SHIPPING.

Evening Star, Issue 14964, 26 August 1912, Page 4

SHIPPING.

[ Whakaiane. s.s.. from Montreal via Australian and Northern ports, is due here tomorrow. A GREAT SHIPBUILDING FIRM. The great shipbuilding yards of Messrs Harland and Wolff, m Belfast, founded in 1859, have been enormously expanded during the past five years, there bavins been added during that period-new shops having an area of 165.086 squat e feet in the shipbuilding yard, .and of 222.875 square feet in the machinery works. Newtools have been installed to deal with the larger component p.tils of the .structure of the modern behemoths oi the ocean, as well as to ensure a. higher degree of reliability and economy in tnanufactme. Coincident with these improvements, the machine too!s have been Teat ranppd in almost all the shops An important turn-ing-point in the career of the firm (says ' Enjrineerrn<r') was. the institution of the White Star Line in 1870 by the Ismays. who recognised the value of the innovations introduced into the design of *hips by Harland. one. of the most oi Iginative of naval architects From that time onward practically every *hip huiit for the line has been constructed at Belfast. The first vessel built was the Oceanic, 440 ft. long and of 41ft beam, and notable as the first ship to have passenger accommodation amidships instead of aft. where the vibration of the screw was thru a source of discomfort lo passenaeis. There followed, in 1875. the Britannic end Geiwanic, of 5,000 ton? and 5.500 iioise-pewcr. and these, vessels ran tor over a quarter of a century flying the White Star fh.tr with phenomenal'success. The Oceanic <■' 1899 (the. second of the name) was of 17.274 tons gross register: the Celtic, built two years later, was of 20.904 Ions: the Oedric, built in the following year, was of 21,035 tons; the Baltic, of' ISO 4, of 23.376 tons; the Adtiaiic. of 1907. of 24,540 tons ; i,n<] then a, great f" J P ,vns made ; n 1911, when there weie completed two more ships of the Olympic type, with a tonnage of over 45,000 tons. Then length of the hull in litis interval of 13 \ear« increased front 685 ft 9in to 825 ft 6in. and the oeam from 68ft 3in to 92ft 6in. At present the firm are building a still larger sbip, the gross tonnage of which will probably exceed 50.000 tone. Other ships besides those named have been built in the interval for the White Star Company, the total tonnage for the line amounting to 565.000, of an approximate value of £14.000,000. This does not include the vessels for other line* now absorbed in or allied to the White Star fleet. The total output since the foundiiiß of the firm of Harland and Wolff in 1859 up to the end of June is 2,148,483 tons. What ■ the production of ships and machinery represents to Ireland may be gauged from the fact that there has been distributed in wages during the 53 years that the firm has been in existence millions sterling. OVERSEA STEAMERS. SYDNEY, August 26.—Indralema, for New Zealand. NEWCASTLE. August 26.—Waltraute, for Auckland. SHIPPING TELEGRAMS. LYTTELTON, August 26.—12.20 p.m. 25t.h, Mararoa, from Wellington. BLUFF, August 26.—7.30 a.m., Maunganui, from Port Chalmers. OAMARU, Aucuet 26.—1.30 p.m., Moeraki, from Dunedin.