crease was 12,852 tons. In the case of Norway, on the other hand, the 1920 production was less by 18,723 tons than that for the previous year. As already mentioned, a considerable tonnage was built in the United Kingdom for Norwegian owners. The total figure for the Scandinavian countries included four vessels, of between 5000 tons and 5600 tons each, launched in Sweden, and three motor vessels of between 5900 tons and 7150 tons launched in Denmark. The total tonnage of vessels fitted with internal-combustion engines launched in Denmark was the largest for any foreign country, with the exception of the United States, and amounted to 24,352 tons in the aggregate.

At the end of the year there was building in France 397,000 tons, an increase from 293,000 tons on October 1, and in Holland a total of 450,000 tons, compared with 424,000 tons in the previous quarter. The gain of 130,000 tons by these two countries, however, was offset somewhat by declines elsewhere. Italy's share declined only 2000 tons from 365,000 to 363,000; but the aggregate building in the British Dominions was reduced from 213,000 to 186,000 tons and other nations also lost ground in the final quarter of 1920. UNITED STATES VESSELS BUILT AND DocuMENTED IN 1920. The Bureau of Navigation of the Department of Commerce reported that during the calendar year 1920, 1758 merchant vessels of 2,831,343 gross tons were built in American shipyards. American shipbuilders also built 25 vessels of 29,382 gross tons for foreign owners, making a total output of 1783 vessels of 2,860,725 gross tons for the 12 months. During the calendar year 1919 the corresponding output was 2338 vessels of 4,213,891 gross tons for American and 25 vessels of 44,250 gross tons for foreign owners, a total of 2363 vessels of 4,258,141 gross tons. Of the 1920 output, 617 vessels of 2,557, 032 gross tons were built of steel, a decrease of 299 vessels and 1,012,792 gross tons compared with 1919.

The following details of vessels built and officially numbered in the United States in 1920 were reported by the Bureau of Navigation, Department of Commerce:

dustries of iron and steel and their products was $3,223,144,000, of which shipbuilding was approximately 2.75 per cent. The estimated value of the annual output of the iron and steel industries in 1920 was $6,500,000,000, of which shipbuilding was approximately 15 per cent.

In 1914 shipbuilding, with a total value of output of $88,682,000, ranked 58th among the industries of the United States. The construction under way in 1920 placed shipbuilding in about 15th position, surpassing such manufacturing industries as leather, furniture, chemicals, paper and wood pulp, agricultural implements, sugar and silk.

In 1920 the shipbuilding industry was again being placed on a basis of private construction and operation after war conditions. In the spring of 1919 shipyards were again permitted to accept orders for private account, and by July 1, 1919, contracts had been let for over 100,000 gross tons of steel ships. By July 1, 1920, the tonnage under construction or contracted for for private account had increased to approximately 1,700,000 gross tons.

The steel merchant tonnage on Dec. 31, 1920, under construction for private account (approximately 1,500,000 gross tons) was over six times the average pre-war output of steel merchant vessels (235,000 gross tons annually), and was ap proximately three and one-half times the greatest annual output prior to the war (450,017 gross tons of steel ships in 1908).

On

Accordingly in 1920 there was a condition not before realized since the beginning of the war. On Sept. 1, 1920, there were under construction in the United States 2,463.314 gross tons of steel merchant vessels. Of these. 1,438,498 gross tons were for private account and 1.024 816 gross tons were for the United States Shipping Board. Sept. 15, 1920, there were under construction for private account steel vessels aggregating 1,449,859 gross tons. This was practically the same as the private account tonnage under construction on July 1, 1920, new orders having replaced the tonnage delivered. The figures for December 31st are given later in this article.

An examination of statistics on shipbuilding

Wood

ber

tons

Sailing

Steam

AMERICAN SHIPBUILDING. Considering American shipbuilding in more detail, it must be real ized that since 1914 it had advanced in rank from the 58th industry in the United States to 15th. In 1914 the total value of the output of the in

for the years 1900 to 1915 inclusive will show that the total tonnage of steel merchant vessels under construction at the beginning of each fiscal year was practically the same as that turned out during the latter year.

