THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE 



'"203 



BEFORE IT WAS POSSIBLE TO PROCEED WITH EXCAVATION WORK AT HOG ISLAND LAST 

 WINTER, IT WAS NECESSARY TO THAW TPIE GROUND WITH LIVE STEAM 



At any other time and in almost any other place it would have been logical to wait for 

 the weather to moderate, but with the Huns marshaling their forces preparatory to launch- 

 ing their great spring drive, all America was spurred to the limit of its capabilities in hurry- 

 ing the construction of a great cargo and transport fleet. 



responding multiplication in the demand 

 for tonnage, perhaps , we have reason to 

 feel that we are doing more than we an- 

 ticipated when the original war shipbuild- 

 ing program was laid down. 



But tomorrow we will do better. 



THE COST OP SHIPBUILDING ALTER THE 

 WAR 



Now that new, modern steel steamers 

 are being delivered to the Shipping 

 Board, it is possible to look ahead a year 

 and see increased efficiency in our ocean 

 supply service. We shall have big trans- 

 ports running at good speeds, with beef 

 ships, tank ships, and steel freighters. A 

 large proportion of these vessels will be 

 oil-burning, with turbines, comfortable 

 quarters for crews, and other improve- 

 ments. It will then be possible to stand- 

 ardize operation and increase turn-around 



at ports, serving the American soldier in 

 France with less tonnage. 



Cost of building ships in American 

 yards after the war should compare fa- 

 vorably with costs in other countries. Wc 

 shall have great yards for fabricated ships 

 and quantity production. These will put 

 the industry on a sound footing, an en- 

 tirely new basis, and we shall do on the 

 ocean what we are already doing on the 

 Great Lakes — build and operate ships 

 more economically than any other nation 

 in the world. Moreover, we will have 

 enough shipbuilding business so that all 

 our yards can specialize on one or two 

 classes of ships, as is done abroad. 



In the past our few merchant shipyards 

 built almost anything that was ordered, 

 from a tug to a floating dry-dock. That 

 was a fundamental handicap in cost, due 

 to our small volume of shipbuilding. 



