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Show DIPPING BOARD SELLING SHIPS War-built Fleet Reduced by Sale of 15 to Nacirena Steamship Company. WASHINGTON. April 17 Sale of ; the war-built merchant fleet was begun be-gun today by the shipping board with I the transfer of fifteen wooden steamships steam-ships to Nacirenia Steamship companj nt New York at a prire of $650,000 tor each vessel This is an average of $1-15 per deadweight ton This fleet s t be operated bv the Brook' steamship company ol New York in the trans-Atlantic trad.' Fi . of the fifteen will be operated out Ol New York, five out of Havana and five out of New Orleans. Deliveries will be completed within a short time. The purchasers have opened negotiations nego-tiations for the purchase of fifteen more vessels of the same type tld for immediate d livery It is understood that the purchasers obtained insurance ranging from 1'-to 1'-to 3 Is Pcr fnt. which shipping experts said indicated the underwriters now regarded this type of as a good Irisk. The original insurance rate ranged from five to seven per cent The latest figures of the shipping board show 115 wooden ships in i I vice. Contracts originally were let for i 703 vessels of this type, but 211 of (the contracts were cancelled after the , armistice According to the Bhipping board's second annual report, contracts for wooden ships which were lei up to Augusi 31, 1918, called for an expenditure expen-diture of approximately $165 a ion. j On this basis, the sale today Indicates a loss of ?20 a ton from t h Cosl ol production during the war a total mi the 67,000 tons sold of 11,340,000. Chairman Hurley has stated that in the sale or operation during peace of the fleet built during the war, a substantial sub-stantial writing off would be necessary neces-sary to allow for the increased COB1 of materials and labor while ihe war is in progress. |