The tonnage of the American merchant marine more than doubled during the six years 1914-20, and the 1920 tonnage was over 16,000,000 gross tons, slightly less than one-third the total world tonnage. The tonnage under construction at the end of 1920 would bring this total up to approximately 19,000,000 gross tons by July 1, 1921.

Assuming the average life of a ship to be 20 years, there would be required annually for the upkeep only of the American merchant fleet 5 per cent of this tonnage, or approximately 950,000 gross tons. This amount is an understate

ment as much of the American merchant in 1920 was made up of wooden ships and others rapidly obsolescent, so that sanguine authorities looked for a future annual replacement requirement of some 1,500,000 tons for at least several years.

MOTOR SHIPS. Lloyd's Register reported that during 1920 there were launched in the world 190,000 gross tons of vessels fitted with internal combustion engines. At the end of the year there were about 170 vessels of this type with an aggregate gross tonnage of about 495,000 tons under construction in various parts of the world. Of those 170 motor ships building between 40 and 50 were on order in the United Kingdom, while the majority of the others were under construction in the Scandinavian countries and in Holland and Germany. It was anticipated that fully half of the 170 vessels would be put in commission during the year 1921, adding from 700,000 to 800,000 tons to the motor ship fleets of the world. During the year 1920 there were 24 ocean-going motorships put into commissionthe largest number ever completed in a previous 12-month period.

The largest motor ship completed in 1920 was the Zoppot, owned by a Danzig firm. She was an oil tank vessel carrying 15,000 tons, but the two 14,000-ton ships for the Glen Line, the Glenapp and the Glenagle, were perhaps more interesting ships and were equipped with machinery of much higher power. Four more vessels similar in every respect to the Glenagle were to be completed. during the course of the year 1921. Among the more important developments in motor shipping was the construction of passenger liners for various companies. Three of these were to be commissioned for the British India Steam Navigation Company, Ltd., before the end of 1921, the first being the Magrana. In addition there were to he three larger and faster vessels for an Italian firm and one or two more for Scandinavian

owners.

See INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINES.

TANKERS. In the construction of tankers of 1000 gross tons and over during 1920 the United States led all the nations. Out of a total of 640,000 gross tons launched from all countries nearly 90 per cent was in the United States. The division of the tanker tonnage was as follows for 1920, figures in gross tons:

United States United Kingdom Other countries

World total

September of which 545,000 were building in the United States, 232,000 in the United Kingdom, and 18,000 in other countries.

This development in 1920 was of special interest for bulk-oil carriers were in small demand in the spring of 1919, and the time charter rate fell to 20s. a deadweight ton a month for a year, or only half the rate for cargo tonnage free from government restrictions. In less than a year this rate had advanced to 60s., and in the early part of 1920 to 80s., a rise almost unprecedented in the history of shipping. Accordingly when the demand for tankers became generally known there was a rush to build oil carriers, and the books of American shipyards were crowded with new business. Only 74,000 gross tons of tankers were building in the United States for private account on Oct. 1, 1919; nine months later 815,000 tons were under construction. While oil rates were easier at the end of 1920, throughout the year the tanker situation loomed up bright amid the many uncertainties of shipping.

A typical instance of a motor ship tanker launched from the Tacoma plant of the Todd Shipyards Corporation was the 6500 deadweightton motorship Kennicott for the Alaska Steamship Company. The Kennicott went down the ways in 50 working days after laying of the keel.

She was 360 feet in length, and 9 feet 6 inches beam, equipped with two Diesel type engines, each developing 1200 indicated horse power. This tanker was built under the provisions of Section 23, of the Merchant Marine Act of 1920, which permits the reinvestment of taxes exempt in new construction as discussed under SHIPPING (q.V.).

