HOG ISLAND, THE GREATEST SHIPYARD IN THE WORLD. 245 



None of those "old-timers" had ever been able to get an order to build a large num- 

 ber of ships all of one design, and the scheme had never been fully tried out and 

 was therefore something of an experiment. 



The officers of the American International Corporation, how^ever, due to their 

 experience in the operation of the New York Shipbuilding Corporation at Camden, 

 N. J., where the parts of the ships were "fabricated" in their own yard, believed 

 that it could be done and offered to construct a new shipyard in which 50 ships 

 could be built at one time and where a proportionate number could be outfitted at 

 the same time. To build a shipyard with 50 ways was an audacious undertaking, 

 for it was nearly ten times as big as the ordinary shipyard in this country and 

 nearly one-quarter as large as all of the shipyards in Great Britain combined, the 

 reputed capacity of that historic shipbuilding country being only 209 ways. 



It was believed that the American International Corporation was better able to 

 undertake this colossal job than any other organization in the country, for the men 

 at the head of it were courageous, were familiar with big affairs, and were willing 

 to stake their established reputations that it could be done. In the first place, the 

 American International Corporation could of itself control sufficient capital to put 

 through almost any enterprise, regardless of its size. It had a capitalization of 

 $50,000,000 and, besides this, a strong financial backing. Secondly, it could secure 

 the services of the engineering and construction organization of Stone & Webster, 

 inasmuch as Mr. Charles A. Stone, president of the American International Corpor- 

 ation, was the senior partner of the firm of Stone & Webster. This organization had 

 been for many years a leader in executing large engineering and construction un- 

 dertakings. Thirdly, it could also supply the shipbuilding talent of the New York 

 Shipbuilding Corporation, for the controlling interest in this company had been 

 bought by the American International Corporation, and it was well recognized that 

 it had one of the best developed shipbuilding plants in the country. 



The American International Corporation offered to build the shipyard at cost. 

 Its offer was accepted, and it has done better than this : it has not only built a plant 

 costing over $50,000,000 for which it has received no fee whatsoever, but it has put 

 up $1,700,000 of its own money to purchase the land and has paid out of its own 

 pocket all of its overhead expenses. 



The scheme to build a shipyard five or six times as large as the largest in the 

 country and to assemble or manufacture ships as automobiles are manufactured was 

 a bold one. There were no precedents to follow, much pioneering work had to be 

 done, and many engineering guesses had to be made. There was no time to make 

 complete plans in advance, but the work had to be started at once, and the develop- 

 ment of the plans had to be made as the construction proceeded. "Speed" was the 

 essence of the contract and has been the guiding motive from start to finish. The 

 importance of getting the yard finished at the earliest possible moment is perhaps 

 best realized when one considers that the commercial rental value of the 180 ships 

 under contract, at rates fixed by the Chartering Committee of the United States 



