The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-01-05
SHIPS MORE NEEDED NOW FOR MEN THAN FOR RAW MATERIALS
Hurley Points Out That France and England Require Months for
 Rehabilitation

London, December 5.--(Correspondenc of the Associated Press.)-There will be no shortage of cargo tonnage for sup plying world needs during the first half Of 1919 in the opinion of Edward N. Hur- ley, chairman of the United States ship ping board. It is passenger space for transporting troops home that is oc- cupying attention of the allied shipping controllers. No nation can have as much of that as it wants now.
 After conferring with industrial and shipping heads in England and France and viewing a large part of the battle areas of France and Belgium, MT. Hurley stated that it would take at least six months, possibly more, for France and England to rehabilitate their industries { to the point where large amounts of raw material would be needed
 It is pointed out that it would be use less to send industrial machinery and raw materials to France until her de- stroyed factory buildings are made ready to receive them.
 Almost the entire British industrial sys- tenn now is a huge munitions production machine virtually idle. Until it is trans formed to it's prewar state raw materials would be a burden. It will be necessary to import some machinery for the trans formation but not enough seriously to tax cargo space for the next seven months, MT. tturley DeueV6S.
 The 32 German passenger vessels in German ports have been the center of most of the allied shipping discussions or. this side for weeks. Americans want all of them they can get to send home roughly 100000 men as soon as possi- ble. England must send home to Can ada about 30O0O0, to Australia about 200, 900, to New Zealand 750O0 or more and bring to England thousands from Meso- n19cAC h. viously the American problem is the greatest and it is undersood that in pressing for ships, Americans generally have insisted that the United States, with less than two years of war. is in better position to aSsimilate it's re- turning troops than is England, whose industrial conditions have been more disrupted.
 With the rapid increase in American tonnage it is expected that more than 40 per cent of the American forces will go home in American ships. It is the desire of American army officers and shipping interests that as many as pos sib1e of the balance be carried home in German passenger vessels, thus releas- ing large number of British bottoms
 If the demands of Americans heart here, that the troops be sent home as rapidly as they were brought over be- comes insistent it will take more ships to send them back than to bring then over. They were brought over under tho streess of necessity and in some in stances ships were loaded to the exten of discomfort. Loss of tonnage caused by lighter loading, however will par tially be made up by greater speed. Fas vessels will not be compelled to con form to convoy speed and the elimina tion of zig-zagging will save much time
 While great many men are being sen home now and the number will con stantly increase it is not believed tn real homeward movement will be inau gurated before February 1. Whether thel ,. it will be on the suggested basis of 300, 5000 a month depends almost entirely upon decisions of the allied shipping conferences which began soon after tn, armstice was signed.