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New Zealand Times, Volume XLII, Issue 9692, 21 June 1917, Page 11

Auckland shipping men did not agree with the suggestion that New Zealand should be building large vessels to take the place of those diverted to other uses. One authority says (states the Auakland “Star") that there are not the required yards in New Zealand nor the shipwrights. The kauri timber which is' obtainable is far too expensive and difficult to got in suitable lengths. The hardwood for the frames is similarly hard to get, and it steel frames were decided upon they could not be obtained from abroad owing to the export of steel goods being practically suspended. The same difficulty would be found in obtaining the canvas, wire rigging, ropes, anchors, and chains, and even if all the materials were at hand it would take twelve months to build a vessel, and the final cost would not make it worth while.