The Portland daily press., 1884-12-29
OUR MERCHANT MARINE.
G6inuafssicnsr 5aryis Patterns Annual
EsepSti.

| operation at nearly the same date with the or
! ganization of this bureau in July last has not
| yet been in force sufficient time to show the
| effect upon shipping that may be expected to
| result from its various measures OF relief. The
unfortunate period Hf depression in the ship
| ping business in the world, broGght on 70 Q
| great extent by over production in the yards Of
| Great Britian will probably tend to delay still
| farther the expected benefits" The commits
sioner then gives q sketch Of the history of
| American and English shipping and at the
| conclusion Of it says: "The American rnsr-
| chant marine OF the present time, although it
| has not IN later years kept peace with that OF
| Great Britain; is second only to hers. and
| Notwithstanding the disadvantages American
| shipbuilders have had to contend against the
| high character Of their vessels has been main
| tsiped. Cur wooden ships are probably the
| best and safest vessels aHoat; and the compsra-
| lively new iron shipbuiliing works Of the
| country are beginning to turn out steamships
| and other iron craft of very high class. "We
are apt to talk as II we had no ships" said Hon.
W. T. Frye in speech to the SENATE April
| 30, 1884, land you would judge from tie ordi-
| nary discussion in Congress that there was
| no such thing as an American ship today.
| Why, Mr.. President, we have the finest coast
| wise trade in size, in ahipsj in material, in
| men, in disciplinej in comfort, in coevenience,
In prosperity,that there is in the whole world"
| And the Senator might with equal truth have
| said the same of the fine fleet of sailing ships
| engaged in the California wheat trade. When
| the guano trade, which gave employment to O
large number OF ships for period of 20 years.
| collapsed with the outbreak of the Peru Chilli
war, our vessels went into the grain trade that
had been springing up between our Pacific
ports and Europe, and this trade which. .has
since grown to great importance employees the
largest and best equipped fleet of wooden
ships in the world. Letters with tables COM
piled unoficialIq are annexed to the report
showing the relative performance aud risk by
vessels of different nationalities. The figures
given appear, the commissioner says, to prove
that American wooden ships do their work the
most successfully of any vessels engaged in
the particular trade mentioned.
The wood sailing ships of this country are
thought to snrpsss any others afoat in point of
safety and it is mistake to accept the opinion
that the day of wooden ships is entirely past.
Twosthirds of the tonnsge CT the world is prob
ably still composed of wooden vessels, while
their numerical preponderance is much great=
er. Notwithstanding the fact that for screw
steamers and many other kinds of craft iron
possesses certain advantages and the money
invested in steamers of various kinds from
full power and auxiliary for sea service to
the swift passenger boats that ply along our
coasts and up and down our rivers has here.
tofore been considerable aud the outlay in that
direction continues to increase. Most of these
vessels are constructed of wood.
In round numbers the total number of our
sea-going marine was on June 80, 1884, num-
Der OF vessels $685., tons 3,700,404. OF this
number 422 OF COL 1856 tons were steamers and
the rest sailing vessels, but the entire number
of vessels of all kinds under our flag on June
30, 1884, was "a 0S2, measuring 4,271 ,228 tons.
1t is difficult to estimate the value OF the ma
tion's floating property with any great degree
Of precision, but II We adopt the rule hereto
fore used, of estimating the value Of tonnage
on Great Britain. allowing 10 per cont for the
difference between wooden and iron vessels,
the value Of the total tonnage of the United
States is at present $3.50, 1000, 600; the value Of
the sea goi1g feet is 22,500, 600. Compared
with the preceding year, the total tonnage of
the country exhibits an increase Of 80, ,742 tons
enrolled, and ths licensed tonnage having in
crossed 80 GIG tons, while the registered ton
mage has increased 2, ,126 tons.
Mr.. Patten says that 1.-THE credit of passing
the first great measure OF relief, with view to
the restorationsof Am-ricsn shipping, is due to
the Ash Congress. The relief afforded by this
act with the exception Of Sec II, which pro-
vides for drawback on foreign materials used
in building vessels) applies chiefly to the sail
ing OF ships and the removal OF the burdens
incurred in navigation. These different meas
ures, which had been loudly called for by the
ship-owners of the country for the last fifteen
years, constitute in the aggregate an amount
sufficient, it is thought, to place an American
sailing ship on an equality with vessels of 9TH
or flags in so far as the expenses OF navigation
are concerned.
