New-York tribune., 1918-06-25
Solution Seen Also for
Many Problems of Rail-
road Transportation
Speed a Large Factor
Warning Of Overoptimism on
Wood and Steel Construc-
ton Sounded
tspse;a. DssposeA to The rrbums)

Especial Dispdteh to The Tr7brne)
WASHINGTON, June 24.-Pain and
bad weather don't linger long in the
memory. When the pain Is gone and
the sun shines we forget our erstwhile
troubles.
There is danger that the splendid
progress Of shipbuilding now. in con-
trast with the dismal and discouraging
days of the first months after America
went to war, will breed an optimism
that may lead to relaxation of effort.
There is. danger that in contemplating
launching AGO deadweight tons Of
ships on July we may forget that
the submarines arc still destroying
$4,000 tons month, that the COM
bined present programmes of the
United States and Great Britain will
not yield as much tonnage in 1918 as
the Germans sank in 1917 and only a
little more than they will sink this
year.
1t is by no means impossible that the
wonderful stride the wood and steel
shipyards have attained may have
something to do with the lethargy in
the concrete ship enterprise. Their
success may obscure the indisputable
fact that no possible measure Of sue
cess in shipbuilding can give us enough
ships.
Limitations Enumerated
Great success with wood and steel
should only be an encouragement for
renewed efforts to realize striking tri-
umphs in concrete. The limitations Of
men, material and transportation will
soon place fixed boundary on the out
put of ships of wood and steel.
There is only SO much steel and
timber.
There are only so many facilities
for transporting ship material.
Owing to their locations with re-
spect to the sources of material, the
steel and wood shipyards are causes
of tremendous strain on rail trans
portation. Steel from Pennsylvania
and Alabama has to be hauled to the
Pacific Coast. Timber from the Pa
cific Coast has to be hauled across the
continent for the wood shipyards of
the Atlantic seaboard. Even lecal
hauls of steel from the mills to East
ern yards run into hundreds of miles
through the packed-in jam of the most
congested railroad districts in Amer
lea.
Almost anywhere on the coasts Of
the United States it is possible to es-
tablish yards for building concrete
ships right on site of the bulk of the
material-sand. gravel. crushed rock
and cement-in unlimited quantities.
There are places where concrete ships
can be built without using railways
for the transport of any material worth
mentioning-even in the congested dis
tricts.
The abundance of material for them
is so we'll known that no stress need
be laid on that point.
Scarcity of Men
The same is true of the scarcity of
men. Unskilled men men can build ten
times as much tonnage of concrete
ships day as skilled men can of steel.
They can also build them faster.
They can likewise build them
cheaper.
Concrete ships are now being con-
tracted for at 1920 a ton, including
machinery and equipment, against up
to 5000 for the steel ships. In large
orders they can be built for 500 or
less.
The hull of the Faith, at San Fran
cisco, was poured in twenty days by
thirty laborers.
The hull of the record breaking
Tuckahoe, by so per cent the fastest
built steel ship in history, re-
quired an average OF 300 or 400 men
for twenty-four days.
Scarcity of good managers is hold
ing back the building Of wood and
steel ships. The concrete construction
industry is full of men who are we'll
qualified to direct concrete shipbuild-
ing.
Building contractors are professional
"hurry-uppers." They are the premier
achievers of America. The plans are
ready-made for them. They have the
men, the "knowhow," the material and
the gumption. They have everything
with which to give us ships in fleets
with speed surprising anything ever
is needed more than was ever before
dreamed of-except the permission and
whole hearted backing Of the Shipping
Board to go ahead