Show Steel Company Will Offer To Build Ships at Cost I No No Chance Chanc For Profit In n Them Under I Tests Grace Grac Say Say- Seye Possible Explanation of the Prices Mad Made by an English Firm Which Bids Bide Under Und All American Manufacturer Speaking recently before the Terra Terri i pin Club of ot Philadelphia Eurene Eugene G. G Grace Grac President of ot the Bethlehem St Steel l C Company said in part In a peculiar sense Bethlehem Steel serves serres the American people For example though we have hare been able to obtain in Europe almost any price rice wo Wet have adhered in our ch charges to the United States Stated Government to the basis of ot prices established before the war began We a agreed reed agreed if the Government would abandon lt It its plane plans for tor a Federal plant plant- to make armor annor for tor our Navy Nay at any price tIe the Government ell mIght con- con consider sider deler fair Our ordnance plants plant are UG at the dl disposal disposal dis dis- of ot the nation at a fair operating cost plus a Ii small email margin thus saying the Government investment and de de- predation One of ot the special l needs Deed of ot the new navy Is la sixteen-inch sixteen guns guns guns-guns guns sixty feet teet Jon long and capable of hurtling a pound shell with such euch power and accuracy as to hit lilt a CO GO foot SQuare quare target target tar tar- get ct fifteen miles away We have bave undertaken voluntarily to construct at a cost coat of ot a plant fitted to build sixt sixteen inch inch guns Under UDder no conceivable circumstances can orders order which we vre may receive for tor this thle plant pay pal even a fair return on the tho investment Considerable comment has bas been made upon the tho fact tact that that a British manufacturer manufacturer I recently bid less than American manufacturers for tor sixteen and four tour teen teen inch shells for tor the navy 1 I am unable to state the basis upon which the En English Ush bid was made It should be remembered however that this bid was for tor a specific shell samples sam sam- I pies ples of ot which are arc being Ing sent over for tor I I test a test a test teat not yet made mode Two years ago ao we vre tool took an order for tor 2400 2100 inch fourteen piercing armor-piercing shells lit nt a contract price of ot to be delivered within a certain time or we Lad had to pay PlY a large penalty The hc only specifications for making thc these c shells are arc that they shall be beof beof of ot a certain size Klye and mu must t pierce plate armor-plate at nt a certain velocity ou on im hn pact It is Impossible to foretell the exact conditions of ot the te tests testa tR We Ve bad made large quantities of ot shells In the past which had tJ been n accepted Kut tut ut In his pa JE order 2 r L t the e r E t q r part Dt-part Department Dt nent altered the an angle al at l which the tested shells must pierce plate plute The result however has baa beeR been absolute inability on our part to produce pro pro- produce duce in any ny quantity shells sheIls which will meet these novel tests teats In fact tact w we know of ot no process of ot projectile projectile projectile-malc- making mak- mak Ing log through which It Is possible to produce pro duce in quantities shells which wilt will conform to the requirements The result Is that up to now on that contract of ot we have put int Into actual operating expense and have haTe been penalized for tor non delivery 4 a total of ot 5 with nt no receipts whatever Such was the experience in the light of ot which we were Vere called upon recently recent recent- ly Iy to bid for tor sixteen Inch shells We Wc bid on these shells at approximately approximately the same rate per pound a- a that of ot a fourteen inch shell contract of one year ago upon which tho the Government Goy Gar awarded contracts We have not the slightest lightest idea what profit there will be in is the making 0 of these shells We do not know v that there will be any There is no certain ty that it would be possible for tor ns us te- te deliver a shell to meet the test cur tor in 10 uie we navy nary iu to 0 u anum that any bid made under such condi condl- conditions bons IB is exorbitant is le utterly unfair We bid on the tho new battle battle sums which Navy NaTY department experts expert after examination of ot our books found toun would yield a profit of ot less than ten per cent Wo We agreed to assume risks risks- for tor Increased costs of materials and la ls labor bor that mn made c it possible that these these- contracts contract might yield no profit what what- ever The costs costa run ron beyond the amount ap app appropriated by Congress on the basis bub or of orthe orthe the cost estimates made a p year ago And because shipbuilders could not alter niter the inexorable cost facts tact and reduce reduce re- re duce bids to early estimates of ot th the I r y a avy Department toe we prices arc are called exorbitant It would be a real advantage to b be- be t- t relieved reHe of ot this na naval val construction Th The profit from It cannot possibly amount to much nod and the responsibility la is enor We Ve have determined to make malte this this- offer to the American Government Go If It you will build two of ot the battle- battle cruisers in Government navy j yards yarda rC l. l we will build the other two at the ascertained as ns cost of ot building the ships in inthe Inthe inthe the Government Go yards without additional additional addi addi- expense or commissions of an any kind We will wUl also contract to have bavo our ships ready for Cor service ahead ot of the Government |