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Show I GENL G0E1HALS JH Head of Committee Points ij! 0ut Errors Made by Gen- fcfSp1 eral in Speech. If ; WASHINGTON, May 27 Replying tfl J today to Major General Goethals' dec- S I laration that tho shipping board's m J wooden ship program entrusted to tho raH I general Is hopeless. Chairman Den- H man of tho board issued a statement H declaring that with the most success- H ful steel-building campaign possible H there still will be need for a thousand H wooden ships. B Referring directly to General Goeth- M als' speech at a dinner in New York Friday night, Mr. Dcnman said: "Wo bcllevo that tho committees of congress, and not a public dinner with tlie head of tho steel trust, are tho places for the discussion of matters of 1 policy with regard to ship building" "Tho shipping board has but ono purpose in its activities in Washing- H ton," said Mr. Denman. "That Is, to H k use its utmost endea'vors and powers H to defeat tho German submarine cani- H palgn. No porson, nor any interested H group of capitalists, can draw any ono H; of us into a controversy with, General Mn Goethals, nor do we think the general W? t Js seoklng it. jji. Would Still Need Ships. S(Ji If an lh0 snlps that can bc buiU within tho next eighteen months wore ! built, thoro still would bc need for a thousand wooden ships to make good the deficit in our merchant tonnage, though tho German rate of destruction is reduced to half that established in i tie month of April. I do not know ' ,whether a thousand wooden ships can ; bo built in eighteen months. There j Iwas a hope expressed that wo could, iand I havo carefully avoided denying the possibility of realization of this hope. My renson for not denying It i3 because I do not caro to havo our jGorman enemies in Berlin receive that ;j amount of comfort, "Every attempt to make It appear ! that there is disruption between Gen ii oral Goethals and tho board is adding ito Germany's comfort and assurance." Of General Goctjhals' statement that the treasury has mado no effort to sell i 50,000,000 worth of Panama canal bonds, to provide funds for the board's work, ho said- "E ery request we have made to the treasury for money has met a quick response. It was not necessary to sell Panama canal bonds to obtain money, and Gen Goethals must have been un-dei un-dei some misapprehension in regard to this matter "It is not going to help the war by spreading stories of discord among the vaiious organizations of the government gov-ernment here in Washington." no |