New-York tribune., 1918-03-03

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fabricated ships-are the superadvas.
J ure of the world war. Roughly sps,l
! ing, there never yet have been any fahr;n...s
ships. With sublime courage, America ba..ns
the fabricated shp---an untried idea-.to ~.
backs it with five or six hundred million A.,
LAYS and reputation.
The government puts in the money
The American International puts j, "a.
reputation for business and enginee rnp anil
ity.
This is no game for pkers
II the big scheme fails. exit Mr.. Hurley ans
the entire Shipping Board internation,l
obloquy for the international Corporation
victory delayed for The Allies
However, the pikers have butted into IL.
big game.
Here is, perhaps, the greatest combinatoo
Of business and engineering ability and con.
troll OF the :nstrumcntalities Of large scala
ship production that has ever been broupht
together" the American International saa
in effect, to the Emergency Fleet Corporation
"You provide the money and we will provida
the executive and the machine, human and
material. AS for compensation, all va
want is what is fair
That's playing the game, isn't it?
The compensation was fixed at about $1,000.
900 fer the builders fee, let us call it, on !.
| $500 100000 job.
From north and south and east and wen
and from overseas the International Stone
Webster and allied corporations called thei,
men Of finance. their men Of engineering
skill, their cunning shipbuilders From biz
Scb and little came the builders in iron
and steel the workers in concrete, the rail.
h,,;1< }I,o ,,,o
builders, the erectors Of ediflces the diggets
Of sewers, the layers of pipe, the managers Of
mon and score of other kinds of doers Of
things. The captains came, and with them
came their men-industrial soldiers Of
J fortune who had conquered in desert and
mountain, at home and abroad-came bring.
ing with them construction machinery and
apparatus by tho trainload, came with pa.
trotic enthusiasm and the inspiration Of
mighty task.
They went to work.
Then arose somebody-was it Senator
Hiram Johnson ?-and asked, "What do they
do for that six millions? ?"
eyes, what DO they do?" echoed lot Of
people
That is the crux Of the whole Hog Island
drive.
Some might call this reneging.
The government wanted ships, ships ships.
The nation shouted for slMps and damned
the cost Now a backiirc of crimination is
started against the men who are building
the ships in accordance with an agreement
that the Shipping Board deiberated over for
three long, vital months.
What is the explanation? It's long story,
and it drags its trail through smallness and
sorddness. Part of the hue and cry is due
to honest ignorance, part is due to rivalry
II hI(rh ti,1o ri Il
berng jealousy of Philadelphia for New
York. part is due to mere pettiness, part is
due to opposition to the fabrcating idea by
the old-llne shipbuilders, part is due to the
mistakes and inevitable waste and the enor-
nous eXpense-exceedng all estmates-in.
volved in driving ahead regardless of time
or obstacles.
Out of all these sources have arisen
charges of bad judgment in choosing the site,
prohgatc waste OF public money, profitecring,
petty graft, serious engineering errors, in
efficiency of labor direction, mismanagemont,
unnecessary delays and even ominous hints
OF the debacc of the whole fabrication en-
terpYisc
Such a clamor has arisen and the waters
have been so darkened that even Mr.. Hurley
has become a little hysterical-and fearful
of the outcome of the Hog Island venture.
Instead Of going to the front and defending
HIS own ueal Delore the senate committee he
has passed the buck to the international
Corporation the hand and to Pres;-
dent Wilson on the other. lie has invited
the corporation to defend him, as it were,
by vindicating the bargain and itself, and he
has asked the President 20 relieve him Of
probing the alleged scandal and judging 1t
himself by means of calling in the Depart
ment of Justice
The best way to deal with the Hog Island
question is to tell the scorv of what has
hee1 done and what is being /, ne there. Ii
the answer means shirs ard means them
coon and vo4u.r reusly it Will be satisfac
tory to the country even if they do cost
three or four dollars Il ton more or less,
because the pennies have not been counted in
the haste to drive rivcts
The rikers are trying to get into this big
game bat Am'1 CT is no pilSer
(7o be continued