The Big Stone Gap post. [volume] (Big Stone Gap, Wise County, Va.) 1892-1928, 1922-07-26


the winning of the war. Had we had
in prc-war days the vision of what
such n fleet would have meant to us
in war we never would have had to
make this great sacrifice of treasure
and time, for we would in large part
have possessed the ships ready for
peace or war time needs.
Disregardcd' Peace Time Value
But neither the sacrifice of money
nor the time of men could have re-
suited in the creation of so vast
| fleet in so short a time had we not
been willing to utterly disregard one
prime factor in the manufacture of
the ships we created.
BY this mean that our whole eff
fort was directcd=and for war pur-
poses. properly-to the creation Of
the maximum tonnage in the shortest
time-anything that could carry men
and goods, regardless of cost of con
struction and operation. This. while
exactly right FOR wars pressing ne
ccSsities. left us at the conclusion of
our building program with Il vast ton
mage untitled in large measure for
peace time needs; because for peace
needs tonnage must be measured By
two tactors-economy OF operation
and fitness for varying trades and
purposes.
Fleet Sadly Balanced
Our war built fleet could obviously
take neither factor into considera-
ton; in fact. to sc, the maximum
tonnage we created the fabricated
ship, which meant practically all ships
of modern type. This. while re-
sulting in the production of ships as
if by magic, had the grave disadvan-
taGe Of creating the most sadly bal
anccd merchant fleet the world ever
knew.
That the reader may better under
stand balance" let me likcn ships
to railroad equipment, with which all
are familiar a railroad, to operate
successfully, must have Hat cars, must
have inclosed freight cars to take reg
ulnr mixed freight. and larger cars
to carry automobiles and the like. 1t
mus; have special cars TO carry coal,
and still other cars fitted for express
purposes. II must have refrigerator
ears capable Of taking care of varying
types of commodities. II must have,
for passenger traffic, day coaches and
parlor cars, Pullman slecpers and din
ing cars. passenger equipment fitted
for the lower priced tourist trade
and passenger equipment OF higher
type for tine Twentieth Century ex-
press. Without all these types Of cars
in proper proportion no railroad could
be properly managed.
Equipment Must Be Complete
The same sense Of balance and
equipment must obviously exist in a
merchant feet. To compare the ships
which the government owns to rail
road equipment, we might say that
the 1880 steel ships under the ship
ping board consist largely to TINT type
comparable 10 the regulation freight
car, with practically none of the espe-
cial equipment needed, such rs rail.
roads have for furniture carriage, au-
tomobile carriage, express service.
and refrigerator service.
Again, to liken our ships to freight
cars. too many are of wrong sizes for
practical technical operation. We are
still sadly deficient in passenger
ships. which we can liken to Pullman
cars, parlor cars, and day coaches.
These passenger ships. as will later
develop. are the very foundation of
a merchant marine for war and peace
time needs.
1t was because we were willing to