The Portland daily press., 1870-02-19

ship lines are ON the SAINT so1,,,< and all arc
Gu ' e amapnnt. collected on mail matter
which they carry. .ort from, Marso;llas ona |
Other chief lines "a. ~ 'eiiies "pu
Fssncb colonies of Algiers; aud one of the fin
cat anpointed lines in the world, Messaeeries
Tmperiale runs direct to Alexandria and Port
SAID, through the Suez Canal, down the Red
Sea. communicating with the French Coouies
off the coast OF Africa, and thence to the lead
ing ports in the Indian Seas direct to the two or
three points which yet remain IN French pos
session, thence to Saigon in Cambodia or Co
.hai.
by means of these lines FRANCE is tapping
me chlef sources of commercial prosperity:
Nortn America. the West Indies and Central
America, and Farther Asia.
: There are besues the great lines indicated
otbers which are also extending rapidly. From
Hamburg and Bremen there are fine appointed
transatlantic lines, which receive aid in heavy
charges for carrying mail matter from Great
Britain and the United States, besides direct
AID irom the North German government. Aus
tria and Italy both have lines sailing from III
este and Vienna, and carrying the mails iot
Mediterranean ports One or both OF , tGnS9
lines are pushing toward India ana nd ON har
Holland has regular line to anu aiso to the
East Indian colonies, and spar goVernments see
the advantanas derived from development of
IN. "lhrousn route" steamship system. Even
inst waking up " tDt Oh
WrsIern material progress, is encouraging the
formation of a mercantile steam marine and
owns and employs in her own waters and in
tsade with China, twenty frst-class steamers,
paying literally Tor the transportation of the
mails between her own ports apd islands.
10 striking contrast with the activity djsplay-
ed by foreign nations is the want of it manifest
ed ty our own. Daring the year ending June
30 1869, there was paid by the United States,
i.r .e.an ,oe mail service: 81 101 ,674, of which
amount Sooo,lo3 was paid to foreign companies.
We nave but two lines of mail steamers run
nlnS on the Atlantic. Ooe semi monthly, to
Hio de JaneiIo from New York, stepping at ST.
Thomas and Pernambuco, the other, Pacific
Mali, fIom New York to Aspiuwall, stopping
AZ Havana. On the Pacific side we have froln
tauama, one liue to Sac Francisco, and from
lnere 10 okohama, aud Shanghai. From the
same port there Is a em-monthly line to Homo
lulu, Sandwich Islands, Que to Vapcover's Is
iaoc, carrying the mails 10 Oregon, British Co.
ssni-monihiy, TO Ma atlan, Mexico. Ia all
not more tbau thirty steamships ale employed
10 thi> service, Of which the Pacific Mail have
fourteen. The British Peninsula and Oriental
C"bbaLy alone e,Dp,oy tor'y-nine large YES
sells, forty six of which are mail carriers for the
Last a Australia.
Thus i: appears that our shipping had declin-
ed absolutely, and relatively with that OF Other
natious; that not only the carrying trade
between foreign natious, but between our
own and foreign countries; the business
FURNISHED by our exports and imports is being
transferred 10 foreign bottoms; and last, and
most important OF all, to our prestige as mar
ltme nation in the influence in the affairs of
tue world, that We have allowed other nations
to possess themselves of the most important
Hnes OF steam navigation connecting distant
parts of the globe.
In consequence of this decline of our ship
ping, the business of ship building in the Uni
ted States is. at the present time, at a complete
.standstill The Yards are empty, the work
men out OF employment, and what capital has
survived the wreck of disaster is either idle or
turned to other channels.
~. CAUSES OF DECLINE.
1t has been urged by some that this depres
Sion OF our navigation interests is the result of
general causes, such as an overproductiOn OF
tonnage and depression in the business OF the
world.
But such causes, if existing, would be tenn
poIary III their operation. III the shipping of
the world were temporarily in excess OF the
business OF the world, the equilibrium would
soon be restored by the natural decrease of
ships, and The ever-advancing increase of COM
meiclal business. The period of prosperity
would, as it always bias, speedily follow that of
depression; the facts stated, however, show a
deeiiue OF our navigation interests running
through decade; period too long to be at
: fectea by mere depression OF business or any
over production of tonnage.
z Moreover, the decline has been wholly in
1.-THE shipping of the United States. While
That OF other nations has been depressed from
/: the causes alluded to, there has not only been
e no absolute decline, bur, as has been shown, a
constant lnciease in tonnage and in the eff
clebcy of their vessels. Iu 1868 there were built
on the Clyde alone 1877 vessels of 1859 ST. tons,
more than one half vi which were steamers
Tue total OF tonnage built and registered IN
tbe United Kingdom in 1868 was 3l6 1877 tons
"a larger amOnnt than was built Ill any one
year pIior to 1868.
