The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1918-03-23
BRITISH SHIP BUILDING.
BRITISH FIRST LORD OF AD>U.
RALTY GIVES FACTS AND
FIGURES.
H"r'hS Last Quarter of Last Year Al
'hcs Average Within One Hundred
Thousand Tons Monthly of Making
Losses Good Declares Sir Erie.


the country recently was the speech
dellvered in the house of common,
today by Sir Eric Campbell Geddes
''rst lord OF the admiralty He appeas
ed the demand which has become gen
eral recently that the country should
oe told the exact amount of the sh,p
ping losses and he also announced tn,
appointment of Great Rritain's fore
most builder, Lord Pirrie, as con
troller general of merchant ship
building.
Lord Pirrie will not be membe,
or the board of the admiralty, but he
VIII have direct access to the premie,
and the war cabinet.
During the last quarter of 1917
said Sir Eric. the allies were averag-
ing within 100000 tons monthly OF
making their losses good and were
then replacing rs per cent of their
lost tonnage.
AT the present time, the first lord
went on. AZ ship yards with 2O9
berths were engaged on oceans going
merchant vessels The output at the
snip yards for the last quarter OF
1917, was $4,000 tons as against 213,-
900 tons for the last quarter of 1916:
while during the last quarter of 1915
it had been only $4,000 tons.
1t was we'll within the capacity O..
the allied yards and even of the Brit
lsh yards, Sir Eric declared, to make
good the worlds losses if given an
adequate supply Of men and material.
In the fourth quarter of 1917 the for
eign construction was $4,000 tons. he
stated, giving a total output of 932..
600. while the losses in the same pc
riod We're 100000 tons which were
the lowest since the intensive subma-
rine war began.
Great Britain had lost on the aver.
ige of 100000 tons monthly durine
me last quarter of 1917 and had built
10000 tons monthly, the first lord
announced. British shipping had suf-
fered the most he pointed out, but the
British had contributed the greatest
aaval effort of the allies and had sus-
aimed the greatest attack, and should
not bemoan their sacrifice. Sir Eric
declared that the German statement
Of the allied shipping losses for Jan.
iary was an exaggeratiOn of 113 pei
cent. Since he had shown UP these
grossly false returns for previous
months, he added. the German state.
ment had not been issued, and was
over due.
The first lords figures on the
"oflus tonnage were reached after
ieducting lake craft and IA consider
ibl amount of small craft.
His figures on the tonnage sunk in
clude vessels damaged and ultimate
~ abandoned. The figures on losses
included those due both to enemy ac-
uOn and marine risks.
The yards were gradually getting
from the army all skilled and semi
skilled ship yard men, he said, but
there was still considerable diff
Guilty.
The output of repair work, con
unued Sir Eric, had increased in Feb
ruary 1918, as compared with Aug
ust 1917, by 80 per cent; ten times
more naval craft were docked for re-
pairs in the last quarter OF last year
than in peace time and more than g.
700 ships were dealt with i'm that pc
rlod. The men SO employed might
have produced half million tons OF
merchant shipping if they had been
engaged in building.
The three main factors in the
building problem, said the speaker,
were first, patrol and other craft TO
destroy submarines and safeguard
ships at sea; second, salvage and re-
pair work; third. the building of new
merchant ships. Sir Eric admitted that
the disappointing results for January
and February gave justifiable cause
for anxiety
The drop i'm the curve of merchant
tonnage losses was attributed by the
speaker mainly to the efficiency OF the
patrol and anti-submarine craft and
TO the valuable convoy work of 9th
er vessels.
The great effort i'm construction and
repair work had been made, the first
lord pointed out, concurrently with
the enormous increase in the output
OF munitions. The output Of guns and
ammunition i'm 1917 WAS nearly dou-
! Die that Of the previous wear and the