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66 THE MARINE REVIEW THE MARINE REVIEW DEVOTED TO MARINE ENGINEERING, SHIP BUILDING AND ALLIED INDUSTRIES Published Monthly by The Penton Publishing Company Penton Building, Cleveland. CHICAGO 1521-23 Lytton Bldg. CINCINNATI 503 Mercantile Library Bldg. NEW YORK \ - 507 West Street Bldg. PITTSBURGH 2148-49 Oliver Bldg. WASHINGTON, D. C. BIRMINGHAM, ENG. 206 Corcoran Bldg. Prince’s Chambers $2 delivered free anywhere in the world.. Subscription, Back numbers over three months, 50 cents. Single, copies, 20 cents. - Change of advertising copy must reach this office on or: before the first of each month. The Cleveland News Co. will supply the trade with THE MARINE REVIEW through the regular channels of the. American News Co. European Agents, The International News Co., Breams Building, Chancery Lane, London, E. C., England. Entered at the Post Office at Cleveland, ana as Second Class” ‘Matter. (Copyright 1914, by Penton Publishing Company) February, 1915 “Some Collier’’ Calling public attention to the criminal waste of public funds by the naval establishment will probably be productive of just as much good as the efforts of patriotic individuals, commercial bodies, ship own- ers and others have been in the upbuilding of a merchant marine. The same people who shouted “ship- ping trust”, “capitalistic greed” and all the other well known and time tried outgivings of politicians and agitators who didn’t even know what they were talk- ing about, and found when the country was confronted with the very situation which year after year they had been warned against, that even less than the truth had been told them, were not only eager to vote for govern- ment purchase and operation of steamships ten times all that had ever been asked, not for purchase or oper- | ation, but merely assistance in the production of a great national shipping. They are willing dupes of an establishment which wastes more every year than the country was ever asked to set apart for the aid of a_ merchant marine in twenty. Perhaps to them the following data regarding one single unit of that great and spectacular establishment may not even be intelligible, not to say interesting. The fleet collier Jupiter was authorized by the naval appropriation act of May 13, 1908, to cost not over $1,800,000. The scandal of the earlier naval built colliers and the attention drawn to them first by MartneE Review and later by other publications, led to this cost being reduced, by the act of March 3, 1909, to $900,000. Although this figure was ample for the purpose the navy were not satisfied, so they came back February, 1915 with a revised estimate, for the same ship, of $1,000,- 000, which was granted by the naval act of June 24, 1910. A mere trifle, observe, of $800,000 below their first estimate. However, as the getting seemed to be good, they came back again in the Naval Act of March 4, 1911, and got this increased to $1,200,000. And was construction proceeding during this time? By no means. What do you think the naval establishment is, a base commercial affair? Not a thing doing until the last grab, although for years the navy just couldn’t wait another minute for that collier. So on Oct. 18, 1911, seven months after the $1,200,- O00 was safely put where no one could get it except the right parties, the keel was laid, and in April, 1913, eighteen months later, this gem of naval construction went into commission. Now it so happened that the same act of March 4, 1911, authorized two other colliers of the same type, the contract for which went to the Maryland Steel Co., Sparrows. Point, Md., at $951,000 each. The contract was signed on Aug. 22, 1911, and thirty-six days later the keel was laid, she was launched five months and seventeen days later and was delivered and accepted in eleven months from the laying of the keel, 13 months ahead of contract time. All three ships were built to the same standard of _ inspection and classification, the only substantial dif- ference being that the Jupiter was fitted with electric drive propelling machinery: Ligntenant S. M. Robinson, U. S. N., is authority for the” statement that the Jupiter’s axetiial cost was $1,271,986... Of course, as has been repeatedly pointed out, these figures are not worth the trouble of quoting for comparative purposes. The Jupiter’s costs carry no charges for interest, maintenance, depreciation or insurance of plant or materials, no taxes, heating, lighting, salaries or other overhead charges such as are of necessity included in the’ contractor’s bid, to say nothing at all of profit, with which of course the public — is not’ concerned. The other charges, however, are unescapable and are shouldered by -the public whether they believe it or not. The Jupiter, if her costs were kept’ on the same basis as the Jason’s and Orion’s, would be found to be not far from double theirs. And now see what the public gets for this. In a paper presented at the recent meeting of the American Society of Naval Architects and Marine. Engineers, Lieut. Robinson says: “The Jupiter has been in commission over a year and a half. During that time she has conducted two offieial trials and has carried on the usual routine work of a navy collier. She has steamed about 14,000 miles.” In other words this gilded collier has averaged about 30 miles per day or a little over two hours steaming at contract speed. She carries 159 men all told, of whom no less than fifty-five are in the engi- neers’ division exclusive of engineer officers. Rather