The Madison daily leader. [volume] (Madison, S.D.) 1890-current, 1918-06-28
Department of Commerce Gives
First War Statistics.
SECOND ONLY TO BRITISH
10000 900 Tons-692 Vessels Built In
Last Five Months-Sinae Months
Growth In 1918 Equals Whole Num-
ber Launched in 1e14-Now Reckon
by Deadweight Tonnage.

The steady growth of the American
merchant marine in all classes of ves-
sells has been revealed for the first
time since the war began in statistics
from the department of commerce.
They show that in the first five months
of this year there have been built In
this country and officially numbered
by the bureau of navigation q total
of 629 vessels of 6S7,055 gross tons.
The merchant fleet of the United
States now amounts to approximately
100000 gross tons, not including
merchant craft under control of the
army and navy as transports and sup
ply ships. AT the beginning of jan
uary 26,242 merchant vessels of $685.
224 gross tons were flying the Stars
and Stripes on trips across the Allan
tic with food and munitions, into the
Caribbean and Pacific with American
products for foreign customers and on
the lakes and rivers Of this country as
part of the nations domestic trans
portation system.
Includes New Vessels.
This tremendous fleet is second only
to the merchant tonnage of Great Brit
ain. 1t includes all new vessels built
under the direction of the shipping
board and thousands of other ships,
smaller in tonnage but greater in car
rying capacity, which play so large
part in commerce and the maintenance
of a favorable balance of trade.
All merchant vessels are required by
law to register with the bureau of
navigation of the department of COM
merce and to receive an official iden-
tification number, before being per-
mitted to fly the flag of the United
States. The number is awarded when
the finished ship is measured for gross
tonnage capacity, which is the content
of the ship in terms of 100 cubic feet
and the internationally accepted meth
cd of expressing size.
The shipping board, building exclu-
sively cargo ships, has adopted dead
weight tonnage as the medium Of COM
putting new tonnage, deadweight capa-
city being the actual weight of cargo
and bunker coal which can be carried.
Indicates Fleets Size.
The deadweight tonnage of a cargo
ship is about so per cent greater than
its gross tonnage, but in a passenger
vessel is less, because the space Is oc-
cupied by passenger accommodation.
The former German liner Vaterland,
now the Leviathan, has d gross ton
mage of $4,000, but deadweight capa-
city of only about 5000 tons, which IT,
lustrates why, in dealing with all types
of ships, gross tonnage, or the actual
size regardless of the space allotted to
cargo, has been chosen internationally
as more truly indicative of the size Of
q feet.
There has been steady increase in
new ships this year, the May tonnage
being three times as great as the Jam
uary output, and greater than the
whole output for the year 1914. In
the first month of 1918 there were 81
ships of 64,759 tons given official
numbers. In February "a ships of
117,601 gross tons were numbered.
March saw a notable jump In the pro-
duction of small ships. numbers being
awarded to 1873, the tonnage being 147,-
145. The record in April was 165
ships of 163,050 tons, and in May 185
ships Of 1914, ,465 tons.