New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1917-10-29
Ships Ships Ships
United States Fails to Take Full Advantage
of Its Shipbuilding Possibilities
By Theodore M. Knappen

, 10 operate, having regard 10 carrying
capacity. II this argument has fuil va
liditv there was no excuse Tor WOODEN
hut can VIC afford TO take a chance
on losing the war in order TO have YES
sells better adapted TO peace?
Can We afford TO risk an absolutely
Inadequate war-purposc fleet during
the terrible, critical year of 1918 IN
order that we may have an ideal meet
for the peace that may be long deferred
that will move the armies of 1918 and
their vast equipment and innumerable
supplies, 20 say nothing of supplying
and victualling the Allies?
Why Were Ships Not Ordered?
Assuming, however, that the Ship
ping Board is now irrevocably commit
ted TO three sizes of fabricated ships,
as seems TO be the fact. the question
arises as TO why contracts are not en-
tered into for the maximum capacity
of the plants. If the Submarine Boat
/ Company was prepared TO build two
/ hundred 5,000-ton ships IN eighteen
months, why have they not been or
dered? The case is similar with INC
American International and the Mer-
chants. The more ships they now Know
they are TO build, the faster they car,
build them. IL is not fact, that II
! they get additional orders two or three
months from now. final delivery VIII De
! iust as early as if. they got them now
or had them in September; every uaS
OF delay is a day forever lost -.
! Had General Goethals been permit
/ tod 70 sign the fabricating plant con-
; tracts in June. the first Of the 5,0oV-
/ ton ships would have been launched IN
| december. and i'm the latter part OF
| January they would have been CUM
/ PLETED at the rate Of one every TWO
days. -oo , o nm 60,
bonts would have been completed June
! l and thereafter would follow each
other at intervals Of three and hair
DAYS. As it is, we get none OF the
5J0OO-ton boats complete until june
and none of the others till August ,
The indecision of last spring ana
summer has deprived US of the use OF
at least forty-fve 5,000-ton steamships
bv Nav next, and twenty-slX of LOU
and twenty-siX Of 5000 tons by August
IA total service loss of ninety-seVen
ships of $4,000 tons. 1t may be worse
than that. for the days Of long hours OF
sunlight and warmth have been IosI;,
and now all the fabricated shlps VIII
have to be started in the cold winter
months, with their short PERIOD OF ddy
light, which means less worklhG TIME
and less efficiency OF labor.
What Delay Means
If the fabricating plan is so good
that il was worth the commitment OF
S35 900 600 of government funds 10 the
pIants and $4,000. 600 to the initial
order of ships, it would seem 10 be good
enough TO drive ahead at full speed ana
limit CAPACITY. The three government
fabricating plants are by no means nm
ited in 1918 production 20 the NUMBER
IF ships now ordered, but every day
further orders are held back means Ih ma
less of the 1918 capacity can De uIil-
ized. Does the delay mean that the
Emergency Fleet Corporation Is plan
ming boats of different type or greater
size? II it does, that means deISS
heaped on delay, for If you chshee the
standard type you have for tue tline
ceased to standardlze, ana !oG Hese
committed yourself 10 stahu"lui-"''oH
without standardizing.
Ships are the supreme need or Ihe
war. America 10 AO"i'' III 80
for them. Britain cannot oulId u,oL ,i
tbsn . 600. 900 tons in 1918. We shall
fail in our most critical duty TO the
aI1;.s and ourselves if We do not
build every possible ton ronoa
# ' is on NV by means OF the fabricatinng
Exhaust psis the potentialities of that plan plan
the fabricsting yards now being pre-
JARED raT should be jammed TO their ca
ppscitv. and moro such plants should be
Established. The greatest of liked edic
fee builders OF all times are out Vi
work. eoo+;rc edi-
A ship is nothing but al h Sa;i6sr eq to
hh III them. Until that Is done II
u ou1,u he said that we have done our
hest to meet the crisis.