The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1918-02-13
APPEAL FOR MEN
TO BUILD SHIPS
Most Urgent Call of the War Is For
100000 Enthusiastic Workers
Local Office in Crosby Block.

Editor of The Reformer:
A few days before our declaration
of war with Spain, Admiral Dewey was
in the harbor of HongkonS awaiting |
the arrival of the L. S, S. Baltimore |
with ammunition and supplies for the
feet under his command. The Baltl- !
more arrived Just 48 hours before war
was declared and we were Informed
that we must leave the harbor within
4S hours, as Hongkong was neutral
English port. Dewey knew that with
out ships for supplies the war could
not be carried on successfully. When
we left Hongkong we had with US three
vessels loaded with coal which Dewey
bought just before war was declared.
On leaving Hongkong, just few miles
down the coast we hailed and pur-
chased refrigerator ship, bound for
Australia. She was ordered to continue
on her way and few weeks later ar
rived in Manila loaded with beef and
mutton. | am citing these cases to
show how important ships are to a
country at war. We cannot buy the
ships today-we must build them.
The business of the hour is to prose
cute the war. Our women may knit
until they are blind; our men may give
money i'll countless sums; we may HoOv-
erie until we are fairly famished all
will be useless unless we can replace
every sunl1en ship with three new ones.
| How can it be done? The government
| has furnished the necessary money to
carry on the work, the yards and docks
| have been built in various parts of the
/ 500 4 l. 80. l..
enough men to build the ships are not
there. True, few thousand men have
/ applied for work, but many have been
Indifferent or worse, simply seeking a
change of location and occupation. The
shipyards do not need a stream of rest.
less, apathetic shirkers flowing in one
gate and out of the next, with no prof
it to themselves and less to their coun.
try. What is needed is band OF
100000 enthusiastic, earnest and pa
triotlc workers, eager to serve theil
country, And such men will find that
they will be well paid and will be thor
oughly trained in work akin to theil
own trades. They will also be placed il
a deferred class III the draft as Ions
as they are working on ships. On tn
Pacific coast hulls are being completed
in "a days. New England can do a
well if we can only get the men. !
man on the lighting line is no create
patriot than the shipbuilder Withou
the shipbuilder the man on the fghtin
line is wasting his effort and PRACTICAL
. throwing away his life.
The United States Shipping Boar
warns US that manufacture will b
stopped again and again, regardless o
the resulting chaos in the bushes
. world, until we can get sufficient ship
. to clear the freight lam at the easter
terminals. At the present time ever
manufacture is and must be secondar
. 70 shipbuilding. In spite of the COZ
fusion caused by our plunge into III
!. greatest of wars, the shipping boar
I mas the yards and materials to bull
!. SIX million tons of shipping this yef
!. and to continue building a thousan
]. ocean going vessels a year thereaft tt
Brattleboro and the surroundin
= towns have always given more tina
: their quota for every demand made u
on them since the beginning of the wa
n And now comes the most urgent ca
OF all, the call for shipbuilders.
1t is well to bear in mind that tw
thirds of the occupations used in shi
. building are common to other industrie
y and a skilled mechanic in almost al
line of wood or metal work can ava
'e himself of this opportunity to pay ba
g. what American institutions have do
Is for him.
IN Go today to the office of Sanford
x Daniels, Crosby block, and fill in O
re of the registry cards. This will be *
n. warded to the Public Service Reser
% Office at Washington, d. c.. and VIII
20 you are needed you will be Motif,
: You Will also receive information
garolng wages, terms and conditions
le transportation, etc. Whether you acct
III The call or not is entirely voluntary.
ut 1t is going to be great work, IL
ions upon millions of rivets will
driven and every rivet is nail in
kaiser s coffin.
JEAN j. NANDERVEER,
TX | Formerly of T. - NAVY