The U.S. came out of World War II with a swollen freight fleet and a passenger fleet shrunk to half the prewar size. When shipping companies laid plans to build up the passenger fleet from 350,000 tons, a lowly fifth among the nations of the world, they found themselves stranded by high building costs. Even with the $178 million which Congress had voted in shipping subsidies, shippers were afraid to take a chance on the big, fast ships which they need to compete on the North Atlantic and the U.S. needs for defense...
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