New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1899-11-30
ECONOMY IN DOCK BUILDING.

II IS to be pretty confidently assumed that the
Government some time ago fully and hnally de-
cided TO aba don the wretched system Of wooden
drydocks for the Navy and hereafter TO con-
struct such docks exclusively Of stone and con-
crete If II did not do so then ii would surely be
led TO 1t now by the masterful exposition or the
matter made by Rear Admiral Endicott, the
Chief of Yards and Docks, in his annual report
TO the Secretary of the Navy of which COM
prehensive synopsis was given In our speciai
Washington correspondence yesterday, II 1t ola
come to such n decision this convincing report
will at least serve as fitting ana Impressive
epogue to the whole matter.
We need not here review the admirable train
OF arguments which Rear Admiral Endcott puts
forth, proving that just as certainly as water
will seek its own level and indeed because or
that very fact, drydocks of masonry are neces-
sarily and radically more stable than those OF
wood. These arguments have already peeh
noted in the abstract Of the report, and nave
long been familiar to our readers In the cam
paign which The Tribune has waged In behalr
of worthy and substantial docks Nor for the
same reasons, need we rehearse the no less con-
vincing arguments that In caring for great ana
costly battleships, worth millions OF dollars each
and carrying hundreds Of men, the only true
economy is TO use the strongest and safest DOCKS
that can be built. There Is. however, one other
argument given at the end of the report, which
il is desirable 10 cite once more as maj
"clncher" 1t has been made before, but never,
perhaps in quite so terse and impressive form
as ut present
In half n dozen lines of figures Rear Admiral
Endcott sweeps away utterly the one last
lingering argument In favor of wooden DOCKS,
namely that they are cheaper In dollars and
cents than those Of masonry They proDaDly
are somewhat cheaper even at the best, IN thelr
first cost But drydock Is not built for year,
but for many years. and in reckoning It's cost
not only the cost of building but the cost or
maintaining It must be taken Into account
Seven typical docks, three OF masonry ana -FOUR
of wood are cited. First in order OF age Is the
masonry dock at Boston. 1t was Dulit III 100
and has cost for repairs 1851 IL III siXty-sN
years or less than $5S a year. Second Is the
masonry dock at Norfolk 1t was built IN 1854
and has cost for repairs S9Sl 10 IN sNty-h'e
wears. or less than Sl4 year. Third is the
masonry dock at this port 1t was built IN 1901
and has cost for repairs $1,S15 80 in forty-eight
years. or less than $3S year or the wooden
docks the first Is that built at Norfolk IN 1883
1t has cost for repairs $685. "a In ten years OF
more than S5,304 year. Second come the two
built in the Brooklyn yard In 1890. They have
cost for repairs S302,342 IA In nine years, or
nearly S16,S00 a year each. Finally there Is
that at League Island, built in 1891. 1t has cost
for repairs S7G,S56 Oh in eight years, or more
than S9S07 year.
With those figures We may we'll let the matter
rest. In one yard where stone and wooden
docks lie side by side the stone costs Sl4 ana inc
wooden 1904 year for repairs. In another
ward the stone costs s3S and the wooden S16,SO0
n wear. Six stone Docks In a total OF 1Io years
have cost a total of s6,61S 90, while seven
wooden docks in a total of thirty-six years have
cost a total Of S432 242 90. The average cost of
q stone dock Is S37 year. The average cost or
wooden dock is over $4,000 year The first
cost of a stone dock is perhaps 90 per cent more
than Of wooden dock. The cost OF maintaining
a wooden dock Is 80 400 per cent more than that
Of maintaining a stone dock. Such figures may
he an argument In favor Of wooden docks TO
the contractors who get the profitable jobs OF re-
paring them. They should settle the question
the other way, henceforth and forever, to the
Government and to the Nation that have to foot
the bills