STATE SHIPPING.

Northern Advocate, 27 January 1922, Page 4

STATE SHIPPING.

One of the legacies which the new Canadian Government received from the Meighen Ministry was the Strute shipping service, which was ibrought into being nearly four years ago. According to statements made recently by the Toronto correspondent of the "Manchester Guardian," the present financial position of the Canadian Governnie,i)t's .niercaailile shipping venture is exceedingly unsatisfactory. The fleet now consists of about seventy ships, many of which cost the Canadian Government aboiut twice as much as they could recently have been purchased i'or in the open market. Moreover, "before the last of the fleet was eomv pleted, a quarter of the ghips were lying idle in Halifax harbour." The correspondent mi(?ntioned suggests thiat a great part of the sum of between 70 and SO million dollars expended on the fleet will 'have to be written off. On the other hand, he points out that the Canadian ensign is cruising the seven seas, and the Government ships are currying Oiiiiadirun exports to countries that never heard of Canada before. It is another material consideration that these ships are acting to same extent as feeders for the 22,000 miles of transcontinental and other railways lately taken over by this Canadian Government. Part of the high, capital cost of the ships undoubtedly represents a dead iloss, but taking account, with its direct earnings, >of its iudireet contributions to national wealth, itihe Canadian Government fleet may yet become a verv valuable asset.