1G Is obvious fom the foregoing that the
causes operating to proc uce the present condi-
ton OF the navigation interests are special
such as affect American tonnage only-and
as your committee believe may he readily as
certaned.
{ F. The steady increase Of our shipping engaged
IL The ierels a trade up to the commencement
7ef the rebellion, aud the sudden aud rapid de-
cline from that point, leads directly to the con-
clusion that the decadence is attributable
manly, if not solely, to incidents of the war.
According to the best available data, 919 466
.teasof American shipping disappeared from
orr lists daring the rebellion. OF this amount
III 162 tons were destroy ed by anglo-confeder.
ate pirates, While 803 303 TONS were either sold
70 lore gners or passed nominaIly into their
hands AID obtained the projection vi their
II gs. Here was an actual loss TO the private
oTners of less than five per cent, and a loss to
The nation OF about 81 per cent. OF the total of
American tonnage engaged in the foreign car
Tying trade. The loss this amount of tom
page would not of itself have produced such
, aisastrous results as we have seen had not the
Value Of what remained been virtually Destroy
ed by the peril in which it was placed from
Epgli>h piratical vessels sailing uuder the
Coufederate flg. The risk of sailing under
large share OF ihe carrying trade into foreign
bottoms, principally those of Great Britain
:. That changes which have occurred in naval
atchitecture and IN the materials of which
ships are now being constructed operated an
terror ~ the rebellion aud teuded to produce a
.TeV1yu in The Sh1 I'M of tba
d9potediy true. Ir)n as a building material
1or siIlps was fast superceding WOOD, and screw
steamers were, as we have said crowding out |
san Vessels ON all ocean routes where the car
Tying OF passengers and mails could be COM
sbjped with the general frelghting business
suit by no means follows tbat this revolu-
Loo 10 the character OF the mercantile marine
OF the world would, if peace had continued,
eign nations our relative position as great
maritime Power. Our people, with their
knowledge, sagacity, enterprise, aud aptitude
Tor mercantile and mechanical pursuits would
saoaotless have perceived aud awaited them
Selves of the advantages resu ting flom this
progress In nautical mechanics.
having Invented the steamship and first
navlgated I he ocean with this class of vessels.
aud taken the lead OF all nations in the science
OF naval architecture, that we should If NAV
pc Safe to assume, have held orr way against
tne world 10 competing for supremacy on the |
ocean mad not orr attention been diverted |
from tne pursuits OF peace to the preservation
OF our national existence.
The War not only deprived us of the advan.
tages resulting from this change in the char
ac'er OF commercial vessels and the currents
OF trade effected thereby, but gave an impetus
70 all business connected with ocean nayiga-
on, 10 the bands of our great commercial RI
va, an advantage over US, that but for the war
sne would not have possessed. The business
sous diverted Into new channels could not he |
100 medlately regained by American vessels |
even under the most favorable circumstances.
put he disastrous effects of the war did NOT |
Sesse with the return OF peace. They were
ratner aggravated by the burdens of taxation |
wl'cn the War had left imposed upon all the |
with peculiar hardship uoon this narticnlar in
terest, lnasmuch as it subjects it to the unre
strlcted competition of untaxed foreign rivals
aud this competition must be met not onIv at L
home in our own ports, but in all parts of the |
wCrld.
In a contest so unequal there can be but one |
result, aud that is the t,tal loss of our foreign
Carrying trade and the destruction of our mer-
,hant marine. Under such conditions as these
= rs as Impossible to revive our shipping inter-
'sts, unaded by the Government, as it would |
'e TO build up our manufacturing interests by |
imposing heavy tax upon all raw materials, |
md at the same time admitting all manufc-
ured articles free of duty.
REMEDIES
4ne lact that our commerce is rapidly dsap-
'ea.inS rom tue ocean has been matheuati- |
,a'iy demonstrated. The causes winch hove |
'ronght it TO this condition can be traced viii
considerable Certainty, but the remedy for the |
wi, the means best calculated to restore it, are |
more difficult 10 discover and appiy.
The committee, in endeavoring to find the |