Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1918-04-08
u. s. Shipping Board and
Emergency Fleet Cor
porahon.

AT the outset of the war the Ma
ton. in addition to expanding the
Army to proportions adequate to
wage the struggles was confronted
with the problem Of providing. facil-
tiles to transport its expedit1onary
forces and 1.-The supplies necessary to
subsist them in, foreign FIELDS.
p One step designed to effect this
purpose had already been taken: two
~claration of war. Through the ship
ping act. approved September Z, 1916,
Congress created q United States
Shipping Board to encourage and de-
velop a naval. auxiliary, a naval re-
serve, and merchant marine; en-
powered that board to form a cor
poration to purchase, construct. and
operate merchant vessels, which it
exercised through the incorporation
OF n Emergency Fleet Corporation;
and authorized a %$50,000,000 fund for
the operation Of the corporation. By
joint resolution of the Senate and
House of Representatives, approved
May ~, 1917, the President was auth
orized to take w the German YES
sells within the jurisdiction of the
United States. its Territories, and in
sular possessions And under the
emergency shipping fund provision
OF the urgent deficiency %appropria-
ton act, approved June 80, 1917, the
President was authorized to requisi-
ton any vessel under construction or
contracted for in shipyards within
the United States. .4.4.
Seize German Vessels.
BY Executive orders dated June 80
and July s, 1917, the President or
dered the Shipping Board to seize the
German vessels, in United States
waters. and by another, of July II,
1917, delegated to the board the
power Of requisition which Congress
had vested in him.
To perform the tasks assigned to
the Shipping Board and its operating
company, the Emergency Fleet Cor
poration, large exenditures were nee
essary. Congress has met the de-
mands by :supplementing the original
appropriation of @5o,ooo,ooo with
succeeding authorizations which on
March 1 last, aggregated ~$2,034,000,-
900, to be expended for construction.
requisitioning, and purchasing OF
ships; the construction Of yards. and
the erection of housing facilities. OF
the sum authorized, = $1,135, 000, 600
had been appropriated on aMrch /.
The expenditures of the Emergency
Fleet, Corporation up to. hat date
|totaled $353,247,955.37, distributed as
follows: Wood ships. $74.5so. 1922:
requisitioned, $1ss, s71,ss0.55; plants
$30,7t7.402.71.
Under its power Of seizure the Ship
ping Board has taken, over IL Ger
man and Austrian ships of $4,000
dead-weight tonnage, all Of which
have been repaired and are now in
operation.
Building Program.
The building program Of the Emer-
gency Fleet Corporation is divided
into steel and wood construction.
the Shipping Board on March /, last
had taken over 425 steel vessels of
2,9sS,10S lightweight tons, and had
let contracts for 72O steel vessels of
5,16e,400 lightweight tons, making a
total Of 1,145 steel ships with an ag-
gregate dead-weight tonnage Of g.
164,5O8 tons OF the requisitioned
vessels, ~ of 485,576 deadweight
tons, had been completed and put in
to operation; IS, Of 1920 dead
weight tons, had been reconveyed to
ton: while So Of the 33s still under
construction had been launched but
not completed. ~
OF the contract vessels. 2, Of II, 500
dead-weight tons. had been complet-
ed on March l.. Three others. of 2s,-
400. tons, have been launched.
The division Of Wood Ship Com
struction on March l had let con-
tracts for 40 wooden vessels, aggre-
eating approximately 1,715.0o0 dead
weight tons. None of this number
has yet been completed. but 8 have
been completed. but II had been
launched on March 80, making q total
Of 27O.
/. The building program of the Emer-
'gency Fleet Corporation was being
carried on, March s, in ISL plants.
~. -" a' it -