The Portland daily press., 1882-05-16
THE TAX ON SHIPPING.
ILLUSTRATIONS OF THE BURDENS
OUR VESSELS LABOR UNDER.
Senator Frye's Bill for Their Relief.

lief of shipping, as reported by the Senate
commerce committee. A similar bill has been
reported in the House. They are to be called
up, if possible, this week.
Be iJ enacted that, in the place of the fees
specified in'section 1881 of the Revised Statutes
of the United States, the following fees;shall
be levied and collected from the owners and
masters OF all vessels, except those navigating
the waters of the northern, northeastern and
northwestern frontiers otherwise than by sea:
First, for measuring every vessel in order to
the enrollmentsor licensing and recording the
same. for vessels under 100 tons and not ex-
ceeding 200 tons S.; for vessels OF 200 tons and
not exceeding 400 tons 81: for vessels over 400
tons So. Second, no charges shall be made for
certificates OF enrolment or endorsements on
the same, nor for licenses or Endorsements on
the same; nor for certifying manifests or for
receiving certified manifest and granting a
permit on the arrival of licensed vessel; nor
for receiving certified manifest or granting a
permit on the arrival of q registered vessel;
and no charge shall be made for entering or
clearing vessel engaged in the coasting trade
or in the trade with the Dominion OF Canada.
Sec. 2. That no vessel engaged in commerce
with the Dominion of Canada shall be subject
to tonnage tax or duty, nor shall consular GER
ti6cates be required from the same.
Sec. 3. That the assessment of 40 cents per
month authorized by section 1885 of the Re-
vised Statutes of the United States shall not
hereafter be collected from the master or OWL
ers of vessels engaged exclusively in the coast
ing trade or in fishing, but instead thereof
there shall be collected twenty cents month.
In its report, the committee On commerce
says, on examination Of the statute, that it
finds the fees chargeable to vessels
HAVE BEEN LARGELY INCREASED
both in number and amount during the last
tuaptu uaare mb;1a tho voI,,a ~ vaoool proyar
ty and its earnings have gradually decreased
that while in the coastwise trode, vessels are
compelled to compete with railroads, the FORM
er are loaded down with government taxes
and the latter bear none; that the carrying
trade between the United States and the Do
minion of Canada is almost entirely in En-
slish bottoms, the taxes imposed upon the
American excluding them from any parcicipa-
ton in it. Your committee finds that, before
the war, the fees provided for by law were, for
measurement; If tons and less than 20, 80
cents; If 20 tons and not over 20, 70 cents; il
70 tons and not over 100, 81; over 100, $3.50;
for enrolment, 80 cents; for license, not over
20 tons, % cents; over 20 and not over 100, so
cents; over 100, ST. Registry fees were t .e
same as now. Hospital tax, 20 cents per month
Now they are as follows: The charge for paper
ing new vessel, for enrolment, $1.10; for Ii
cense, 70 cents, if under 100 tons, and
$1.20 if over 100 tons; if register were re-
quired it would cost 1925. The fee ,for meas
uring new vessel is $1.50 for each section. A
vessel of so feet keel or under is divided into
sections; over 100 and not over $50, 10 sections;
above $50 and not over 200 II sections; above
200 and not over $50; Is sections; over $50, 16
sections. Hospital tax, 40 cents per month /;
tonnage tax, 80 cents per ton. There are also
taxes for passenger permits, certified list of
crew, shipping papers, clearance, for bill of
health, entry from, license for, surveyors fees,
permit to land, projections oath, bill Of health
oath, blanks, &c. AS an illustration of
THE BURDENS OUR VESSELS LABOR UNDER
take the schooner f.. A.. Boardman, built at
Calais, Me-, trading with Canada. Her ton
mage is 1924 tons. She pays as follows: Meas
urement and first papers, enrolment and bond,
ment BIB; clearance for the Provinces to load,
register and bond, $225; certified list of crew,
65 cents; clearance for, $3.50; blanks, 40 cents;
bills paid on entry back from the Provinces,
$3.50; hospital money, one month, five men,
50; tonnage, $780, surveyors fec, 20 cents;
permit to land, 20 cents; protection oath, 20
cents; bill of health, 10 cents; change papers
back to coasting, license enrolment and bond,
81. 10; license for, ST. 20; total, $644O Besides,
our coasters taking freight for the Provinces
are compelled to pay this enormous tonnage
tax. There are cases where it takes tenth of
the value of the vessel to pay the taxes. If
this vessel had been built just across the river
at st. Stephens, in the Provinces, the follow
ing are the only taxes she would have paid
Admeasurement, So; hospital fund each year.