The shipping act passed dnrng the last ses-
sion of Congress has effected great relief to
ship owners by the removal of certain burdens
they had to fear. As has been said, it puts
our ship on footing with foreign ships after
she is afoat A counter part of that wise
enactment would seem to be a measure equal
izing the cost of construction of iron ships,
business that is comparatively new in this
country. 1t is important that this country
should be prepared to compete for the supply
OF the world with ships, and equally import
ant that our ships should start with the same
advantage their COmD0titorS 6UiOy,
At the time OF the last census in Europe,
C88l) statistical inquiries were made in respect
TO the yearly value of the oversee commerce
of the globe and it was found to approximate
ing at the rate of 70 per cent each decade. OF
this commerce Great Britain was estimated to
control nearly one-half, while the toll which
other nations paid her for doing Carrying trade
was thought to be equal to nearly per cent Of
the value OF the earth's products. In point Of
fact no branch of the worlds business,
excepting perhaps the railway inter-
est, has been increasing of late years
more regularly or more rapidly tbau that OF
shipping. The fact that the farmer has had
such great success in this country while our
ocean carrying trade has been passing to
foreign shores is doubtless owing to a certain
extent to circumstances beyond our control,
but it cannot be denied that the prosperity of
our railroads may be traced to the fostering
care and assistance of the government, while
interests that extend beyond the shore have
been left to struggle unaided against the
wealth and national advantages o. competi-
tors whose prosperity represents in great part
the actual losses sustained by the American
merchant marine. 1t is claimed that with the
facilities they now enjoy and the experience
acquired, our shipbuilders are able to construct
wooden vessels as cheaply as maritime ar
chitects of any other country aud are able to
compete with the world in that branch of ship
building industry.S
The mi isaiOnar nnan6a tho .affarius
of bounties sufficiently large to encourage the
construction by private enterprise of fleet of
first class powerful mail steamers which could
be used with good effect in a time Of war as
armed cruisers and transports. A strong srgu-
ment is also made in favor of having Ameri-
can seamen for American Ships the crews of
which are now composed manly of foreigners
On this subject the commissioner says: "The
sailor is provertially loyal to the flag under
which he sails and our ships being accustomed
ts pay higher wages than those OF other conn
tries, have an advantage in respect to selection
OF good crews, but the gradual falling of of
native American seamen is cause for regret IL
not OF alarm. The business of mariner does
not offer 80 much encouragement as it former
ly did under the flag, and in order to induce
American lads to follow the sea for profession
some incucement might be offered With great
advantage to the merchant service rs well as
q national provision for trained seamen. A
system of apprenticeship is recommended to
can merchant vessels engaged in foreign
trade might receive certain fixed sum from
the government for the support and instruc-
tfon of apprentices carried on board for a stated
term of years. Such system would, it is
thought, do much to improve the average
standard of American seamen and repay the
national expense in affording an available
corps of seafaring men who could be relied mp
on in case of an emergency TO help man the
navy. "a pre- fOrnnd act embodying the Drin. /.
cipal requirements of such q law is annexed. J
Another impediment to the efficiency OF our
merchant service is that a sailor is not gov
erned by laws that can be enforced at all times
for his protection and the same time punish
him for offences he commits which dsmoralizo
the discipline Of ship.
The Commissioner recommends that no
change be made In the present law regulating
ships lights until the subject has been fully
discussed and the proposed changes approved
by all the maritime governments. He also
recommends that the international Isignal code
be legalized by an act of Congress.
The report contains great many letters, pro
and con, on the question of advAnce wages to
seamen, which are submitted, without COM
ment for the consideration of Congress. Re-
ferriDg to the frequency of collisions at sea the
Commissioner says, "The losses to life aud
property from this cause shows the necessity
for an international code of rules to govern the
approach of vessels to each other at sea. This
code should be universally pied and under
stood" He also says il a system of courts of in