The Seattle Star Newspaper, November 11, 1918, Page 7

SHPBUILDERS HERE AND MANUFACTURERS HAVE YEARS OF WORK What wil! happen to Seattle now that the war is over? Thousands of people today are asking this question. With feverish haste and remarkable success this city to the occasion when the war burst upon us and Uncle Sam sent out an S. O, S. call for ships. Can we as successfully meet the demands of peace and our own in the new conditions that confront us? Our industrial leaders answer emphatically, “Yes.” The great shipbuilding industry that has been such an nt factor in Seattle’s speedy progress, is to con- tinve full blast, they say, Chairman Hurley, of the shipping board, and Director Schwab, of the emergency fleet corporation, have amnounced that the present program will keep the yards busy for years to come. | | Only one-sixth of the ships that are needed to com-| plete the United States merchant marine have been con- and Hurley says that the government “will look | | | to the eat coast to continue the pace it has maintained.” Among the men who are in closest touch with Seattle's ial developments, the predominant feeling regarding is that of confidence, Local Plants Not Built for the Scrap Heap _ Dp. E. Skinner, president of the Skinner & Eddy cor- . Said it is nonsense to think that the great indus- organizations that had been built up in Seattle would be thrown on the scrap heap because peace had come. ».At least for some time to come, he stated, the work @f building ships would go right along. The exhausted countries of Europe—probably including the central powers —would draw on America for vast quantities of supplies| gd the war-time strain on our productive powers would tly diminished 4 er did not care to discuss the plans that his firm is said to be evolving for the gradual development of lines of production, but stated that it was the purpose the corporation to maintain its plants even if the de- mand for ships should after a while decline, and that they endeavor to keep their army of workers fully em- of the things that this ungodly tidal wave did for ” said James F. Twohy, of the Seattle North pbuilding Co., “was to create, over night, almost, | eat and organizations that under no: conditions would have taken 50 years to bring about. And you upon it that now that these organizations have built up at great trouble and expense, they are going to stay, and if they are not turning out ships, they'll find something else that they can produce.” In this connection, J. H. Bloedel, one of the leading in Western Washington, remarks that he has never known a solid manufacturing community to go to Fellows All Wars - aM e = aa of industry. Tributary to this coast there is nm country awaiting development. “In my own business, now that the war is over, there iz to be an undoubted expansion in the export trade. will be true of most industries.” exception, has been followed by a period of remark- business expansion for the victorious nation. “I am optimistic about the future of Seattle for a x of reasons,” said H. F. Ostrander, one of the city’s Most successful shipping men. “In the first place the industrial possibilities and East such as they never had before the war. This fac- fis going to have an important bearing on our immediate ment by attracting Eastern capital. Have Better Grade f Workers Here _ “The time has gone when. it could truly be said that we compete with the East. We have a decided eco- advantage in possessing a climate that makes work ible at the highest efficiency both indoors and outdoors ry day in the year. Furthermore, we have a better of workers here than they have in the East. ' “My business is mainly with the Orient and there is to be a greatly increased demand for our goods over , especially in Siberia.” Asked whether we could compete with Japan in Asiatic , Ostrander expressed the opinion that we would be able to do so more successfully than we could the war. He stated that production costs in Japan increased enormously, and that wages over there have Baapsee fold, five-fold, and even seven-fold in some tions. He anticipated that owing to the world’s shortage in tonnage, estimated by the best informed authorities 000,000 gross tons or about 80,000,000 deadweight the shipbuilding industries would be kept going almost eir present pace for two or three years at least. ly dependent upon the ships that she was building to her boys home from France, and that this gigantic would be a tremendous strain on our shipping le Will Soon Be anufacturing Steel - That Russia before the war imported annually 6,000,000 Sythes, fully half of which were required in Siberia, was d by R. H. Mattison, secretary of the industrial of the Chamber of Commerce, who sees in new Si- beria an extensive market for agricultural implements. _ Mattison states that Seattle will soon be manufacturing on a large seale, and that there is nothing that is in the East that cannot be efficiently turned out . He says tat with cheap hydro-electric power, abun- coal supplies, and with all the important basic raw ials either at our door or within easy access along the fic coast, there is every reason to anticipate a great in- rial future for Seattle. Apart from the requirements of the fleet corporation, Seattle shipbuilders may now look for a rush of orders from ign countries, according to K. H. Scheel, of Treiber & Scheel, naval architects, Foreign Shippers to ld Vessels Here “As soon as the government has lifted the ban that mits the size of ships that may be built for private in- terest,” says Scheel, “there is going to be a clamor on the Dart of foreign shippers to let contracts both to the steel and to the wood yards. p.., J have in mind one man who has returned from the East with instructions from various owners to arrange con- faets for the construction of 40 wooden ships. |Efsoe thin. hair in my head, “The ships that are built from now on will have to be “I can see our great shipbuilding establishments,” says, “changing over, not suddenly but very gradually, | Bloedel points out that every modern war, without a) rements of the Pacific coast have won a recognition in" Ostrander pointed out that America would be almost} THE SEATTLE STAR—MONDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 1918. an ROYAL DEMOCRATS | “ \ \ i | it | ' These four crowned heads of nations allied against Germany gave aid to the bests of democracy in a war that has put autecracy under the ban forever. They are, top, left to right, Yoshihite of Japan of Belgium; below, left to right, George of Britain and Victor Belgians Organize