Evening star., 1947-07-06


It ties up two-thirds of Americs
we are running a poor third in the
British, working hard to regain their
prewar mastery Of the trade seas.
are building 81 per cent Of the
worlds total and the Dutch are close
behind: we are accounting for only
5 per cent.
Moreover, unless strong pressure is
brought to bear on both sides to
settle, it promises to be long battle.
The union-the CIO Industrial
Union Of Marine and Shipbuilding
Workers-is angry at the refusal OF
most of the companies to make any
counteroffer of wage increases what
ever, despite the fact that some
of the same companies recently
signed new contracts with an AFL
union on the West Coast granting at
least II cents an hour increase to all
employees.
Three Big Companies
The union, however, Is tangling
with three Of the Nations biggest
shipbuilders - Bethlehem Steel,
United States Steel and the Todd
Shipbuilding Co. They are deter
mined that shipbuilding costs, al
ready 50 per cent higher here than
any other country in the world, shall
go no higher to hinder their compet-
tive position.
Whatever the outcome Of the
strike in terms of wages, the big
gest loser is liable to be the Mari
time Commissioner, in more gen.
eral terms, Americas foreign trade.
Before the war our merchant ma
rine was plainly facing a crisis.
Higher building and operating cbsts
even then had put us in poor COM
petitive position compared with
Great Britain, Norway Germany
and Japan. Private investment In
this country refused to take a great
interest in foreign trade despite a
Government subsidization authorized
by Congress in 1896. =
At the outbreak of the war we
seized the lead in building and ship
ping with our tremendous capacity
for production and supplying oul
Allies with war materials. The enc
of the war found us with a govern.
ment-owned cargo feet twice as bis
as the rest Of world shipping com
bined.
Needs Passenger Ships
1t was not, however In the main
peacetime merchant fleet. 1t did moi
contain the flrst-class passenger
ships We need to compete in thu
highly competitive world passenger
market. While we MANUFACTURED
standard -sized Liberty ships at q
great rate during the war. We lost
hundreds OF smaller ships we now
need desperately for our own domes-
tic trade and which formed more
than half of our total tonnage be-
fore the war.
Since the end of the war the
Maritime Commission has managed
to sell or lease 400 ships Of more
than 500 in the wartime feet
Some of the remainder will 60 into
the reserve feet. The great majority
of the remaining Liberty ships will
have to be written of as having
served their purpose.
The strike will hurt especially in
our construction OF new passenger
ships. Vice Admiral William w
Smith, chairman OF the Maritime
Commission, speaking to the ship
ping executives of the West Coast
a month ago, said:
THE principal need of the Ameri-
can merchant marine today Is pas
senger ships. In September, 1889,
there were 127 passenger vessels
operating under the American flag.
During the war So Of these were
sunk, and only Is came out of the
war suitable for reconversion for
permanent passenger use. We had
20 built during the war ready for
use, so today we stand 81 ships
short OF our prewar fleet"
One First.Class Liner
In the fast first-class passenger
trade of the world we have a single
entry, the S. S. America. operating
under the United States Lines.
Already the strike has stopped
construction on three fast new COM
bination passenger cargo vessels
being built by the Maritime Com
mission in New York for the South
American trade under the Moore
Mccormack Lines. All three-the
S. S. Brazil. the S. s. Uruguay and
the S. s. Argentina. were scheduled
for delivery within the next As days
At Bethlehems Sparrows Point
shipyards in Baltimore work stopped
Ion five more new passenger-c cargo
y -