The daily morning Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Oregon) 1883-1899, 1888-12-19
PORTLAND COMMERCIAL ECONOMY
Would Make Ships Leave All Their
Money in Portland.

A River Pilot" in a communica
tion to the Oregonion, says:
eff the pilotage was abolished, the ex.
pense to ships would be much more thar
now, for the loading draft would be fur
nisbed by the tug captain, who would
naturally make the work easy for him.
self by giving smaller draft and enable
him to tow the ship down in one day in,
stead of two or three, enriching the tug
company BY several hundred dollars, by
saving time and having more lighterage
to carry down river on their boats. To
all this extra expense the pilotage charge
would bear very small proportion, and
it seems to me that the abolishment ot
river pilotege is not done to benefit the
tions doing the towing and lightering
They could manage it much better fol
themselves If there were no pilots to in
terfere."
The Oregontaa replies sditorially
as follows:
"To the general observer river pilotage
seems only an additional charge upon
commerce, which ought, therefore, to be
abolished. Towage must be had, and
the tug can pilot the ship as well as tow
it. The protest against giving over the
commerce of the river entirely to the
towing and Tightening companies ap-
pears to be nothing to the point, since
what we are trying to do is to clear COM
merce of the charge of separate pilotage.
The system should be arranged for the
benefit of commerce, without regard to
the private interests of ineividuals. We
want it arranged so that the fewest pos
sible number of men will be able to levy
charges on the commerce Of the river"
Very naturally the Ore9onian sug-
Rests that the proper thing to be done
is that parties between Portland and
the sea, who make their headquarters
outside of Portland. should be sacri-
feed in this misdirected effort at
economy. There is no doubt that
by loading vessels light 80 there is
no danger of grounding, tugs can
take vessels down the river with
out a pilot all right-sometimes
But it is a fact beyond dispute,
that il the pilot loads his vessel one
foot deeper than the master Of the
tug would load the same vessel il he
was to tow her without a pilot, it is
still cheaper for the vessel to pay the
pilot and go down the river loaded a
foot deeper, as the lighterage on the
cargo for that foot in depth
would often exceed the pilot charges
several times.
Ifthere were no troublesome bars or
crooked channels in the river and the
water was deep enough to allow oi
loading vessels to their full capacity
then there would be no need OF pilots
from Astoria to Portland. Portland
would be deep seaport, and there
would be no need of Astoria. But
these obstinate "ifs" are in the way.
1t is not long since there was de.
mend in Portland that the bar pilots
should be dispensed with as worse
than useless. But it seems that
something makes them now think
that bar pilots are necessary. ii
these newspaper mariners will take
an intelligent pilot aboard and cruise
around in search of the place where
economy should begin, they will
bring up right ut home and come to
anchor there. Agents commissions,
storage, wharfage, etc.. all cost YES
sells money. That money helps to
enrich Portland. 80 of course reduc.
ton should not be suggested there.
When the Astoria and South Coas,
railroad is completed, Astoria will
show the inland economists how to
fully load vessels without having
them stick on river bars.