Co-operation Plan for Reconstruction WASHINGTON, Nov. i-—The eco-, “Put the great problem is the em- nomic restoration of Belgium wi! be ployment for the more than a million undertaken under the direction of @/ {dle laborers who will be left in Bel- group of Belgian manufacturers and | gium. Paris, | merchants, with branches in P nrias “Belgium's national life depends London and The Hague, | vi on will be incorpors More heavily on ita industries than Re orennintioe silt that of any other nation except Eng: ated as a Belgian co-operative soci: lety. Tt will be called fe ndigiies be. land, The Germans, in their four reau for the revival of econo-nic ac-| Y*ars of occupation, have requisition: Uvity in Belgium. od practically all of the raw materials : Jand machinery {n the country ‘This organization will act as a pur chasing agent to replace tool THEY HAVE LEFT BELGIUM | put Belgian commerce and | AN EMPTY SHELL on its feet ‘There in work enough to do to re “And, after tho first great burst of | build the cities and towns, and make the country habitable for the thou sands of refugees who will pour back as soon as the Germans are driven ter, But it can machinery and these, and for) joy, Belgium will settle down and Ko back to work.” declares Professor Paul Van de Venden, director of the Beigian official information service land former professor of the Univer | sity of Louvain, who has just return: | ra 1 th ountry from Havre. the | “Thanks to the American people, | « | the food problesn will be nolved. The on ! commission for the relief of Belgium efforts vith which they must be/ lgium will have to rely king of the purchases | undoubtedly will redoul) now that the coast is freed and there } so many to feed. perative y in formed | specially designed for the particular trade for which they jorenepted. tits will knoc ie but the standardization of ships! and will consequently mean more work for the producers. “The most urgent immediate demand will be for passen- ger vessels to replace those sunk by the Germans. built nothing but freighters during the war. “We are going to get hundreds of contracts for fore-| There will be land-aft schooners, without auxiliary power. a shortage of engines for the next 10 years. — | “The keen international trade rivalry, more intense than lever it was before, is going to stimulate our industrial de- | velopment on this coast.” Government Has Laid Vast Economic Plan Seattle, in common with all other industrial communi- ties, will soon begin to enjoy the benefits of a gradual but leertain decrease in the cost of living, according to W. H. Parsons, vice president of the Dexter Horton bank. This ladvantage, he thinks, will not be offset by any lack of employment. Parsons says that the American government knows lexactly the economic dangers that confront the nation at |this hour, and that for some time past the administration has been working out very carefully prepared plans to ab- solutely prevent the possibility of any thing in the nature of a panic. “Of course we must all be prepared for a period of readjustment that may involve temporary inconvenience for some of us,” Parsons points out, “but we can face these inevitable changes with thoro confidence. Of all the indus- \trial cities in the country, there is not one that will suffer ‘less than Seattle from this reconstruction. Furthermore, lowing to our fortunate geographical position, we are des- tined to become the principal port on the Pacific coast, and) I believe that we are now entering a period of great pros- | perity and tremendous progress.” | Tremendous Tonnage Still to Be Made Up “Not until we have caught up with the tremendous |shortage of tonnage will there be any considerable slowing! |down in our construction of wooden ships,” 1 Samuel H. |Hedges, president of the Wooden Shipbuilders’ association land also president of the Puget Sound Bridge and Dredg- ing Co. Hedges sees good times ahead, especially for the work- ing man, It stands to reason, he says, that the universal shortage of labor is going to insure jobs for all. believes, for, among other reasons that he mentions, “we have all the constituents here for the production of steel, and at a production cost as low as any place on the face! of the earth. Great steel plants will undoubtedly be estab-! /lished here, and in my judgment they are coming very soon.,! As far as the future of Seattle is concerned, I haven't a We have/|}} A great industrial future is in store for Seattle, hell In fact, I look for the best times this city ever had.” = seer ere me, SEVEN ORGANIZATIONS WORKING AS ONE, FOR OUR BOYS “OVER THERE” FREDERICK & NELSON FIFTH AVENUE—PINE STREET—SIXTH AVENUE Mayor Hanson Announced This Morning That the INFLUENZA BAN IS LIFTED as far as the Retail Stores Are Concerned, Beginning Tuesday Morning This Store, Therefore, Will OPEN TUESDAY MORNING AT 9 O'CLOCK AND WILL CLOSE AT 5 It should be emphasized that the regulations concerning the wearing of influenza masks in all places of public assem- blage will remain effective until further notice. Seattle is entitled to review with satisfaction the sane attitude with which its authorities and its citizens have met the problems presented during the past few weeks, in connection with the influenza situation. The regulations deemed necessary in order to safeguard the City from an epidemic of great seriousness, such as has visited centers less favorably situated than Seattle, have been accepted with the cheerful optimism so characteristic of the Seattle iemperament. We may be sure that, when comparative statistics become available, Seattle’s p internationally-conceded prestige as an unusually healthful dwelling place will not be dimmed in the slightest.as a result of the situation now, passing. Some justification for the calmness with which Seattle has adopted precau- tionary measures is afforded by the health statistics of this store, whose staff totals substantially more than a thousand individuals. The staff medical records testify to a healthfulness practically normal dur- ing the period of the epidemic (to be exact, less than one per cent below. normal), while the cases of influenza encountered have been so few as to be practically negligible. These facts speak with equal clearness for the high standards of living ad- hered to in Seattle’s homes, for the efficient interpretation of Seattie’s sani- tary regulations by its officials, and, we may be pardoned for stating, for the healthful working conditions that exist in this particular building. SEATTLE MUST RAISE $580,000 THIS WEEK FOR UNITED WAR WORK oars wines ee