The sun., 1918-08-21
PLAN AMERICAN
SHIPPING COMBINE
Liquidation Of Internation,,
Mercantile Marine q Pre-.
paratory Step.
SIX COMPANIES INVOLVED
To Compete With British anI,
German Interests After
the War.
SIX COMPANIES INv0Lvp

mhtion OF an american shipping eorporg>
ton under the leadership OF the In,.rn,.
tional Corporation interests, It wa,
learned yesterday. Tho new orran.
ization contemplates tho amalgama.
tion Of the international Mercantile
Marine Company. Atlantic, Gulf and
West Indies Steamship Lines, United
Fruit Company. Pacific Mail STEAMSHIP
Company and the New York Shipbugd.
ing Company, and will be powerful
enough to dominate the transatlantic
and South American ship.
ping industry. The American 1nterna.
tional Corporation already owns control
Of the Pacific Mail Company and IN.
New York Shipbuilding Company and
it's holdings of International Mercantile
Marine and United Fruit are sufficient
to make 1t influential in those corpora.
tons.
Formal announcement Of the new
American marine combine Is not er.
pected until financial conditions ma.
terially improve but in quarters con-
versant with the details OF the plan II
was stated that the liquidation Of the
Mercantile Marine Com.
pany. which Is now being considered BY
the board Of directors. is the preliminary
step in the formation Of the huge con.
Tentative plans call for a
of at least $3.50, 100000
for the corporation and II is believed
that the scheme has the approval Of the
United States Shipping Board. which
realizes the importance of American
representation in over seas trade. An
other reason for favoring such a com.
bination of shipping interests Is the
necessity of American cooperation in
meeting the severe competition which
will result from British and German In.
terests after the war.
Mercantile Marine to Liquidate.
The International Mercantile Marines
purpose in dissolving the present corpo.
ration. which also includes the sale q
Its British tonnage. is to have only
American steamships and American in.
terests represented in the new CORPORA.
ton, and this will be accomplished by
the disposal of its ships now under En-.
glish control.
This will leave the Marine Company
with six steamships now under the
American Line, the Atlantic Transport
Company of West Virginia. a charterins
concern which holds stock in the Ho.
land American Steamship Company. and
the Nkw York Shipbuildng COMPANY
which Mercantile Marine interests con.
troll with the American international
Corporation, and w. r. Grace 4 Co,
According to present intentions the
liquidation of the Marine Company will
be effected by retiring the s39 .06l,0W
bonds at 10. paying preferred stock
holders $3.50 per share. which would
meet the accumulated dividends on this
stock. and giving common Stockholders
$40 per share. To accomplish this the
consumma ton OF the sale of It's foreign
ships Is necessary. from which approX'
mately $125,0o0,0OO will be realized.
Two matters of Importance in con.
nection with the plan to turn over these
ships TO the British banking syndicate
which are believed near a solution, are
the payment of the money without ex'
change complications and the avoidans
Of an American tax. The former VIII ne
effected by the British syndicate making
payment in gold at Ottawa and thus eS
Gaping any difficulties OF foreign eH'
change rates, and the problem o. me
American tax will be met through iilu'..
dation. This would mean that individual
slOCKnOlutTS anu "'''' "
subject to taxation, hut il would not
affect the company directly.
Buying Shipping Stocks.
For some time past the financial DIS
uct has been keenly watching ne puF'
ing OF shipping securities n the open
market, and 1t was stated by promo
nent fnancier that in addition 70 ID.
t.. nj In, frF
Mercantile Marine the American Inter.
national Corporation recently acIl.F'a
one-half interest in the New loFH
Shipbuilding Company.
The American international Corpora.
ton. which was formed in the tai. az
1915 by the country's leading hansen.
and fnanc!ers to acquire properhe. 'ol
every kind and description AMI where
soever situated including the s'seNs'
bonds and other evidences OF irdee'e"-
ness Of any corporation, domestic ',
foreign" Is row engaged in important
work for the United States Em,rf'ay
Fleet Corporation. Its Officers ana ~.
rectors include many presidents ~ ANS
and representatives OF almost ever! III
portant American industry.
American International has q yai N,
OF s50.0O0.000, divided into SlN''""
preferred and s49,0 900 common no
International Mercantile Marine cap
talization Is over 500 100000, Of w01'H
s51,725,500 is preferred stock ana w.
S72,400 common stock The outSthnIhs
stock OF the United Fruit Company hs,
gregates s5O,316 500; Atlantic GnE ana
West Indies, s13.742.9O0 preferred agd
sl4.963.400 common. and the FACING
Mail, sl,700. 900 preferred and Si'O,9'v
common. There are 100000 shares %
the New York Shipbu!ding, Of no par
value.