1924; blanks, % cents. The Canadian fees for
measurement are as follows: For vessels under
100 tons register, 81 for vessels 100 tons and
not exceeding 200, So; for vessels over 200 tons
and not exceeding 400 tons, 81; for vessels
over 400 tons and not exceeding 1000 TONS ST.
for vessels over 1000 tons, $3.50. Under our
law the fee for the admeasurement of 100 ton
schooner is $15, while under theirs it is 49,
Your committee fails to see any reason for such
difference in fees. Surely there is no such ex-
listing necessity in our treasury as requires the
retention OF the
WAR TAX KNOWN AS TONNAGE"
The bill referred to us provides for, and the
memorial accompanying the same claims the
repeal of, the hospital tax of 40 cents per
month to a man. The memorialists say: The
hospital tax which is $3.50 annually to the
sailor, should be removed altogether The
sailor in one of our coasting vessels pays taxes
at home like other citizens, and when sick he
gets we'll when and as he can. I annex a
statement, as to the benefit the sailor receives
from hospital, by Mr.. Mutt, who for the last
twenty years has served most efficiently as dep
uty collector and collector of the port Of Passa-
maquoddy, and knows what he writes about.
Much has been said about the decadence of
our shipping, and many propositions have
been made for its restoration. Bounties and
postal compensation have been proposed; but,
in the nature of things, nothing of this kind
can be done for coasters. 1t is true these ves-
from 80 tons to 200, but there are large num-
bers of them, and any one looking into the
statistics of tonnage will sec that large pro-
portion of United States tonnage is enrolled
and licensed. Our ships engaged in foreign
trade, whether sail or steam vessels are navi-
gated almost wholly by foreign sailors, while
oar coasters and fishing vessels are very large
ly sailed by our own citizens; and, while it
may with truth be said that the icnrease of our
deep-sea tonnage will have little effect on
coasting, it will surely be found that the in
crease of our coasting tonnage will greatly ben
eft our large shipping. Mr.. Mutt says: sit is
too much to try for, but there is no sense in
the hospital tax. The true way is to treat sea-
men as men, collect nothing from them and
make no hospital provision for them. The
great portion OF the fund Is used up in main
tanning costly buildings and large salaries, and,
like everything else, the marine hospital de-
partment is steadily laboring to enlarge its
powers and the influence OF its
head. That and the revenue ma
rine service should be abolished
lQ6y are Oh no 6dTtuly uS0 W bQ6 people,.
Your committee recognizes the force Of these
but is convinced by the facts laid
before them by Supervising Surgeon-General
that these hospitals are Of immense
service to the Sailors that, while these coasters
do not enjoy their benefit equally with the
crews of vessels engaged in the foreign trade,
yet they cannot dispense with them.
CONTRARY OPINION.
Supervising Surgeon General Hamilton of
the Marine Hospital service says that, mas
much as foreign vessels pay annually 81, 1885,
900 maritime tax to the 1921, 900 paid BY
domestic vessels, the bill for the relief of ship
ping reported in the two houses, and about to
be called up, ought to be entitled bill for the
relief Of British shipping. He says that it is
not true, as stated in the committees report,
that each sailor in the American merchant
marine pays $3.50 a year for the support of
hospital service. Each sailor pays, by law, 40
cents month during actual service, which
usually extends over little moro than seven
months in the year. If each sailor paid the
lull amount required OF him he would pay
little over $3.50 year. 1t is in no sense tax
on vessels. Surgeon General Hamilton says
that it is not true that sailors on coasting YES
sells do not share the benefits Of the hospital
rying trade. They do. The marine hospital
service, he points out, saves the ship-owners
every year large sums OF money which would
otherwise have to be expended for the treat
ment of their sailors in private hospitals. The
exclusion of men on fishing vessels from the
to pay the hospital tax is not neces-
sary. 1t was announced as law by the Sec
rotary of the Treasury Gallatin, who said that
iu asmucb az the marine hnanitals wera ia.