Complex sentence: At each, and were far larger than the "A-series" liners built for RMSP in 1903--16, but their cruising speed was only: well below the that the contract had specified.
Split into simpler sentences: At each, and were far larger than the "A-series" liners built for RMSP in 1903--16. But their cruising speed was only: well below the that the contract had specified.