SHIPBUILDING IN IRELAND.-Whatever may be said of other branches of Irish
industry, its shipbuilding may, it would appear, compare not
unfavourably with that of any other part of the kingdom. The Clyde
claims pre-eminence, but Messrs. Harland and Wolff, of Belfast, have
latterly shown that it is by no means necessary to go to the Clyde for
fine specimens of naval architecture. During the past ten years, in the
fleet of the White Star Line of Atlantic steamers, the firm have launched
vessels which for strength, beauty, and speed, have not been surpassed
by the productions of other shipbuilding yards. For the improved
accommodation and shorter duration of the Atlantic voyage, passengers to
and from the New World are largely indebted to the steamers of this
line, which were all built in Ireland, as already stated. And in the
interval which has elapsed since the Belfast builders launched the first
vessels of this fleet, the unvarying success of steamer after steamer
built by them for the Peninsular and Oriental, the West India and
Pacific, the British Shipowners', and other companies, shows that
Belfast has secured a firm hold on the shipbuilding trade. Messrs.
Ismay, Imrie, and Co. (White Star Line), who have already expended
£2,000,000 in building steamers at Belfast, have now arranged with
Messrs. Harland and Wolff for the construction of two other steamers and
a sailing ship---the latter to be the largest sailing ship afloat. In
the autumn, the builders completed and delivered to Messrs. Ismay,
Imrie, and Co. a large and powerful steel steamship, called the Arabic,
and expected to be able soon to deliver the sister ship, the Coptic.
These vessels are excellent specimens of naval architecture. When the
steamers now contracted for are delivered, Messrs. Harland and Wolff
will have built for Messrs. Ismay, Imrie, and Co. 60,000 tons of
shipping, and Belfast will have benefited to the extent of nearly
£2,500,000 sterling. These facts possess a national significance, and
suggest what might well be done in other industries in Ireland,
likewise.