AMERICA AND HER NAVY.

Taranaki Daily News, 7 August 1920, Page 154

AMERICA AND HER NAVY.

New York, April 7,

The High Commissioner of the United States Shipping Board sailed to-day for Valparaiso on his way to Buenos Aires accompanied by a large and fmportant staff of shipping experts. I understand that he is entrusted with the task of establishing. the supremacy of U.S. shipping in the South American trade. The growth of American shipping interests in South America, despite many failures and disappointments, has been since the war nothing less' than phenomenal; and the Shipping Board is determined in future to spare no efforts to meet European competition, and to obtain, among other things, tlie trade that formerly belonged to Germany.

There are now established in the River Plate 27 American shipping companies operating 150 ships, whereas before the war this country did not own a sifigle ship in that region. By far the greater portion of this new mercantile fleet is practically owned by the U.S. Shipping Board, which has allocated them to different companies of whose shores it controls approximately 90 per cent. The High Commissioner is charged with the task of remedying all the deficiencies in the present American organisation of shipping, and of developing oil stations. The U.S. mercantile fleet in Soutli America consists almost wholly of oil burners, which are now regularly pl"ing between the Plate, New York, San Francisco, Seattle, and other ports. The captains of all these ships have been ordered to report to the High Commissioner immediately on docking their ships and to take orders for return from him,