The Portland daily press., 1870-11-30
I. e Il 1'l2. LESS.
Wednesday Morning, November so, 1870.


The President a I'D the shipping hnsefes''
1t is said that the President has compieteu
his message and that large portion oi IL ~
devoted to the subject OF the revival OF the
American merchant marine. 1t will be re-
membered that Gen. Grant has taken great
interest from the first in the subject OF the de-
cline of commerce, ard that he made the re-
port of Mr.. Lynch's committee The occasion
of a special message to Congress in which he
earnestly recommended the passage of the
bills reported by that committee. Tae bills,
however, were defeated by combination OF
Western jealousy, of New England, New York
importing interests and ignorance and indt-
ference everywhere. The efforts of Mr..
Lynch were proportional to the great impor-
tance of the subject, and elf Troy could have
been saved by any ARM" his would have gain
ed the victory. But no agreement could be
reached on any measure for the relief of AN
interest on the prosperity of which so much
depends. The New York plan of admitting
foreign-built vessels to the privilege OF Amer
can registry was offered as an amendment to
to Mr.. Lyneh's bill and received large vote
in its favor, but, fortunately for New England
and especially Tor Maine, it was defeated. But
in the very last hours of the session, the war
between France and Prussia having broken
out, the President, undoubtedly actuated by
the most patriotic motives, and desiring that
the United States might avail Itself in legiti.
mate way OF the opportunity offered by Euro
pean troubles to regain its lost ascendency on
the seas, sent another special message 10 Con-
gress recommending that an act to permit the
purchase of foreign vessels by our citizens be
passed. This suggestion was not acted upon,
and the whole matter of the revival of Amer
lean commerce remains as if was in the be-
ginning, except that the exhaustive labors
and profound research of Mr.. Lynch have
thrown upon the subject flood of light, so
that those who approach it hereafter will have
all the attainable material tor the prosecution
of their work ready to their haLds. It'll not
too much to say that no other important topic
now before Congress has been the object of so
thorough an investigation and is susceptible
of so clear an understanding as the shipping
interest.
Whether Mr.. Lynch proposes to continue
his labors in this important field, or whether
he regards the result OF last session as final, We
are not informed. But we are very sure that
both he and all the Senators and Representa-
tives nom Maine will put forth every energy
to defeat the success-of the proposition to
place foreign-built vessels under the Ameri-
can flag which, it is said, is to be second
time earnestly pressed upon Congress by the
President in his forthcoming message. The
Executive has in this matter not unnauraly
failed to regard the interest of the whole
country, and has allowed himself to be per-
suaded that what would be acceptable to the
advantageous to the country at large. But
this is a serious mistake. Such measure
would be the final blow to the sAipbailding
interest. Such legislation would properly be
called san act for the encouragement of for
eign shipbuilding." So far as the feryent hope
that America may once more be power on
the ocean is mere sentimental desire to see
the stars and stripes floating over a great
number of vessels it would be grat6ed by
issuing American papers to such vessels as
aliens might sell, actually or ostensibly, to
our merchants. The commerce thus revived
would be nominally American but really for
eigD. The real revival of commerce fer
which the people pray is commerce carried
on by Americans in vessels built by American
labor in American yards-commerce in which
American capital is invested and in which the
profits of the business go into American
pockets