STATE-OWNED SHIPS

Evening Post, Volume CI, Issue 151, 27 June 1921, Page 2

STATE-OWNED SHIPS

'JO THE BDITOE. Sir,—Referring to the proposed Producers' Shipping Line, to be subsidised by the New Zealand Government, at . least eighteen months ago the writer commenced collecting the data necessary ;to formulate a suitable scheme. In the correspondence with England, I emphasised tho peculiar requirements of the . New Zealand trade as to refrigerating spao, cargo capacity, and passenger facilities. The result of those inquiries is yet ■ to lie seen, but I am assured by one of tho big firms in London that there was never a more opportune time than tho present to purchase ships at bed- : rock prices. The information collected by mti has been forwarded to the proper quarter, but tho following' points might well be considered by your ; readers: — (1) That the capital bo subscribed, say, one-half by tho Government, pne- : fourth by the producers' companies (chiefly wool, meat, and dairy), and the: ; remaining one-fourth by public subscription. (2.) The shares to bo classified, say, "A" preference, held by the Government, and "B" preference and ordin-! ary by the producers' companies and the public, as they select. Assuming that about 20 ships would be required, they could be classified into groups, such as (a) ships for cargo only, with an average speed of 12 knots; (b) ships for passengers and cargo, overage speed of 14 knots; (c) ships for passengers only with a speed of 18 knots. All ships should be built, or adapted, for , usingrapid firing guns, and in some cases for / a large gun. If practical, the ships should be convertible for using oil as motive power, aud, say, two ships should be cEipable of accommodating a seaplane. One has only to think of the depredations of The/Wolf, to understand the vital importance of having a ship or ships with a "seaplane deck." The future security of New Zealand depends upon her maritime power, and it ia for this reason, if no other, that the idea of a State-owned or subsidised fleet should be proceeded with. We 'haye only to recall the great usefulness of the s.s. Wahine, Marama, and others, to realise the importance of the -scheme, ■if a future naval action took place :7i the Pacific. If our frozen meat trade, snd other produce trade, drift into the hands of American, German, Dutch, or Japanese shipping companies, our very existence would be jeopardised. Apart from that, it is considered to be desirable not to be too dependent upon British-owned ships, sailing from England under the control fii the big firms. A further step towards the development of national defence would be Stateowned colliers, which could be rapidly converted into mine-sweepers. In this connection, the fostering of the fishing industry is important. Coal depots should be established at several places round tho islands of New Zealand. It, may be considered a fair thing to devote most, if not all, our expenditure oh -naval affairs in the directions indici'.od in this letter, rather than continue u. contribute towards the Imperial Navy - It should be part of the scheme to employ as far as possible New Zealandborn men and youths, and special- encouragement to be given to. induce youths to join the New Zealand merchant service. Owing to the growing importance of: Fiji, :aot_ forgetting Tonga and Samoa, and considering their close proximity to New Zealand, it is possible that a contribution might be obtained from .that direction. Fiji is an important stepping stone, and although under the direct administration of Downing-strect should, geographically, come under the protection of New Zealand. It might be practical in the future for the islands of Fiji to be governed by New Zealand.— I am, etc., CYRIL MACKLEY. 23rd June.