The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1919-08-06

marine Is the men who are in it, he said. We must have the best ob- tainable crews for our new merchant ships. The need Is pressing. Ameri- can vessels in American ports today are calling for American crews-for mates, engineers, seamen, hremen, cooks and stewards who are Ameri- can citizens.
 'Our presepxgreatest need is to get in touch with the American boys who should man these ships. The need is so urgent that I hope every news paper in the country will take notice of it; that every preacher will men, tion it from the pulpit; that every city and town, through its officials. it's Chamber of Commerce or other civic bodies will make a canvass of the young men in the community who might be available for training as merchant mariners, with a view of becoming officers or shipping agents or foreign trade represen tatives for American interests in the future.
 "The Shipping Board will give tts fullest cooperation to any community wishing to send its boys for the mer- chant marine. Applicants for train- ing will be directed to the nearest en- TOIIl0S agent, OI WHICH lIlS pOdI u lldS '3,7OO. Those accepted will proceed to a seaport. They will be placed on training ships on pay, put into uni form and taught the fundamentals Of their new trade before being sent to sea in merchant crews.''
 Henry Howard of Boston is still In
 charge of the recruiting service of the
 board and 1t was said today that re-
 nl,a l,Ix he cnnfinI1a1 1
 for an indefinite time
 An official of the Shipping Board
 said that the attitude of the Elmer
 gency Fleet Corporation with respect
 to the future cancellation of ship con-
 tracts had been misunderstood The
 policy had not been one of ruthless
 cancellation, he asserted.
 'In revising the construction pro-
 gramme to take care of 50 per cent of our foreign commerce, 0 figure recognized by shipping men as the proper proportion of trade which we should transport in our own ships, we are working on a plan to show the type, size and speed of ships required to meet the need of different trade routes," he said.
 During the first few months fol lowing the signing of the armistice | contracts were cancelled calling ap' | proximately for two million tons o st9el ships and about 1 1,500, 900 tons O. wood ships. The Emergency Flee Corporation cancelled these contract l because it was felt that we should no | continue building ships at high wal | costs under peace conditions witt money appropriated for war enlcr | gency purposes, especially where sucf | ships were not to be delivered untt | 1920. Many of the ships so can | celled were of 8, size and type no | commercially and economically ad vantageous in time of peace.'' The substitution of large and faste vessels will give the United States l better balanced. more efficient ant more useful fleet, in the opinion O | the experts. At the same time 1t wil enable the shipbuilders to becom | familiar with tho building of this typ | of vessel.
 The Shipping Boards plan in re | spect to South American trade Is vel | known. Instead of depending upo1 | foreign ships to serve the Unite' | States in the Latin American trad
 the future will see the rapid growtl | of strong North and South Ameri l can lines carrying American goods 1 and promoting better acquatntanc
 between American countries.