Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1881-02-24
Plain Statement Of 4 Patent Fact.

Plain Statement Of 4 Patent Fact.
Senator Beck recently made an ex-
haustive and able lar &ument in the Sem
ate in favor of lekislation looking
toward the revival of American COM
merce: It is not a partisan question,
and Senator Beck did not discuss it
from partisan stand point He SIM
ply cited the mournful but ineOntro-
vertible fact that American commerce
as dead. and urged the measure which,
in his Judgment. is necessary to revive
lt. The merchant marine II 4he
United States is a thing ofs tho past,
and the American flag has almost dis
appeared from the seas. When the
american traveller abroad visits for
ieign ports and sees them crowded with
shipping, he looks in vain among the
flags for the stars and stripes. Our
carrying trade is almost entirely in the
hands of other nations, the products III
the county are transported across the
ocean in foreign ships, and the money
I'VE pay for transportation goes to ems
rich the nations of the Sold world.
Once we had fair share of the worlds
commerce, but now we have none:
ionce we had sixty or seventy thousand
sailors, but now we have none; once
ed respect, If it did not
navy has become a. disgrace that
only brings the American flag and name
into contempt among the nations Of the
world. All these changes have come
about under Republican policy and in
tho fvDo nfxyx WOO iv, which ho
lican party has been in power in this
country. But these are not partisan
statements made for political effect.
They are but plain statements of patent
facts that are not denied and can not be
denied by either Republican or Demo-
Ecrat. The simple truth is that the
United States has become, under the
policy of the Republican party. coun-
try absolutely destitute of merchant
marine. and that its commercial inter-
ests sleep the sleep of death. The
question is. what shall be done to rem
edy thissdeplora state of affairse I'm
less It is remedied it is idle to hope for
any sound or lasting National prosperi-
ty. without commerce, no nation un-
der the circumstances under which the
American Republic exists can expect to
prosper. We must as a matter of ne
cessity by some means rebuild the COM
mercialS marine OF the country. Two
plans were put forward, one by Senator
Beck, and one by Senator Blaine, voicing
the policies of their respective parties.
Senator Beck suggests free ships, while
Senator. Blaine recommends subsidies
to American ship builders. s''Let enter
prise be free" said Mr.. Beck. "Let
whoever wants ship to engage in the
carrying trade, buyit where he can buy
it the cheapest. II our merchants can
buy ships on the same terms as the
merchants of foreign countries do they
will go into the carrying trade them
selves and American commerce willre-
build itself by natural process" ''Tax
the people, says Senator Rlaine,gt' and
raise money to substitute American ship
builders. Hire American shipbuilders
to build ships by granting them Gov
eminent subsidies These are the
plans proposed and they are worthy of
serious consideration. Whatever may
be said in favor of protecting American
industries cannot apply in this case.
American shipDuilding as an industry
does not exist, and therefore does not
call for protection. It is not a sound
public policy that brushes an industry
out of existence under the pretense of
protecting it. The revival of commerce
is of infinitely more Importance to this
country than that few American ship
builders should have the exclusive
privilege of making ships Cleveland
Plain. Denler -