Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1917-05-29
DIFFERENCES SETTLED
OVER SHIP CONSTRUCTION
Goethals and Dcnman Reported n
Being In Full agreement for
Harmonious Action.
WAY TO COMBAT SUBMARINES
Under Present Plans, 1t Is Probable
That zoo OF Great Merchant Fleet
Will BE Constructed of Wood rnd
Others OF Steel.
lny Associated press.l

NASitl NGEpN, May 2S.-Any diff
| fcrcnces between Chairman Dcnman.
/ OF the Shipping Board, and Major
General Gocthals over construction Of
| the great merchant fleet have been en-
tirely cleared away, it was stated to-
day. and both officials arc in agree
ment for harmonious action. which
viii result in the speedy building of
ships to thwart the submarine cam
paiEn.
Smoldcrins differences over whether
the fleet should he OF wood or steel
and the plans Of procedure. were
brought 10 climax by General
Goethals's striking speech in New
York last week. and by an equally
striking statement issued last night
by Chairman Denman
General C;octhals returned to the
capital to-day, and soon aftcrward il
was made known that the two officials
mad composed any differences. Under
present plans. as previously announced
probably 100 OF the ships will be of
WOOD and the others of steel
Secretary McAdoo. announcing to-
day that $9.oGv,000 had just been placed
TO inc credit of the Shipping Board
said the board and General Gocthals Is
mad not been held up for second for
want OF money, and would not he
ALI. MONEY REQUIRED
AVAILABLE ON REQUEST
lettering to a statement attributed
10 General GoethalS in his New York
speech mat no attempt had been made
To sell the $4,000 900 OF Panama Canal
bonds through which Congress au-
thoriZcd the raising Of funds for the
board. Mr.. McAdoo said il was NOT
necessary to sell the bonds Immediate
ly. and that the board had been nou
ned long ago that all the money re-
duired was available on request Be-
!ore to-day's allotment the board hnd
asked for and received $1,000. 900
1t was said autnoritativcly that Gen
erai Gocthals viii be given Il free rein
III the shipbuildinG program. and thar
thcre VIII be no interference from the
board. Shipbuilding will be nut en-
tirely in his hands. and the board will
exercise its other functions AS pre
scfihcd III the law creating it. Opera
tfon of the fleet. therefore. will be I'm
the hands Of the board
Chairman Denman has disclaimed re-
sponSibility for the statement that th.
board could build 900 wooden ships
III eighteen months. That assertion.
II is said. was male by one OF the
engineers who proposed the wooden
shiphuiidinS program, and never was
denied by the board because the board
did not care to give any comfort 10
the Germans.
General Goe>hals has accepted pro-
posalS by the Cnited States Steel Cor
poration and the Lackawanna Steel
and iron Company To turn out by fab
rication processes 5000. 600 tons of steel
shipping in eighteen months. and will
let contracts for wooden vessels as
fast as wooden builders come forward
with facilities for building them.
CONTRACTS AWARDED FOR
SIXTEEN WOODEN SHIPS
The wooden contracts announced To-
day call for sixteen vessels to bo con-
Structed hy tho Sloan Shipyard Cor
poration OF Seattle, Wash: feur by the
Grays iiarhor hIotor Ship Corporation
OF Aberdeen, Wash. and four by tho
Coast Shipbuilding Company Of Port
land. Ore. The six steel barSes viii he
built by the skinner and Eddy Corpora
tion. of Seattle.