SHIPYARDS VERSUS U-BOATS

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 268, 1 August 1918, Page 5

SHIPYARDS VERSUS U-BOATS

i RACE IN THE ALLIES' FAVOUR j FINAL RESULT CLEAR j Jles. July 31, 7.15 p.m.) , ; London, July 30 i Sir Brio Gedrles, introducing the' Shipyards Vote, said that a year ago, owing ] to the ruthless and unrestricted tub- I marine attacks by the Germans, the Al- ; lies and neutrals wero forced to contemplate a loss of 0.W.000 tons per month. ;. This had been converted last quarter into a gain of 100,000 tons per month. Again, wo had not been destroying submarine as fast : s the enemy was building them Our shipyards had lacked I men and material. Our. ships had been sent to tho bottom at a rate which ; would soon have brought us to'the point of inability to continue the war. Wo ; had therefore been compelled to embark . on an increased programme of building' for anti-submarine craft and merchant ships. Ono bundled and fifty thousand ; moa were now employed in the construe- . tion of- war vessels, while- 120,000 wero building merchant ships. Our -success j against the submarines foretold iho final result . . ... ': Britain, added the First Lord, had . borne tho principal burden of fighting the submarines, but the American programme was now beginning to arrive, and when the flow of American destroy- ; era and anti-submarine craft began it would become n formidable torrent, enabling Britain to devote greater efforts ; to the replacement of merchant ships. J Existing measures had reduced the menace, but considerable additions were icquired before they could reach theneces- i sary margin of safety. The national j shipyards ultimately .would be able to • build a ten ,thousand-tonner in five months, aegregating ono hundred vessels i yearly. The British shipping situation would he unsatisfactory until the. build- ] ing programme had wm.;s°nsated mucii more for tho losses.- We had lost 1,300.0011' tons during tho first six months of 1918, and had built 760,000 tons..- .This was ~ i somewhat depressing'after the earlier an- ; nounc.emcjst K>it \]g submarine menace ; was well .in hand." lie hoped that the. new measures would largely decrcaso this , margin of loss.— Cable Assn. ; AMERICA'S GREAT RACE. ; (Rec. July 31, "7 p.m.) Washington, July 29. ' Eight steel ships, of a total dead- .'. weighi tonnage of 35,890, were completed last week. Tho'launchings- (as distinct . from completed ships) include ten .B.tccl ships'aggregating'B3,2so tons, and, five j wojden ships totalling 19,200 tbns'.-Aus,- , N.Z. Cable Assn. ' • <