On the Rocks

Seatrain Lines goes bankrupt

Seatrain Lines, a troubled cargo-ship operator, would have foundered years ago without the aid of a friendly and very wealthy benefactor: the U.S. Government. While an emotional national debate erupted over $1.5 billion in federal loan guarantees for Chrysler, Seatrain has quietly received nearly $450 million in Government financial assistance since 1972. Despite the federal largesse, however, Seatrain last week finally ran on the rocks. Three Italian companies who together were owed more than $1 million by Seatrain pushed it into bankruptcy proceedings.

Seatrain's problems began in 1969, when it started constructing large oil tankers at New York's old...

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