Skeleton in the Bureau

One of the great U.S. military achievements of World War II has been the landing-craft program of the Navy. But last week the Truman Committee rattled an old report, held in secrecy for 19 months, which revealed that this proud Navy offspring had had a clouded birth.

Trie Committee had made its original report on the Navy's tank-lighter program on Aug. 5, 1942. It withheld the report at Navy request. It was made public by the Committee last week, "first, because its publication was delayed originally solely at the request of the Navy Department . . . and, second, because the committee believes that procurement officials . . . should bear constantly in mind the fact that improper decisions will be brought to the attention of Congress."

Navy Fumbling. The Navy had been building self-propelled steel lighters for years, by 1940 had tried several designs. None of them impressed the forces afloat with their seaworthiness. In the summer of 1941, the Bureau of Ships (then headed by Rear Admiral Samuel M. Robinson) yielded to pressure, called in famed Boat-Builder A. J. Higgins.

Told of the Navy's great need, Higgins designed and built a 45-ft. lighter in two and a half days. In two weeks, he turned out nine more. The forces afloat liked them, still distrusted the Bureau design.

But desk-bound BuShips, full of admiration for its own design, continued to cold-shoulder Higgins. It went on passing out contracts for lighters blueprinted from its own pet theories. With 1,100 of the Bureau's design on order, a test was finally arranged between a BuShips lighter and a Higgins boat.

Reported an official Army observer: ". . . it became apparent that the Navy Bureau-type tank lighter was in trouble. She appeared to have a tendency to dive . . . was taking considerable water aboard. She stopped several times and members of the crew could be seen manning hand pumps. . . . Once when under way . . . it appeared that the lighter was going to overturn . . . the coxswain had left the pilot house and was steering the vessel from the rail" (obviously preparing for a quick getaway if she foundered).

Navy Phoning. The Truman Committee reported a telephone conversation (which it does not say how it obtained). It took place the day after the test, between Captain John D. Crecca of the Boston Navy Yard and Commander Edward E. Roth of BuShips:

Crecca: We just got some disconcerting information regarding a possible change in the design of the tank lighters.

Roth: Possible--it's a sure thing. Yes. Isn't that a blow?

Crecca: It's terrible!

Roth: We can't afford it. We had a test down in Norfolk yesterday. Captain Edward L. Cochrane (now rear admiral and head of the Bureau) went down, Commander Daggett went down, the Army went down [interrupted]. Well, they had a showdown at Norfolk, but a little breeze blew up. . . . The Bureau tank lighter almost capsized. They couldn't steer it. They just drifted around. . . .

"Almost lost everybody on board, almost lost the tank. Higgins' tank lighter came through fine . . . and made the beach and the poor old Bureau tank lighter was out there wallowing around. Captain Cochrane came back this morning and he saw the Chief and everybody else concerned and they sent out--did' you get a copy of the dispatch?"

As a result of the test, BuShips changed the lighters under construction to the Higgins design. But the 1942 Truman report was blunt in its chastisement: "It is clear that the Bureau of Ships has. for reasons known only to itself, stubbornly persisted for over five years in clinging to an unseaworthy tank-lighter design of its own."

Navy Negligence. Reviewing its original findings last week, the Committee was even more blunt: ". . . the action of the Bureau officials entrusted with the tank-lighter program was attributable either to negligence or willful misconduct.'' The Committee made clear that "the mistakes referred to in its report . . . have been corrected; that with the exception of 126 Bureau-type lighters which the Bureau of Ships says it completed because the materials had already been cut and partially fabricated, no lighters of the Bureau type were manufactured; and that all manufacturers holding contracts for Bureau-type lighters were ordered to shift to the Higgins type."

With pardonable smugness the Committee remarks: "After Aug. 5, 1942 [the date of its report] the Bureau of Ships was reorganized with resultant good effects on the naval construction program."

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