often shipping from ports which are
distant from their permanent homes.

MATERNITY BENEFITS

Over half-a-million had been paid
by the end of 1956 under the SlU ma­
ternity benefit program which first
started in 1952. The flat $200 benefit,
far more than provided by comparable
plans, is paid upon the birth of every
Seafarer's child. Twins and triplets re­
ceive doubled and tripled benefits
accordingly. In addition the Union, out
of its own funds, awards a $25 U.S.
Defense Bond to each child.

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Annoui Report of the

SEAFABOTS WELFABE

SUMMARY OF OWRATtONS

1 SlSXi*-:* r*T
4. Profit on ditpowt ot ^ ^

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DEDUCTt

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13. General expeniee

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increase or decreo. ;r^rj«^^^^^^^^
22. Net Increase or decrea

UNASSIGHH) FUNDS ACCOUNT

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24. Net Increase or decrw ^ p^^ds C"®^'

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Expansion of the SEAFARERS' WELFARE PLAN

19S0 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956^

The nature of leafarifiQ life
has led the Seafarers Welfare
Plan to provide types of cov*
eroge for which there were no
precedents. As the chart shows,
the Plan began in 1950 with
two benefits. But then, year
by year, it hdV consistently
broadened its operations. In
the process, the Plan has not
only greatly expanded the
size of individual benefit pay­
ments but has also instituted
o wide variety of useful bene­
fits not normally provided by
conventional fund programs. DEATH

HOSPITAL
MATERNITY
SCHOLARSHIP
DISABILITY-PENSION
MEAL PROGRAM
RECREATIONAL FACILITIES
TRAINING SCHOOL
LOANS
LODGING
DEPENDENTS' HOSPITAL & SURGERY
SPECIAL AIDS
HEALTH CENTER
HOSPITAL MOVIES

4.9% IS SPENT FOR ADMINISTRATION EXPENSE

TOTAL
WELFARE
! FUNDS

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66MPFiTS-M6DiaAtCEA)16R«P6flH BfiJEFllS'
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DlSASlLiiy-

B^iJEFlTS

THE SEAFARERS WELFARE PLAN

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