File No. 763.72112/2471
The Consul General at London (Skinner) to the Secretary of State
[Received April 25.]
Sir: I have the honor to submit to the Department the following official figures which illustrate graphically the seriousness of the tonnage situation:
[Page 241]Entered British Ports with Cargoes
| Year: | British tons | Foreign tons |
| 1913_ _ _ _ _ | 32,292,343_ _ _ _ _ | 16,771,890 |
| 1914_ _ _ _ _ | 28,928,893_ _ _ _ _ | 14,131,890 |
| 1915_ _ _ _ _ | 22,861,738_ _ _ _ _ | 10,863,979 |
| First three months: | ||
| 1914_ _ _ _ _ | 7,315,026_ _ _ _ _ | 3,600,332 |
| 1915_ _ _ _ _ | 5,775,434_ _ _ _ _ | 2,234,320 |
| 1916_ _ _ _ _ | 4,736,635_ _ _ _ _ | 2,330,718 |
Cleared from British Ports with Cargoes
| Year: | British tons | Foreign tons |
| 1913_ _ _ _ _ | 40,101,232_ _ _ _ _ | 27,718,469 |
| 1914_ _ _ _ _ | 32,515,814_ _ _ _ _ | 23,452,755 |
| 1915_ _ _ _ _ | 20,380,530_ _ _ _ _ | 19,148,832 |
| First three months: | ||
| 1914_ _ _ _ _ | 9,495,622_ _ _ _ _ | 6,754,435 |
| 1915_ _ _ _ _ | 5,291,303_ _ _ _ _ | 4,860,769 |
| 1916_ _ _ _ _ | 4,083,032_ _ _ _ _ | 4,545,723 |
Mr. R. P. Houston, a member of Parliament and one of the largest ship owners in Great Britain has stated publicly:
I estimate that since the beginning of the war more than 950 ocean-going British merchant vessels, representing about 3,000,000 dead weight carrying capacity—this capacity includes everything on board—have from all causes been lost. Between one third and one half of the nation’s food supply is already coming in neutral ships.
It is stated that 42 British, 10 Allied, and 30 neutral vessels have been lost since March 1, 1916.
I have [etc.]