Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1878-04-25
Our Commerce and ships.
sEEAroR BLAIxE's CHESTER SPEECH.

! The following Is iuH report oil MT. bIalhe :
remarks on our foreign commerce and free ships
made at Chester. Pa. on the 2lst.
! During the past 20 years we have made gigantic
strides forward in the settlement OF new States and
Territories ia the vast increase of our agricultural
products in the marvellous construction of our rail-
| wav lines in the Unprecedented growth of our man
ufscturing industries, both in extent and variety.
An while as necessary result OF all these deveI
| opmcnts, the bulk OF our foreign commerce mas
grown enormously, we have witnessed steady
| decline in oar American merchant marine. We
read the statistics of our deCadence with astonlsh
ment and modification. In 1891 there were car
| ried 10 the foreign commerce oil the country TO
and from all our ports, more thsn S3oO,OOlOOO OF
| me, chandse in American built ships, while FOR
eign sbps of all Dationalites carr led but little
over $500 100000. Twenty years pass by, and IN
1871 we find that Americsn-built ships carry less
than $500 600, while ioIeign-built ships cary
about $500 600 900. In other words, the amount
of merchandise carried in our foreign trade IN
| American vessels has fallen more than 10 per
cent in 20 years, while the amount carried IN for
eign-built vessels has increased wel-nigh Tour iod
! in amount. In 1857 American vessels did i've
seventies OF the whole ID 1871 they dld little
more than a quarter part of the whole For
| change so radical and disastrous there must be
deem seated and continuing causes and II IS Ger
| tainlv among the most important duties oil Amer
can statesmanship to ascertain them, ana, posi-
pie, remove them. In the limits of my hrlei re-
mGe to the series of causes which have produced
the unhappy condition of ailiir- now eXs'ng. The
highest point IN of prosperity, pelh'r>, ever
reached nv our merchant maine was in lS5l, 1879,
and $50. But the cessation of the Cnmean war,
| hy which we had largely profted, followed by the
| ranic and plostration of 1851, greatly depressed
our shipping interest, and before we had fairly got
| under way again the war of the rebellion came on !;
| our large cotton trade was suddenly stopped OUT
| seamcn bctook Themselves to our hastily enlarged
| ,ot Ia
flag. but really built and manned by Englishmen,
took 20 the sea and made it j. unsafe for vessels
| bearing the American flag that fieghts by them
! had to pay an enormous premium 10: war risks,
| and consequently merchants were compelled TO
send their cargoe- by neutral vessels IN order TO
insure safety ard decrease expenses These
! causes in active operation with Increasing effect
for -four destructive years, inflicted terrible blow
upon the merchant marine of America, and cor
| respondingly developed and built up that of Our
great commercial riva-England. But the causes
have advcred to, disastrous as they were in their
results, were vet hut temporary in their nature,
| and we should in time have recovered from
them. But during their operation another cause
was still more potent, though silent, and that was
| the rapid transfer of the commerce Of the North
Atlantic to the steam marine And in this field
| Great Britain made rapid strides toward the
control of the foreign commerce As we were max
| ing at home in the dev, opment of our internal
commerce hv the construction of our vast railway
| SN-tem Inueen, lnt Two utNtIOpmeDts seem 10
have kept even pace, well they might, for every
| line of American awav that increased the facility
for bringing our products to the seabO sri by the
same ratio increased the demand for Brti,h-built
steamships to transport them to foreign markets.
OUR RAILWAY DEVELOPMENT.
And just here it is worthy of observation that as
people during this trial period of our CONNER
cal life, we have expended every imaginable eff
fort TO huild up internal commerce nv the CON
struc'on Of railways. Individuals poor as well
az rich, farmers as well merchants and
bankers and manufacturers. have all united with
their cash, and then they have pledged corporate
credit for their loans and then they induced towns
snd townships, horoughs and cities counties and
States, and finally the National Government to a,d
in the huge incaculahle task of building so 900
miles of railway within our bOrders-more than
can he found in all the world besides; aud vet
with all this effort, unreasonable ard unprecedent-
ed, to bring the products of our praties and our
valleys of our mountains and our hines to the
seaboard we quietly abandon all effort to control
its transport abroad and cody resign it, with all its
wealth of profit and power, to the alien and the
stranger. From 1916 to 1871 Congress passed 81
acts to aid in the construction of railways aud has
given most lavishlv and munifcentlv Of the pub-
he domain 10 that end, but both Congress and the
people, all Of rs together, have apparently folded
our arms and witnessed the transfer to foreign
countries of a commerce which i our birthryht
and whose control is worth more, annually to our
country in hard dollars than the entire interest on
our rational debt. The fore ign steamship lines
that run between New York city and Enropcan
ports represent as great a carrying capacity for
freight, in addition to the Messenger uafic az
could be afforded by 500 sailing vessels Of 900
tons burden each. Add to these the foreign lines
that run to Portland, to Boston, to Baltimore to
New Orleans, and you see how the "a ling yes
sci has TO so large an extent been driven from the
channels of the North Atlantic the aigest
and wealthiest commercial field of the world.
And when we conte mplate thi. condition of
affairs, the doctrinare of Free Trade steps for
ward with his ready suggestion and saws, "Give
Us free ships and we will at establish steam.
ship lines between our ports and Europe" The
genuine free trader never believes that ANYTHING
can he produced in this country as cheap or a,
good as it can he found abroad and if Won offer
him for siXtv-eight dollars currency per ton,
steamship built on the Delaware. he will try to
persuade you that one built on the Clyde fol four
teen pounds per ton, is vast deal chearer though
the American iroa used in our steamship il ad
United to he of better quality than that employed
IN English wards.
But if YOU crafty the within of the free trader,
and permit American registers to underlie and the
American flag TO float over any ship, wherever
built, what have you gained Can YOU run these
lines on the basis Of free trade against the great
English and French lines that are aided and up.
held by tLer governments
SUBSIDIES or FOREIGN LINES.
The free trader would persuade Won that fore ign
nations no longer aid their steam ship enterprises
why, gentlemen, this is most serious mistake
England has never Withdrawn aid from her steam.
ship lines until she had enabled them to DEFY, if
not to destroy competition. When the Cunard
Line was first established, neatly 81 wears ago
England pad It, projectors for mail service an
allowance Of $500 600 per annum if mistake not
and this was continued, believe for the long
period Of 70 years, down to and including 1866 !;
and for the last 10 years England has paid mail
allowances 10 her various steam ship lines amount
lag in the aggregate to so 900 600 sterling or an
average Cf 900 600 gold dollars every wear. and
France, emerging from her war with Prussia
wounded, bruised, bleeding, with two great prov
lnces torn from her, with the great expenses of
the conflict 70 ray with "A superadded war ndem.
nifty of 81 ,OO0,OOOO00 France, with all these dis
a-trous aud deadening di-couragements, main
iains her great steamship lines over all the world
by paving them for mail service, an allowance of
more than % 100000 francs OF more than 81. 800
900, being equivalent to SO per mile sailing dis.
lance. Even Italy, which we scarcely recognize
asa maritime power paws weary to her steam
ship lines more than 5000 900 francs
THE KENNEBEC AND THE DELAWARE.
do not wish to give this audience the slightes,
encouragement 10 believe our government will
aid the establishment of steam ship lines in any
direction. There is undoubtedly strong opposi-
ton to It among a large portion Of our people
among some from principle. among Others from
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