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July, 1919 the feelings of the people whom they represent--if they did not do this they would soon cease to represent them in congress and the continuous and overwhelming opposition in Washington to ship subsidies un- doubtedly represents the views of the American people. No amount of urging or argument by shipowners will change the opinion of congress on this subject unless it first changes the opinions of the people. The necessity for ships has, how- ever, been so evident in the past five years that the people are awakened to the need for a merchant marine and the ready support and immense sums granted cheerfully by congress to the building of government ships is a sufficient indication of the feel- ings of the people on this subject-- in other words, they are in favor of a government owned merchant ma- rine. Whether they will continue in this frame of mind after the prob- lems of government ownership and operation have been worked out, can only be developed in time and by the success or failure: of such plans. It may be taken for granted that at this time no proposition leading to the giving up by the government to private ownership of the immense merchant fleet which it owns will be approved by the public. That this will work a hardship to the American shipowner cannot be denied, but if his contention that a government owned marine cannot be as cheaply or efficiently operated as can the privately owned ships, the hardships may not be as great as some of the advocates of that sys- tem would have us believe. We are not a seafaring nation and the conditions and motives have influenced England and _ Ger- many in the upbuilding of their ma- Tine do not apply to us. We are dependent upon the sea for pros- Perity but not for our daily bread-- our people are interested in the sea for protection from attack by other countries and as a highway for trade. We are apparently willing to advance trade by means of government owned ships and to pay a subsidy to those ships by carrying freight at less than cost when this is done for the benefit of the whole people, but we are not willing to do it when it is done in the interests of any class, even so power- ful and influential a class as the shipowners. The public points to the fact that the American marine has not been successful as measured by the upbuilding of the industry in the last 60 years under private owner- ship and management and that our marine has steadily decreased, ex- cept where it was protected from which. THE MARINE REVIEW competition by the coastwise laws or on the Great Lakes, and they are dis- posed to regard with considerable sus- picion the experts in the shipping in- dustry who are advocating the sale to private interests of the great fleet built at so great a sacrifice of money and _ materials. Inasmuch as_ the people pay the freight, they have the right to say to whom they shall pay it and in what manner it shall be paid. Trade demands regular sailings, carrying any sized packages, from a toothpick to a locomotive and pur- suing a definite course for some years and giving to. each shipper, great or small, equal service and at the same cost. Industry demands this and will not be satisfied with less. Must Establish Agencies If ships are to make these voyages (and the day of tramp steamers as an adjunct to trade is past) agencies must be established in foreign ports for handling these ships, for distri- buting the outward bound cargo and for gathering cargo for the home- ward voyage. The ship that only carries cargo one way will be as profitable as a railroad which only carries freight one way and_ ships without cargo are as valuable as a railroad wthout traffic. The build- ing up of such a system is one upon which the advocates of government owned and operated and _ privately owned and operated ships could agree --such a system, organized and con- trolled whether by the department of commerce or by the shipping board, with agencies in every principal port in the world could be and should be installed and managed at government expense. table institution, but a sufficient sum should be charged the ships and the patrons of the ships to make it self- supporting. The agencies which pro- duced more than enough for their support should contribute to the weaker ones which were necessary for commercial purposes--they should be open to all ships, whether of this or other countries, but their first duty should be to the American flag and the American ship. With- out such agencies no marine can, do 'its best work, and with such agencies the chances for a government owned and operated marine would be greatly enhanced. They should be _ respon- sible only to the government, for they should be the fingers with which trade for all is grasped and they should work in harmony with every American interest. (Signed) Frederick B. Lynch, President, Foreign Transport & Mercantile Corp., New York. It should not be a chari- 325 Book Review Ship Stability and Trim, by Percy A. Hillhouse; cloth; 297 pages, 5% x 8% inches; published by John Hogg and furnished by THe Marine REvIEW for $4.50. The author sets forth that it was his intention in writing this book to treat the problems of stability more. fully than is possible in a work covering the complete field of naval architecture. A large amount of com- plicated, mathematical work has gradually grown up in _ connection with the geometrical side of stability problems and many theorems have been established. In the present work, however, all academic investi- gations have been omitted and the author has confined his attention to what is necessary for the practical demonstration and understanding of the positions and movements of the center of buoyancy for all conditions of draft and inclination. It is pointed out that the cargo vessel of other days with poop bridge and forecastle has been superseded by vessels with higher superstructures which makes it imperative that the problems of stability of such vessels be thoroughly understood. The book carries a concise descrip-. tion of flotation and equilibrium in which the properties of water, the laws of flotation, displacement, etc., are fully described. Several ljne drawings are included throughout the book to make the subject as clear as possible. The stability of floating bodies and stability calculations are next treated and their practical ap- plication to ships described. The metacenter comes in for a lengthy description. The effect of wind pres- sure on a modern vessel is fully described and the center of gravity is thoroughly explained. Many ex- amples and tables are included in the book together with a list of the def- 'initions used. : The student of naval architecture as well as others engaged in shipbuild- -- ing and ship operation will find this book of value in seeking a solution to the many complex questions aris- ing in connection with stability prob-: lems. The author uses clear lan- guage that is readily understood by the layman. , The National Life Preserver Co., New York, is issuing a bulletin which con- tains portraits of Harry G. Hawker and | Lieut. Commander Mackenzie © Grieve and their statement regarding the use of the company's life preserver suits in the recent transatlantic flight. This statement covers both conditions of cold met at high altitudes and when in the ocean after dropping to the sea.