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262 supplies to France via private channels was lessened and the New York cor- poration set about immediately to do a more general shipping _ busi- ness. Refrigerator ships were ac- quired and European supplies con- tinued to flow out. The France & Canada line entered into a general shipping business. It entered the Bos- ton market and purchased sailing ves- sels. It had several built. The Wyomine, one of the largest and fast- est sailing ships afloat, is its property. The 1ecords show that the France & Canada Oil Transport Co., Inc., owns -one vessel, the DurHAm, of 1433 gross tons. The France & Canada Steamship MARINE REVIEW supplies were transported epctoss the Atlantic. The company's ships were al- so engaged in carrying general mer- chandise and bulk cargoes to and from South American ports. At one. time, the company was operating as many = 7) vessels. It established offices in Boston, Philadelphia, Baltimore and Norfolk. Active in Oil Trade Of the New York company, Francis R. Mayer is president and Carlos Mayer is vice president and European manager. S. H. McIntosh, who was _ associated with them in the Canadian company and in the firm of Mayer & Lage, Inc., CRAW BAL BERS AMERICAN STEAMER PRINCESS MATOIKA WHICH DOUBLES WITH THE S. S. POCAHONTAS IN THE NEW YORK-NAPLES-GENOA SERVICE SHE IS OF 11,000 GROSS TONS Corp. owns the schooners CAMILLA May Pace, 688 gross' tons; Cora F. Cressy, 2499 gross tons;. Dororny PALMER, 2872 gross tons; GovERNOR Brooks, 2628 gross tons; Marta P. SM4rt, 2178 gross tons: Oaxtry C. Curtis, 2374 gross tons; SINGLETON PALMER, 2859 gross tons, and the Wy- OMING, 3703 gross tons. In addition this company owns the schooner barges Urak, 2323 gross tons, and WINAPIE, 2411 gross tons. Building Up a Business Following the war, the line contin- ued in the general shipping business, operating its own and shipping board tonnage. Cargoes were booked for practically all the prime ports of the world, especially between the United States and Europe and South America. Coal, cotton and foodstuffs and other fills the post of secretary and treasurer. Captain Mayer has other interests which are separate and distinct from the U. S. Mail line operations. There is the Swiftsure Oil Co. This company owns oil lands in Mexico and has con- tracts to transport oil from Mexico to me. Atlantic coasts of the United States and France. But in this under- taking, Captain Mayer has other asso- ciates. The Old Colony Trust CO.. Bos- ton, and Peabody, Houghteling & Co., Chicago, are jointly associated with him in the oil business. It is today one of _the most profitable undertakings he has. The company has let contracts for sev- en tankers, which are now either com- pleted or building. All of these tankers are to measure 12,400 deadweight tons. The 'first, the SWIFTSURE, was delivered early this year by the Northwest Bridge & Iron Co., Portland, Oreg. and brought June, 192] around from the builder's yard on the Pacific coast through the Panama canal and put into service. The other tankers are being delivered ahead of schedule and all soon will be in service. The armistice left the United States with a large tonnage of passenger ships and with few steamship organizations capable of handling them profitably, Most of these passenger boats were ex- enemy vessels which had been hurriedly converted into troop ships for the war department. At that time, the cost of reconversion into commercial passenger vessels was tremendous. Had the goy- ernment undertaken the work the cost would have been even more. The older established companies were hesitant about taking this tonnage off the hands of the government except upon very liberal terms. At this juncture, Cap- tain Mayer rushed into the breach and offered to establish a new passenger steamship company and take the goy- ernment tonnage. "We early saw," said Captain Mayer, "that the end of the war meant that our business would end. It was desir- able that we take advantage of the new conditions, continue along the line we had been going and attempt to branch out still further. Our activities having been so largely in shipping, we sought to continue along that line but upon a peace time basis. That consid- eration led us up to the point of mak- ing an offer to the shipping board to create a dominating transatlantic pas- senger. line using the vessels captured from our erstwhile enemies." Takes Over Lines Under the terms of the agreement entered into with the -shipping board, the U. S. Mail line chartered 15 of the ex-enemy passenger ships. This con- tract provided that the line pay the shipping board $3.50 per net registered ton per month charter hire on the ves- sels, and also recondition the vessels at its own expense. The charters run for five years, after which the line will have the first chance to purchase the vessels. In case of purchase, the amount expended for reconditioning will be de- ducted from the purchase price, minus depreciation at the rate of 714 per cent per annum. If a purchase agreement is not reached, the amount spent for re- conditioning will be returned in cash. "We staked our personal fortune on that contract," explained Captain Mayer. "We foresaw that we would either make a profit on the undertaking if we succeed- ed or we would lose all. No public money is involved in that risk. We have asked no _ outside investors 0 share the risk with us." The tonnage contracted for by the