St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1919-09-27
AS President of Company,
Mr.. Jahncke Thanks the
Men for Efficiency.
MADE BEST WOODEN
SHIPS TURNED OUT
Cannot Compete In Private
Contracts Under Pres
ent High Wage.

/ Inc >. 5. IcQ6IunCCa was lhuuCUeu
Saturday, Sept. 20, at 1905 p. m, in
the presence Of a large crowd OF
local people and good many visit
ors from New Orleans. This hull is
the fifth of the ships contracted for
by the U. S. Shipping Board with the
Jahncke Shipbullding Co.
The s. S. Pontchartrain left the
shipyard at $40 a. M, Sunday, Sept.
81, with Mr.. E. V. Heughan in COM
mand until she Is accepted by and
turned over to the Shipping Board.
As to the future of the yard, the
following bulletin, which is posted in
the Jahncke Shipyard at Madison
Vile, will convey an idea OF the
yards future prospects:
To the Employees Of the Jahncke
shipbuilding Co., Madisonville.
With the signing of the armistice
on the I1th day of November, 1918,
our government, acting in the inter-
est of the general public welfare, i'm
mediately ordered a definite policy
of curtailing all war expenditures.
In accordance with this definite
policy, the United States Shipping
Board, Emergency Fleet Corporation,
suspended work on practically all un-
completed wooden vessels which
were being constructed in the United
States for war emergency purposes.
The Board of Trustees of the U. S.
Shipping Board, under this retrench-
ment, has ordered the Emergency
Fleet Corporation to cancel seven of
the Jahncke wooden vessels.
With the completion of the S. S.
Pontchartrain, and the launching Of
the S. S. Tchefuncta, We will there
fore have completed our war &C
tivities.
/ wish to take this occasion, as
President of this company, and as
your friend, to thank each and every
man employed by us during the past
two years for his loyal support to the
United States Government and active
cooperation with US in building the
emergency merchant ships so urgent
ly needed by our country during the
war.
The good, conscientious work
which you men did during the war
period In now showing its results.
The ships built by the Jahncke Ship
building Corporation at Madisonville
have ell proven to be sea-worthy
crafts.
Each and every vessel we built
has received from the United States
Shipping Board, Emergency Fleet
Corporation, and the American Bu-
reau Of Shipping, the highest quail
fication permissible under the rules
OF the Classification Societies OF New
York.
The credit for building good ships
belongs entirely to you men, and 1t
must be indeed great satisfaction to
you to know that the ships which you
built have been classed as the best
vessels in the United States.
And now that the wooden ships
have bsen recognized throughout the
United States as having filled the
emergency situation, and since they
cannot possibly, in the future, COM
pete with steel ships for trans-At-
lantic service, for this reason, to-
ge.her with the unsettled industrial
and labor conditions now prevailing
throughout Iu0 COuutiyp WO "lAA NV
be able to continue active operation
at our shipbuilding plant here.
1t must be apparent to all OF you
men that the scale Of wages which
have been paid by the U. s. Shipping
Board, Emergency Fleet Corporation,
on these emergency ships, will not
enable US to secure future contracts
whom We have to meet commercial
competition Of foreign countries.
| Therefore, until a definite and fixed
basis is arrived at, which will take
care of the new Industrial conditions,
and also obtain for the men a fair
compensa ton for their work, we can
not say, at this time, when We will
be able to reopen this yard.
For reasons as above stated, this
shipbuilding plant will be closed on
| September 80, 1919.
Very respectfully,
ERNEST LEE JAHNCKE.