THE OCEANIC STEAMSHIP COMPANY.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 11397, 14 April 1899, Page 4

THE OCEANIC STEAMSHIP COMPANY.

(Per Aiameda at, Auckland).. Tho Oceanic Steamship Company has ordered three magnificent new steamers to be built by Crampe, of Philadelphia/ steamers are for service between San Francisco, Honolulu,'and Australian ports. John D. Spreckels and ,6ther members of the firm have been scored unmercifully by the local press for giving the contracts to an, eastern firm when the' Union Iron Works of San Franciscrf could have done j.he. work a.V a cost which would have beeu no .greater, it is estimated, when the.expense of.bringiug the new ships to tho Pacific Coast is. reckoned. Within the last few weeks 12,000 men have been-paid off at the Union Iron Works because there were no contracts on hand. The completion of the Japanese cruiser Chitose and the fast battleship Wisconsin threw many men out of work. At least, these are the reasons given out by tho works for the discharge of the men. Mr Spreckels has given as his reason .for changing the original plan ot having the ships built on<the coast that lie wanted them completed within a year, and the Union Iron Works were too busy to undertake ' such a contract. Though the statements of Mr Spreckele and Mr Scott, of the iron works, do not agree as to the reasons why the new. vessels'are not to be built on the coast, the fact remains that«Crampe has the contract, and will undertake to turn out within a year ships which will reduce the time, between Sydney and London by two or three days, so that the trip by this route may be made in the same time as by way of Brindisi and Naples.