The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1917-08-11

New York, August Especially -Only
seven days followed the announcement
on July 81 that Chicago capital had de-
cided to construct a large shipbuildlng
plant near Mobile when another an
nouncement was made of plan OF the
United States Steel corporation also TO
establish shipbuilding plant on the
Mobile river This latest Undertaking Is
to be made by the Tennessee Coal and
Iron company, of course, with the au-
thority of the United States Steel corpo-
ration, of which it is subsidiary.
So it would seem that at Mobile there
are speedily to be established two very
large shipbuilding plants and possibly
others, both of which will be able to
build and deliver to the government in
less than a year perhaps 40 vessels The
Chicago corporation which is an influen-
! tial concern has a contract with the
government of approximately $1O,oOOooo,-
| 900. In return for this money the Chi
| cago company will construct as speedily
as possible IS composite steel and wood
| ships and the work will probably begin
| before the end of August. 1t is an
nounced that the company will launch
| the first ship in the holiday season of
this year and will execute the entire
| contract within a year.
To construct the shipyard and to carry
out the industry will require large
amount of money for not less than 1000
skilled expert shipbuilders will be en-
ployed, and the pay roll will aggregate
100000 a month.
Presumably the shipbuilding plant
| which will be constructed by the Ten
nessee Coal and Iron company will be
| of larger capacity than the one which
is to be undertaken by Chicago capital.
When it was announced that the United
States steel corporation had perfected
plans for the establishment of a ship
building plant of very large capacity,
POSSIBLY the largest in the United States,
! at tidewater, near Newark, N. j., none
but the managers of the Steel corpora
ton knew that it was also in contempla-
ton to establish a shipbuilding plant
upon the Gulf of Mexico or, in fact any
where else in the United States. There
had been, it is true, vague rumors that
the corporation might deem it expedient
to build a shipbuilding plant somewhere
upon the Pacific coast, probably near
Seattle and it may be that some reason
existed for these rumors.
The government at Washington can
now contemplate with satisfaction such
: an increase in shipbuilding plants as
| will make it possible to furnish during
: the year 1918 as many ships as are
; needed for government service The
4 question is sometimes asked what viii
become of these great plants which rep
resent new capital, heavily invested
after the war Is ended? Should the wal
be continued even for two years ant
: then the demand for ships cease thes,
e plants might be found to represent onl,
t an emergency Investment and so greatly
o depreciate that large amounts woult
S have to be charged off. But the wise
= view seems to be that adequate ship
building facilities, accompanied by ia
v yorable legislation, will provide tn
+ United States unexpectedly with grea
e merchant marine. This will be neces
:. sarv il this country is to obtain sucl
r share of the worlds trade as our indus