Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-09-08
Germany Pushes Ahead

crossed the ocean more than seven
hours faster than any other ship had
ever made the trip. Her sister ship.
the Europa, was scheduled to be
launched several months before the
Bremen. but first was held back by
labor strikes and then partially de-
Stroyed by fire. New York will prob
ably see her in less than a year.
This is the first instance wherein
Germany's competition on its grand
scale has been felt and appreciated by
her competitors. The whole maritime
world has been thrown into q mild
state of panic. The White Star Line
has suddenly decided to scrap its giant
l,000-foot Oceanic, already we'll under
construction, and build a larger and
faster ship. The Cunard Line has
planned and placed the orders for two
70,000-ton liners. An italian line prom
iseS immediate work on a ship to be
more than 1000 feet In length. And
the new American owners of the Levia-
than-still the largest ship on the seas
issue a counter challenge that they
intend to build the largest ship afloat,
regardless of all others
1t is worthy of note that all these
ships are f1oated on paper, except Ger
manyS Bremen and Europa. Germany
in this has stolen the march on them
ALL
But the launching. the sailing and the
record-holding of the Bremen and the
Europa are again but manifestation OF
the more significant facts. Any coun-
try can build the biggest and fastest
ship" but how many countries would,
like Germany, start with a couple of
hundred thousand tons of obsolete ship
ping junk-which is what the allies left
to her in 19l9-and In less than 10
years time, amid both revolution and
bankruptcy add more than 1000 900
tons? Today Germany's tonnage is less
than a million tons under the peak of
1914!
The ship-building record and plans
Of the North German Lloyd Co. so
closely parallel that of Germany itself
that its actual figures are worthy Of
study.
At the outbreak of the war the North
German Lloyd possessed a magnificent
feet of 494 vessels. with gross tonnage
Of 982.952, including ships under con-
struction OF the ships that remained
uneonfscated at the end of the war the
Versailles treaty allowed the company
to keep 57671 tons. These were small
craft, vessels such as tugs, launches and
lighters. Not a single passenger or
freight steamer remained to the Lloyd
VI ITO OAASC PAOON ASSO' 40 AoA SCoO NCooOi
was a seaside resort steamer by the
name of Gruss Got-God's Blessing, it
might be interpreted-its gross tonnage
7S1. In other words, the company stood
practically where it had been at the end
of the year of its birth, in 1857.
BY the end of 1925 the tonnage of the
Lloyd company had been rebuilt so that
IL numbered 613,056 tons, Of which $751;
900 tons were sea-going vessels. Today
the North German Lloyd Company has
only about 100000 tons less tonnage
than 1t had at the outbreak of the war!
In looking forward to what Germany
is doing and will do on the sea, it is alb
solutely necessary to look backward in
retrospect. If Germany was able to &C
complish so much during the last 10
years, five of which were almost fallow
because of acute political and financial
distress, what is she capable OF doing
during the next 10 years?
The only adequate answer is that to-
day, a mere five years after Germany's
total bankruptcy, the republic is pro-
ducing in all the most important
branches of industry as much as the
empire did In its best years, despite the
fact that her area has been diminished,
while several of the chief competitors
are little worse off than they were be-
fore the war.
Watch the Germans! is not bad
idea, only competitors should keep at
work while they do so.