AMERICAN SHIPBUILDING YARDS. The construction in 1920 was distributed between a number of yards. The Hog Island yard led in the production of tonnage, with the Newark Bay yard of the Submarine Boat Corporation second, just ahead of the Camden plant of the New York Shipbuilding Corporation, which took third rank. The Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation,__with its Fore River, Harlan, Moore, Sparrows Point, Potrero, and Alameda plants, led in production all other organizations with more than one yard. The six yards mentioned turned out 369,350 gross tons of merchant ships for government and private interests. At the five yards of the American Shipbuilding Company, which had contracts from the Emergency Fleet Corporation to build more than a hundred ships of the Great Lakes types, there were launched 255,900 gross tons, representing 63 steel ships.

Following is a list of the 10 leading plants in` the point of production:

At the end of 1920 the tankers under construction in the world aggregated 1,169,000 tons, of which 637,100 tons were building in American ship-yards, 422,500 in the United Kingdom, and 109,400 in other countries. This compared with a total of 795,000 tons building at the end of

Naturally a number of ships were completed during the year, but on Dec. 1, 1920, the Sparrows Point yard of the Bethlehem Shipbuilding

By the end of 1920 there was a total of 445 steel ships, aggregating 1,742,599 gross tons, under construction in American shipyards, for both private and government account, according to the bulletin of the American Bureau of Shipping. The Shipping Board's fleet under construction had dwindled to 65, while a grand total of 380 was on the ways for private interests.

The bulk of the shipbuilding being produced for private lines was on the Atlantic. In all 189 ships, of 772,929 gross tons, were being built in Atlantic shipyards; 43, of 302,645 tons, on the Pacific: 31, of 77,319 tons on the Gulf; six, of 11,916 tons on the Great Lakes, and 111, of 70,375, in the interior. The Shipping Board tonnage was distributed geographically as follows: Atlantic, 36, of 318,980 tons; Pacific, 19, of 127.006 tons; Gulf, nine, of 58,725 tons; Great Lakes, one ship of 2677 tons.

The range in gross tons showed that the greatest number of ships under way at the end of the year were river craft. The following table shows the size of the craft then building:

Grand Total

over

See SHIPPING, UNITED STATES. SHIPPING. In the aftermath of the World War shipping inevitably figured not only on account of the vast destruction by German submarines and extraordinary efforts at replacement and to provide new facilities for transport, but in the general attempts at restoring commercial activity on a peace basis in view of new and changing economic conditions. As will appear from the table on page 622 the world's steam tonnage in June, 1920, was some 20 per cent greater than on June 30, 1914, but at the later date the amount of available cargo was only about two-thirds what it was before the war. Operating costs had increased threefold ante-bellum days, ranging all the way from wages to fuel, while, as was inevitable, with a surplus of tonnage and no increase in commerce, rates had declined from previous high levels to a point even lower than in the spring and early summer of 1914. Much of this decline occurred in 1920, particularly in the rates on such cargoes as coal, grain, cotton, and other bulk shipments that ordinarily form nearly two-thirds of the ocean freights. At the beginning of the year the freight rate on coal from Hampton Roads to France or Rotterdam was quoted about $23 a ton, while before the end of 1920 it had reached the lowest level since 1914, $4.75 a ton. Grain from Buenos Aires to the United Kingdom was being shipped at the end of the year 1920 for 47s. 6d. a ton, as compared with 225s. in February and 30s. in 1913. Piece-cargo rates, which were controlled by agreements between the liner companies, also broke during 1920, but not so sharply.

On the other hand there were increases during the year in oil and passenger rates, and from a limited demand for oil carriers in 1919, there was in 1920 active seeking after tankers and high prices were paid for both charters and for freight. This led to new construction and orders on a greater scale than for other types of craft. SHIPBUILDING.) One reason for the increased passenger fares were the higher operating costs analogous in part to those of a hotel on land, but notwithstanding this there was in the first part of the year active passenger business. Steerage

(See

business increased during the year but fears were expressed that legislation to restrict immigration to the United States to be passed by Congress might interfere with this seriously.

