New-York tribune., 1918-12-23
: s0O.Ton Fabricated Ship
launched as Four More
Wait for Dip in Water
saccarappa Does Well
,,uantity Production Is Be-
Iieved Near at Big Plant as
Supplies Are Piled Up
By Theodore NJ. knappen


pv1LADELPHIA, Dec. 81 - Five
.,sat steel ships. as like as peas, lay
y .he outftting basins at Hog Island
.h;s morning. Presently one of them
Timed her cables and faded away into
..Aa river mists 1t WAS the Saccaranpa,
.,ond of the great line of ships 20
.,ms from the Hog Island ship factory,
:, begin her destined career.
As the Aat-decker swung into the
Aannel those aboard her got per
.,o,tive vieN Of the mile of waterfront
thereon in varying degrees of compile
san lay fifty more of the Hog Island
s,,od Of sea power. When they
.r.soed the fact that the work done
~ the shirs still or the ways is the
..,;valent of the full completion Of
.a-s than twenty ships of $500 tQns
ssch. shey began TO understand that
,sa-titv manufacture IN ships, like
.rarsltv manufacture in other things.
ss.entiallv matter of eventual vol
rme Of output. rather than the speed
18th which the first articles come out.
The Hog island ships are not drop
,ng into the water as fast yet as was
synscteG, but the work is going on
.ven faster. Two boats week are not
nav coming forth, but the "makings"
n four boats 8 week are in sight IN
he great accumulation of head of ma
,sral and increasing efficiency behind
zach of the fifty ways.
Schedule Doesn't Worry
n's the reservoirs of material and
,.s ability of management and labor
a utilize them that is giving concern
"a the Hog Island people just now
rstber than keeping up with a sched
rIe that may mean little IN itself.
When the sources are bankful there
* no worry about the flow in the main
stream.
The sources of ships at Hog Island
are beginning to fill up. It's the old,
ID story of quantity manufacture. You
NAV make a squirt and make a little
slowing for time without giving
5e attention to the fundamentals of
ousntity production, but in the end you
sil Look after the fundamentals and
.se volume of output will take care Of
rs an old story. it's typically
American story. but the American peo-
NE cannot understand it. whether it
be in shius. in aircraft, in guns or in
.lvthing that they would nationally
do in haste. The American manufac-
t.rer understands, but he can't get his
message across to his brethren Of the
Sars and Stripes.
Is We steamed down the Delaware
the trial trip party made a careful IN
,Vection Of the 4O3 feet OF length. the
ffy-four feet of beam and the forty
feet Of depth of the big ship. The ship
lad never been away from the dock
before. but the engines worked per
iectly and developed uptto ninety-four
revolutions minute. Evidence Of
taithful and enduring Workmanship
vas everywhere.
If any member of the party pre-
sously had an idea that a fabricated
ship is sort Of fimsy, metallic patch
work he was quickly disabused of It:
Every plate, angle, channel, frame and
riyet on the ship bespoke that stanch-
ness that defes the powers of ocean.
Need Be No Misgiving
It was agreed that if all the Hog
Island ships are to be like the Sac
carappa there need be no misgivings
as to their ability to take and hold
heir place in the rough and ready
cargo commerce of the world. Burn
ing crude oil. having steaming radius
OF seven or eight thousand miles, and
even more if desired, equipped with
every known marine labor-saving
Machine and device, manned by intelll-
gent Americans, we'll housed and we'll
led, they will be hard TO beat IN the
world trade game.
Unfortunately the fog became so
talck that the ship had to come to
anchor in the river and postpone the
open sea part of the trip until to-mor-
'ow. Her performance in the shallow
waters OF the river, where nearly -
Knots an hour was attained, indicated
that in the open she should do 10
knots, or TWO more than the contract
requirement.
dash Of adventure was lent to the
'oyage by the failure or the telemotor
steering device to work properly on
account of air bubbles in the oil. While
mis- was being corrected it was neces-
safy for the Saccarappa TO anchor near
British tanker. Swinging around in
me tide the two vessels gently rubbed
sizes, which gave the cockney mate a
cnance to express his opinion of fab
,ea'ed ships, which chance he prompt
" ayalled himself of.