New-York tribune., 1921-11-15
Navy Scrappi1,g
Cost to u. S. Put
At Half Billion
Excess Over 100000, 600
in Hughes Proposal Due to
Loss Incurred by Giving
Up Contracts Under Way
No Immediate Holiday
Work, However, TO Proceed
Slowly, Pending Farley;
s Plants May Be Closed

WASHINGTON, Nov. IA (By The AS
! sociated Press ).--Actual cost to the
United States of the scrapping of the
present naval building program. naval
officials estimated to-day, would be
between s4o0,oo0,0oo and $500 1000 ooo
exclusive Of any salvage plan that
might reduce this total. In his state
ment to the Conference on Limitation
OF Armament Saturday, presenting the
American proposal. Secretary Hughes
said the work already done had cost
$SSo,ooo,oo0. but these figures do not
include costs incident to abandonment
OF the ships under construction.
Assistant Secretary Roosevelt said
to-day that the American program
would save the government about $780,
100000 in naval expenditures. The
figure is the difference between the
total cost of completion of the ships.
aoout $6OO,000,000, and what scrap-
ping them all would cost. Included in
the scrapping costs are allowances for
reimbursement of contractors for work
thsy have been compelled to do in their
yards in preparation for the craft to
be built
Won't Stop Pending Agreement
There is no intention on the part
or the government to stop work on the
new ships until an agreement actually
is reached by the conference and rati-
fed by the governments involved. That
was made plain to-day by Secretary
Denby: Construction on the great
majority Of the vessels is proceeding
very slowly, however, the division Of
available building funds averaging
about S2,oO0,0O0 year per capital ship
work has been brought to complete
standstill, pending developments in
Washington, are the two at New York
Navy Yard. Stoppsge there, it was
SAID does not involve probability Of
damage suits for breach of contract.
In any case. it was added, expendi-
lures now in progress on ships that
may within a few weeks, perhaps days,
be ordered scrapped are OF such a
nature that they could not be saved
in any case.
The bulk Of the 100000 year for
each ship is for materials ordered and
which would have to be paid for in any
case. only in one or two cases is there
building Of the ships.
Three Great Plants May Close
One phase of the program navy Off
GERS have been struck with is It's prob.
able effect on the three great ship
building plants doing most Of the new
ship construction for the government
Those plants, it was said to-day, were
engaged almost entirely on govern
ment work and on those ships which
would be scrapped under the plan. All
three, it was predicted, would in all
probability be forced to close down.
They are the plants Of the New York
Shipbuilding Company, the Fore River
Company and the Newport News Com
pany.
1t was very evident that naval off,
GERS quite generally expected Mr..
Hughes's program to be accepted with
only minor notifications. l., There was
some surprise indicated that the Brit
ish delegation had not announced ac-
ceptance Immediately when the plan
was presented, leaving to a later
time such adjustment Of details as
might seem desirable. The modifica-
tione which Mr.. Balfour, heading the
British group, will submit tomorrow,
it was said, apparently could have been
worked out afterward as we'll as before
a general agreement.
Limitation Of the worlds navies so
that they will be adapted for defensive
purposes only is the fundamental mo-
tive which inspired the proposals SUBJ
mitted to the armament conference by
Secretary Hughes, it was learned to-
night from authoritative sources.
In Far Eastern questions the United
States was said to face different stu
alton, for whereas the question of
naval limitation was held to be a pri-
mary one for America problems of the
Far East were regarded as not SO vital
as perhaps to some other countries.
For this reason, it was indicated that
possibly the American delegates would
not take SO definite an initiative on
this subject when its consideration
Il reached hu Tia eanfaranaa