Evening star., 1940-12-08
Merchant Marine, Spurred On
By War, Moves to Dominance
Z. S. Maritime Commission Is Building Ships for
Peace Conflict and Has Mapped
Extensive Trade Routes
By liz H0rIrr
BY Felix NJ oriey.

! subsidies based on careful computation
of the difference between foreign and
domestic competitive costs.
The outstanding feature of the law,
however, was the establishment of the
Maritime Commission as the permanent,
non-political planning and policy
making body entrusted with the long
range development of new American
merchant marine.
AS the law itself states the underlying
/ purpose is to build in this country mer-
chant shipping sufficient to carry the
domestic water-borne commerce and a
substantial portion of the water-borne
export and import foreign commerce of
the United States and to be, in addi-
ton, capable of serving as a naval and
military auxiliary in time of war or
national emergency"
Two Navy Men on Board.
With two former naval officers of
wide experience tAdmirals Land and
Wiley) in its membership of five. and
under the aggressive chairmanship of
Joseph P Kennedy later succeeded in
this post by Admiral Land, the Maritime
Commission got under way early in 1887.
Among its important initial duties were
the planning Of the construction pro-
gram, the development of training
facilities for the seagoing personnel, the
mapping of efficient trade routes and the
disposition of antiquated American
owned shipping, Solution of this last
problem has, of course. been greatly
facilitated by the wartime demand,
particularly from Great Britain. Only 48
of these old Shipping Board vessels are
still tied up and Is of these will go on
sale December 70. Also available in
American ports, if a state of emergency
is declared, are a number of ships be-
longing to Denmark and other invaded
countries
In order to secure the advantages of
standardized production, so far as is
compatible with first-claSS naval archi-
lecture, the Maritime Commission has in
general restricted construction under its
auspices to four types of ships.
There is a class of high-Speed tankers,
some of them now making 1S knots in
regular operation. which were designed
with particular consideration for Navy
requirements. And there are three types
OF fast cargo vessels, known respectively
as C-l, CO and C-3 A variant of the
C-3 design is a comfortable passenger
ship. which is expected to compete ef-
tectlvely with European and japanese
liners Of moderate size after the war.
In addition, there is the big liner
America, the first ship laid down under
the auspices of the Maritime Commission
and the largest merchant vessel ever
constructed in the United States This
triumph of American naval architecture
made its trial run from Newport News
to New York last July and is now
operating on Caribbean cruises Two
other large passenger liners. specially
designed to be convertible into aircraft
carriers, are planned.
Much Study on Route Planning.
The care which has gone into the de-
sign of these ships is indicated by the
fact that the CO type as compared with
the Hog Island frelghter of World War
days, has so per cent more speed on less
than so per cent of fuel consumption.
But just as important as efficient design
is efficient routing to insure that the new
American shipping lines will prove COM
mercially profitable.
Much care and study have gone into
the planning of these routes, task rem
dered more difficult by the closing of
important trade arteries to American
shipping through the operation of the
neutrality law. This, however, has not
been an unmiXed evil, as it has resulted
in an enormous extension of American
shipping services to Latin America,
Australasia, Asia and Africa.
In the past few months IS new Ameri-
can ships have been placed on inter-
American trade routes alone 1t now
seems probable that all the anticipated
increase in freight and passenger traffic
between North and South America can
be efficiently and eXpeditiously handled
by our expanding merchant marine.
The most serious difficulty which has
confronted the Maritime Commission
remains for consideration. 1t is no secret
fcoo NIEDrIJANT NADINE pape C-3)