The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1881-04-21
Shall Americans Build Ships ?


Shall Americans Build Ships?
This is the question Mr.. John Roach
asks in the May number of the North
American Review, and he answers it en-
phatically in the affirmative. lie says
by reason of our position and products
we ought to he the first ocean carving
nation in the world. TO become that we
must build ships. National ambition,
prosperity and selt-defence alike are in
volved in the answer, Yes" Mr.. Roach
shows tharW began as a ship building ma
ton and that our progress in that direction
was 50 great that England, jealous Of us
as ocean rivals made war upon our com
mcrce for the war Of 1872 was nothing
else. Twenty years later our tonnage
had more than doubled, and in 1850 it
was 3,3}5, 454 tons and we bad sold over
100000 tons of ships abroad besides. We
built the fastest and cheapest wooden
ships, and the we'll known Yankee clip
pers were seen in every port all over the
world. In 1860 We had 5,;}50, 900 tons,
and Of our total foreign trade S437, $780,
600 was carried in American bottoms,
against Sl6O,O57 900 in foreign ships.
Then came our civil war and Englands
opportunity.
Up 10 this time the carrying trade of
the world had been done by wooden
ships. England introduced the iron
steamship. She encouraged the large
Investment Of capital required by estab-
fishing steamship lines with ample mail
compensation; thus skilfully opening at
once new markets, and by increased
trade creating new demand for ships
She also gave naval contracts to private
shipbuIlders, to enable them to build I'D
IRON ship yards. Since 1887 she has paid
S222 800, 600 in mail conversations and
bounties to encourage her capitalists
to invest in fast mail steamships, and to
discourage competition, and this policy
has virtually given her the power to con
troll the commerce Of the world, and has
taken the carrying trade of the North
Atlantic out of our hands. The civil
War OF course placed us at diSadyan-
tage but no steps have been taken since
to enable us to compete with our great
maritime rival as we had previously done
The greater part Of Mr.. Roach's article
IS devoted 10 exposing the absurdity of
the free ship arguments, which have al
ready been pretty thoroughly ventilated.
Mr., Roach thinks that nation that can
not build ships cannot afford to own them.
He says
No nation that did not build its own ships ever
held the first place on the England has more
than sJ70,000,0G0 invested in ships She could
not afford to own such fleet had she been obliged
to buy 1t in foreign ship yards and send that
amount OF capital out of her own country. To
MAINTAIN such fleet costs It least ten per cent of
the whole value. or so 600 900 year Could any
nation stand such drain of gold that To re
gain our lost carrying trade We ought to invest
100000 600 in ships within few years. and to
increase investments from year to year Could we
send that capital out Of the country without injury
to every interest in it
France and Germany have shown what disad-
vantages non shipbuldng nations labor under
Tney have had the full privilege of free ships.
and IN all other conditions of competition with
England have been equal, T.. cheap capital and
labor, rates OF taxation and mail compensation to
steamship lines The following shows what ton
mage these nations own compared with that of
England the United States and Norway
Nation. No of ships. Total Tonnagp
England ---.-......--2 q ,S97 9,5lS0OO
United States----..-.. 6,43l , 643, 600
France 1906 g29 600
Germany. .-.--..... 3 403 Ig3 600
Norway ..----...-. Abb 443 900
These figures official and speak for them
selves. Little Norway, building her own ships.
owns more tonnage than either France or Ger
many, and we own more than France and Germany
combined in spite of all distractions | leave it
for the free ship advocate to explain these curl
Gus facts lie cannot well say that France and
Germany do not need more ships for they do not
carry one third of their own products Besides.
France has just awakened to the necessary rela
ton between ship building and ship owning, and
mas passed bill to encourage ship building at
home by Offering bounty for every ton built in
France for use in the foreign trade.
The concession of free material which
the free ship advocates are willing to
make amounts to very little, as Mr.. Roach
shows clearly. Ninety-ti five per cent. of
the cost of ship is for labor, and as labor
is better paid in this country than in
England the American ship costs more
than the English ship. Mr.. Roach esti-
mates the difference in an iron ship at
fifteen per cent; but other things being
equal the first cost would not prevent a
successful competition with England. But
now when we undertake to put capital
into the foreign trade we bring it into
competition with the capital of other
peoples who have more favorable cond |
tons OF interest, taxation and labor. We |
do not build ships for the foreign trade
because they can not be run proftably |
under existing laws in competition with |
the ships of other nations. But, in our
coastwise trade, where capital is on an
equal footing, there has been no lack of
ships and on the principal lines iron
of the most approved and
improved build are running to-day Give
our ship builders an equal chance, and |