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Show MANY WOOOEi 515 10 BE CONSTRUCTED Federal Board Expects to Commandeer Yards if It Becomes Necessary. WASHINGTON, March in. Steps looking to the speedy construction of a large number of wooden ships of from 3000 to 3600 tons register in American yards on the Atlantic and Gulf coasts', to aid American industry ' in meeting- the international emergency, wero taken today by the federal shipping ship-ping board in the issuance of a call to the chief builders of such craft for a meeting with the board here March 14. The board's programme calls for the adoption of one or more standard sizes, the training of unskilled labor should skilled labor be requisitioned by the government a course thought likely in case of war and co-operation of lumber lum-ber interests and the railroads in furnishing fur-nishing and expediting materials. After the conference with Atlantic and Gulf coast builders the board will confer with builders on the Pacific coast. Should the builders not voluntarily volun-tarily agree upon a uniform programme, it was broadly intimated today that the government might commandeer the yards. Tentative estimates show that a 3600-ton wooden ship can be built in from four to five months and that tho yards available for this work could construct con-struct up to 1000 such craft within a comparatively short time in case of emergency. , Present plans are to use the vessels in trans-Atlantic trade and if neees-sarv, neees-sarv, in coast-to-coast traffic via the Panama canal. It was stated that the ships also might be used to convey foodstuffs to ''other nations whoso interests in-terests would be in harmony with those of the United States in case of war," and that tho types selected as standard would be chosen with a view to their availability for use in war as well as peace. |