Now  you  can  see  that,  let  your  organization  work  ever  so  efficiently,
the  price  of  American  ships  is  going  to  go  up  high.  They  can  not  do
otherwise — unless  you  do  as  the  British  builders  do.  We  have  some
specifications— no  doubt  mo'st  of  the  shipbuilders  have — of  British
specifications,  and  they  will  not  change  a  thing — they  wouldn't
change  a  mooring  bit  on  the  deck  if  it  is  going  to  interfere  with  the
run  of  their  work.  The  president  of  our  yard  was  over  in  Europe
at  Christmas  time,  in  January.  He  was  unfortunate  enough  during
the  war  to  lose  a  British  ship,  and  his  money  is  lying  in  the  Bank
of  England,  but  you  can  not  use  it  except  to  build  a  new  ship ;  and
he  in  conversation  wifch  the  yard  that  built  the  former  ship,  asked
them  what  they  would  duplicate  it  for,  and  they  said  they  would
duplicate  it  for  $175  a  ton.  He  said,  "  No,  I  will  not  give  you  a  con-
tract. Will  you  do  it  for  £30  a  ton?"  They  said,  "  We  will  build  the
ship  on  £6  a  ton  profit,"  $30  off  and  on — "  but  we  will  not  enter  into
a  specific  contract."

'Now  that  was  in  January,  for  a  tanker  about  8,000  tons  dead-
weight. But  I  would  just  as  strongly  emphasize  at  this  point,  and
impress  upon  you  and  your  board,  the  necessity  of  cutting  down
changes.  You  may  authorize — your  board  may  authorize  a  change  at
an  initial  cost  of  $100,  but  it  will  cost  you  $1,000.  You  dislocate  so
much  work.  You  stop  that  work  that  is  in  progress  in  the  vicinity
of  it;  the  men  get  disheartened  Avhen  they  take  things  out.  To-day
we  have  a  ship  in  the  docks — I  am  not  complaining,  mind  you;  it
is  our  business  to  do  what  you  want,  and  we  are  not  complaining.
