BIG STEAMER WAR

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIV, Issue 107, 13 January 1912, Page 3

BIG STEAMER WAR

FOR AUSTRALIAN TRADE.

UNION AND OCEANIC COMPANIES PREPARE FOR LONG STRUGGLE.

An American paper states that the a; rangement made some time ago betweeu the Oceanic and Union steamship companies whereby the Oceanic Company was to handle the business of both concerns at San Francisco -and the Uiian Company the business in the Antipodes, has been terminated. With the abro gating of the agreement the Union Com pany has turned its agency in San Fran cisco over to Hind, Rolph and Co. Although the announcement that th« agency had been turned over to the well known shipping concern created littl comment, it now develops that this i , but the beginning of a steamship wa that promises to wage fiercely withii the near future, or as soon as the Ven tunra and Sonoma have been fully re built and made ready to enter the Sai Francisco-Honolulu-Australia service. A the latest it is expected that , the ship will be ready to go into commission t( begin the new schedule by March 1. The Pacific Coast and San Francisci in particular are deeply concerned in th< conditions that will exist after the sij steamers of the two concerns are mal-im regular trips between San Francisco an< Australasia. That the Oceanic Company will have a big fight on its hands is evi dent from the fact that the Union Com pany is about as powerful throughom the colonies as is the Southern Pacifli system on the Pacific Coast. With lti eighty steamers and its extensive rami ficationß, the British concern promises t< put up a fight that will result in th< extension of a service .both for freight and passengers that has never beei equalled between the ports affected. That the Oceanic Company has mad< careful preparation for the traffic wai soon to 'be started is apparent from th< fact that, before the Ventura, and Sonoma are placed in commission, 750,<XX dollars will have been expended to pul tjiem in shape to do justice to the own ers' expectations. They will be full] equal to the- Sierra, which is now running between San Francisco and Honoluli with the regularity of .a ferry service. According to the prevailing opinion there is every possibility .that the nex few years will see a complete change in the trade conditions between Americaand the Antipodes. . Several ■ years ago 1 the business with Australia amounted to the enormous total of nearly 30,000,000 dollars annually. This has now shrunk- i en until the annual business amounts ,to I only 3,500,000 dollars. The development of Australia, it is said, promises to amaze the world within the next decade. With the probability of trade reciprocity being entered into, between Australia and the United States, it is the opinion of marine men that' within the next half-score of years the • commerce will exceed all high-water-marks of the past. Although it is but a' few months since direct freight and passenger service to the colonies was renew ed, it is said that the six ships soon to be in commission will constitute but » fraction of the fleet to be operated wit! in five years.