New-York tribune., 1911-01-04
MAY GET LONGER PIERS
Public Hearing To Be Given on
White Stars Request.
APPEAL TO WAR SECRETARY
Believed Harbor Line Board Will
Allow Needed Room for
Two Biggest Ships.

The New York Harbor Line Board, con-
ssting of army engineers. in setting Jan
uary y as the date for a public hearing
on the subject, has reopened the entire
question of iengthenng the White Star
piers In the Chelsea section TO accommo-
date the Olympic and Titanic. p. A. s
Franklin, vice president of the lnterna-
tional Mercantile Marine Company, made
public yesterday a letter from him 10 jacob
NJ Dickinson, Secretary of War. which
started the ball rolling. The opinion is be-
ing expressed privately about the Army
Building that the request for 100 more feet
on the end Of the two White Star piers
will be granted. Mayor Gaynor and Dock
Commissioner Tomkins are on record as
favoring it,
IF New York refuses TO take care of
these two steamships, said M Franklin
they will go elsewhere. South Brooklyn
is out of the question, both because no
channel exists which would allow such
boats TO enter the docks there and because
the inconvenience to travellers Of getting
their baggage to the ships there would
drive trade away from us.
The Montauk Point proposition Is beng
considered, and even New London is a bare
possibility. but we don't want TO look for
alternatives until we are sure we can't get
the accommodations we are asking in the
Chelsea district. We are bending all our
energies just at present toward Setths
these accommodations"
The Olympic. the first Of these two largest
ships in the world 10 take the water. was
launched al Belfast on October 20. and Is
scheduled to start on her first eastbound
voyage from Southampton on June Il In
his letter to the Secretary Of War Mr.
Franklin describes her as @2ie feet long,
with a beam of o2lz feet and draft, loaded,
of about 3s feet The Titanic. now build
ing is an exact duplicate. The letter CON
tinues, in part:
Since their sterns. carrying the most
vital parts, namely, the rudder ana pio5
pelerS will extend some 81 feet peNonu
the Longest of the above mentioned piers
(the Chelsea plersl. they will, therefore. %
come liable TO damage from other NesseIS
and the elements, the consequence, ta i
particularly as there is no drydock on thlS
side Of the Atlantic that can accommodate
them and in addition to this. the conse'
qucnt inconvenience and annoyance 10 pro-
spective travellers would be very great 10
say nothing of the delay 10 the mails.
The building of these steamers has been
at very great expense, necessltated by tIe
demands Of the travelling public, ana II
seems TO us that New York, being the
first and most important port or the INT
ed States should not he prevented Dl your
department from keeping pace WIN the
demands OF its trade and commerce OF
with Southampton, and be left IN posi-,
ton where il cannot provide proper ana
safe facilities for berthing the largest anu
most modern steamers.
a eGperiallN direct YOUR attenton 70
the fact that the government has e%pen9ea
an immense amount of money In dredging
the Ambrose Channel to depth or ioIlI
feet This expenditure without any pro-
vision for adequate termlnal Id'lh'eS'
is useless waste of money. The gov
eminent has also, at very great tN-
pense. decided to enlarge the locks of the
Panama Canal in order TO accommodate
ships Of a thousand feet in length, nut
unless New York is permitted 10 eNtenl
it's piers so as TO enable IL to dock such
steamers. the government will bar its
greatest commercial centre from oIerlns
facilities for the very steamers that IL mas
enlarged the canal to Accommodate ana
will no doubt be used by other competitive
nations
in 1902 the question Of pushing further
out into the river the plerhead line came
up before the Harbor Line Board. but
after a public hearing the board decided
a against il. At that time all existing steam
shIps could be accommodated at the estab-
lished length Of pier and no such vessels
as the Olympic and Titanic were contem-
plated. Now, not only the White star
line, but the Hamburg American and Gu
nard lines are planning to bring to this
port vessels larger than any dreamed OF
in that recent day.