The great revival in shipping represented heavy investments in marine transportation not only in the United States but throughout the world and the decline in ocean borne commerce due to world conditions naturally developed serious conditions. There were failures of companies that had been organized to purchase or build steamships at the high prices and by the end of 1920 there was little encouragement for an immediate improvement. The accompanying table, condensed from Lloyd's Register of Shipping, shows the gross tonnage of the world's steamers, according to nationality, in June, 1914, 1919, and 1920, the returns covering vessels of 100 gross tons or over.

1. The total American registered, enrolled, and licensed tonnage on June 30, 1920, was 16,324,024 gross tons, three times the tonnage in 1914 of Germany, whose former place as the second maritime power the United States assumed.

2. The year's increase in American shipping was 3,416,724 gross tons, an annual increase larger than the whole world's increase during any year before 1914.

3. The American ships built and documented during the year 1919-20 aggregated 3,880,639 gross tons, an output comparable only to the world's pre-war record launching of 3,332,882 gross tons in 1913 and the British record of 3.808,056 gross tons under construction on June 30, 1920. At the end of December, 1919, American shipyards had built ships (including a small tonnage for foreign owners) at the rate of 4,258,

1,683,000

9,773,000

713,000

Under the heading "Other countries" for 1920 are included about 1,000,000 gross tons of former German ships, the allotment of which among the victorious nations had not been made when the table was compiled.

The world's increase in shipping during the year 1919-20 had been 6,400,000 gross tons, or double the increase in any previous year, and shipbuilding was proceeding in 1920 at double the pre-war rate. The increase in shipping since the outbreak of the war in 1914 was 8,224,000 gross tons, while the increase during the six years from 1908 to 1914 was 8,167,000 gross tons. The seaborne cargoes of the world in 1920 as already stated undoubtedly were less than before the war because normal production had not been resumed in most countries, reducing generally the volume of export cargoes. Furthermore, every nation which took part in the war incurred heavy debts which involve high taxes, lessening further its ability to import anything but necessities. Nevertheless, there was tonnage to move all available cargoes but the loss of passenger ships had not been made good. While American steam tonnage has increased by 10,400,000 gross tons since 1914, there was nearly 2,000,000 gross tons less for the rest of the world.

UNITED STATES SHIPPING. According to the Annual Report of the Commissioner of Navigation the year 1919-20 was one of maximum records in most branches of American shipping and shipbuilding not likely to be equaled for years to come. As officially summarized the following significant statements are made:

50,919,000

57,314,000

141 gross tons per annum and at the end of March, 1920, American yards had built steel ships alone at the rate of 3,679,285 gross tons per annum. The peak of annual wooden-ship production, 1,021,020 gross tons, had been reached at the end of June, 1919, and declined to 297,864 gross tons during the fiscal year 1919-20.

4. American ships registered for foreign trade on June 30, 1920, aggregated 9,928,595 gross tons, nearly tenfold the tonnage so registered in 1914. 5. This registered tonnage during normal domestic conditions of trade, control, and production would suffice to carry about 60 per cent in value of the foreign trade of the United States and, in fact, during the years 1919-1920 carried 45 per cent in value of American exports and 39 per cent in value of imports, while in 1914 American ships carried only 10 per cent in value of exports and imports.

6. The increase during the year 1919-1920 in United States tonnage registered for foreign trade was 3,258,869 gross tons, or virtually 50 per cent, and was by itself more than the tonnage under any flag but the British (which amounted to 20,582,652 gross tons), slightly exceeding the total of 3,245,194 gross tons under the French flag, which ranked next to the Ameri

can.

7. The clearances of American ships in foreign trade aggregated almost 29,000,000 net tons, or close to 52 per cent of the total clearances and double the percentage of 1914.

8. For the first time in a third of a century one-half of the officers and crews of American