U.S.S. Milwaukee, under the command of Rear-Admiral Julius C.
Townsend, arrived here to-day to be present at the forthcoming opening of the huge new graving dock. The visiting warships moored close to the naval base.—
United Press. the base, although there were a number of deaths from malaria in the early stages.
Dificulties were many. One of the greatest problems was the building of a graving dock in swampy land, which was so soft that 34 miles of piles had to be driven to provide solid faundations for the dock, buildings, crane tracks and railways.
Metal for the 1,000,000 cubic yards of concrete swallowed up in the base had to be brought four miles through the jungle and crossed the Straits of Johore in two great train ferries.
Now, where once was nothing but swamp and plantation is a great area of park land, with the graving dock, quays, workshops, railways, roads, barracks, bungalows and oil tanks.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.