Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1886-05-23
FREE SHIPS UNDER SAIL.
DJTNN'S BILL SETS THE HOUSE
SPINNING YARNS.

Nautical and Comm eroial Lore Run on
st the Rate of14 Knots AN HOur-Mr.
uingley Predict the Death of the Ship
Building Industry IL tho Btil Passes.
WASHINGTON, May 22.-After passing
a few private measures this morning the
House went into committee of the whole,
with Mr.. Crisp in the chair, for general
debate on the DaGQ free ship bill. Mr..
Dunn submitted an argument in sup
mort OF the bill which would repeal the
restrictive law which worked great in
Jury to the people of the country. 1t had
been reacting most dlsastrously to the
general public good, and especially to the
shipping of the United States engag ed in
the foreign carrying trade. The citizens
of the United States had passed out OF
competition, because they, OF all nations,
were denied by their own laws the prlYi-
lege of purchasing ships where they could
buy them cheapest and having them reg
isteged as vessels Of their own country.
A GAME OF NATIONAL POKER.
He passed on then to an attack upon
the policy winch the nations had entered
uDon OF granting bounties to steamship
c6mpanies and which he characterized as
a game of national poker. France gave
some millions: Germany saw that and
went some millions better; Italy, without
money, mad to leave the game, and the
United States was asked to raise both
France and Germany. The contest which
had been entered into by the nations
would be fought to the universal bank
ruptcy OF the tax payers Of the nations.
There would be bOunty-gatherers strapped
on the back of every tax payer. Such a
policy must fail.
DEPRECATED BY DINGLEY.
Mr.. Dingley, of Maine, deprecated such
a radical change in the policy of the gov
eramen5 as was contemplated in the
pending bill. The policy which it was
proposed to overthrow, had been adopted
bv the founders of the government, and
had continued for hundred years with
out criticism until very recently. 10
pass this bill would be to discriminate
urjustly against the ship building inter-
est. should it become law, and should
the Morrison tariff bill be passed, the only
complete manufactured product which
would be placed on the free list would be
a fully equipped vessel, 80 per cent. OF
which would be labor.
THE ALLEGED EFFECT
If fully equipped British vessel should
be allowed tOregister under our laws then
from that hour the ship building industry
was doomed, and the owners of our ship
yards, and many thousand skilled work
men employed by them, would be irretrieV-
ably driven into what we're already over
crowded industries. 1t was an apprecla-
tion of this fact which had led 1O0,0O Ia
bO-ers from one end of the country to the
other to demonstrate against the passage
Of such a bill as this. The bill should
be entitled, a bill to close American ship
yards and provide for the construction
hereafter IN British yards Of whatever
vessels may be needed for the American
merchant marine.
Mr.. Romeis, Of Ohio, confined his re-
marks in opposition to the bill to cOnsid-
GRAFTON of the injury which it would
work upon the ship building industry on
the Northern lakes.
Mr.. Buchanan, of New Jersey, opposed
the bill. He did not believe that the
spirit of patriotism would be fostered if
the American flag fiOated over English
built ships. That might do for gentlemen
on the other side, but as for him give him
an American built ship, with an Amerl-
can master, manned by American sea-
men, floating the American flag over an
American cargo. (Applause on the Re-
publican side.) Pending further debate
the committee rose.