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1901.] MARINE REVIEW. 19 =": STEEL SHIP BUILDING IN CANADA. MR. W. E. REDWAY OF THE POLSON IRON WORKS ANSWERS THE QUESTION AS TO WHY STEEL SHIPS CANNOT BE BUILT AS CHEAPLY IN THE DOMINION AS IN GREAT BRITAIN. Mr: W. E. Redway of the Polson Iron Works has written an article upon the subject of steel ship building in Canada. He begins his dis- cussion by asking the following question: ‘Why cannot steel ships be built as cheaply in Canada as in Great Britain? There is no duty on the plates or bars imported for ship building and the extra freight cannot add much to the cost of a ‘Canadian over a British-built ship.’ He says that a concise but comprehensive answer can readily be given as follows: “In the first place, a steel ship is composed of something more than the mere framework and plating forming her hull. She contains within herself probably a greater diversity of manufactured materials than any other structure. Into the completion and perfection of a first-class pas- senger boat go the united productions of almost every manufacturing in- dustry, from the coal and iron mine down through the whole engineering world, from the main engines and boilers to the captain’s sextant and chronometer, from the trees in the forest down through the woodworking section, from the main deck to the high-art furniture and carvings in te saloon. Her equipment cannot be provided without the assistance of the cloth-maker, the potter, the glass-worker, the cutler and without the hundred-and-one other members of the world’s industrial organization, possible for the Canadian ship builder to produce the finished ship at the same cost as the British ship builder, “Many steamers have been brought into Canada during the past ten years from Britain, sufficient in number and importance to have perma- nently established steel ship building had conditions been favorable for building them here, but the industry has been carried on since the building of the first steel ship, the Manitoba, in May, 1889, in a desultory and per- functory manner, producing onlv a class of vessels mostly too small or otherwise unsuitable for crossing the Atlantic; in fact, although the busi- ness has had a precarious existence of twelve years, only two cargo steam- ers have been built during that time. It will be argued that the manufac- ture of plates and bars in Canada, which is at last within measureable dis- tance, will give the Canadian manufacturer a better chance to compete with the British, and to a limited extent this is true, but it will not go far to offset the wide difference that exists in the general conditions. “Canada as a manufacturing nation is just emerging trom the age of swaddling clothes, but, even after arriving at maturity, she will never be in a position to compete economically with Great Britain in the building of ships, until fiscal and other conditions are so equalized that the Cana- dian and British ship builder can meet on equal terms. By a wise policy of fostering the manufacture of steel she has laid the foundation stone of her future greatness and prosperity (and no nation in these days can be- come great before making iron, for that is the condition precedent in this industrial age), but it must not be forgotten that a foundation without a superstructure is of little utility. “The future development of the iron and steel industry in Canada will require cargo steamers to handle its raw materials and finished prod- ucts to an extent that cannot be gauged at this moment, and the possi- THE PLANT LINE STEAMSHIP MIAMI, WHICH OCOMES TO THE LAKES THIS SEASON. contributing each his share to the production of the finished article. The cost of almost every article in the ship, coming under either of the above headings, is at least one-third higher in Canada than in Britain. Next, heavy forgings, such as stern frames, rudder frames, connecting rods, pro- peller shafts, steel engine castings, etc., are considerable 1tems in the cost of a modern steamship. All have to be imported and pay a heavy customs duty, because the larger sizes which are made in Canada and even the smaller sizes which are made here are excessively costly, owing to the extremely limited demand for them. The same remark ap- plies to steam windlasses, steam winches, electric lighting machines, steam steering gears and scores of other items too numerous to mention. “Tn all these matters the British ship builder is 25 to 35 per cent. ahead of the Canadian. The latter cannot lay down his raw material (plates, bars and rivets) at so low a price as the former by 10 per cent., exclusive of freight charges, if he desires to save time by purchasing in the United States. However desirable it may be that Canadian makers of these goods should be protected to the extent of this preference during the earlier stages of manufacture, and until an increased demand will justify its discontinuance, that does not make it any easier in the mean- while for the ship builder who has to compete with those who can ob- tain the same articles at 25 or 30 per cent. less cost. Jt is true that a customs tariff of 25 per cent. on machinery and 10 per cent. on the hull is levied on new ships purchased abroad and registered in Canada, which, apparently, is so much in favor of the Canadian builder, but this is purely a negative concession, and is really operative only as to ships pur- chased in the United States, because British ships registered in Britain or Newfoundland are not subject to the tariff, and, consequently, are brought in freely, clear of duty. “Then, as to labor: It was recently shown at the meeting of naval architects in New York that the difference in cost of wages paid by day work between American and British ship builders averaged 25 per cent. throughout all trades in favor of Britain. Now, the wages paid in Canada for mechanics and laborers differ but little from the wages paid on the other side, certainly not more than from 10 to 12% per cent., consequently the British ship builder is also 12% to 15 per cent. ahead on his cost of labor, Even assuming that the Canadian mechanic, although paid higher wages, can, by reason of his superior energy and ability (which is at least questionable), perform the labor of building the hull at as low cost per ton of material used as the British mechanic, it is still manifestly im- bilities of future requirements for moving the products of the northwest, which will be equally in proportion to the growth of the country, are simply incalculable. The coming century will probably witness in Canada a gigantic industrial development similar to that which occurred on the other side of the line during the last century, and the Canadian ship builder is wondering how he is to be able to participate. The only way to create a flourishing and successful industry is to encourage the estab- lishment of works in which everything necessary for the building and equipment of a ship from keel to truck shall be made right here in Canada and to provide some means whereby the Canadian ship builder can obtain an equivalent for the superior conditions enioyed by his British rival. “Our astute friends and neighbors to the south realize the magnificent possibilities foreshadowed by the creation of a merchant marine, and are organizing a national attempt to place the ship builders of the United States upon an equal footing with those of Great Britain and Germany (other nations do not count in this connection), and they propose to spend $20,000,000 a year for the next nine years to achieve that object. Weo can doubt that such a step will prove a profitable investment, or that its effect will have world-wide reaching consequences? What better precedent can be found for similar action on this side when the conditions are so nearly alike? Until something of the kind is accomplished, steel ship building will continue to languish in Canada, for capitalists are natur- ally conservative, prone rather to embark in undertakings where a moder- ate return is certain, than to venture into the realm of experiment where the alluring brightness of possible results is too often obscured by events unforeseen and unprovided for. This subject forms an essential portion of the still unsolved transportation problem, the most vital public ques- tion of this generation to the people of Canada. The construction and enlargement of the canals of the Dominion have cost over $70,000,000, but where are the Canadian cargo steamers which should be utilizing them on the great lakes? Unfortunately they can almost all be counted on one’s fingers, and those mostly British-built ships. Until means are adopted for fostering the construction of steel ships in Canada the trans- portation problem will remain unsolved, and the first story of the super- structure of Canada’s future greatness (to be raised upon the foundation laid by the manufacture of iron and steel) will remain unbuilt.” The tenth annual convention of the International Longshoremen’s Association will be held in Toledo, beginning July 10.