Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1889-05-16
URoHAIS AMERICA
shc Can Heat the World ~ s,y.n
Even flhanr,


hditor 9dsstts d Journal. In full bella,
.na' enmRhtenment upon the subject OF
,he oeeline OF the American merchant
marine, and the best means to BRING
ABOUT its restoration, ia but part Of ths
cempaign OF education which was insn.
gursted upon the advent OF Grover Cleve
lana famous message, and which "a stiu
going on, tho writer desires the priyileoa
Oh answering the question which iorws
the basis OF Mr.. Btone's last articIa
AFTER defining hts position In regard ~
nus interest In shipping affairs, and ds.
olaring his aversion to the propaontion n,
any pet scheme or theory relative 10 tba
merits OF free trade or profession. he pro,
duces Btatistios which show that dnrino,
tue last thirty years our forejon co,n /,
merce has considerably mora than
doubled, and that while al the beOinnina
OF tns period upwards OF rs per cent Of
tnis trade was carried In American INT
toms, o. this time less than lG per cent il
mus transported. He inquiries, IL the
ponoy or protection ia responsible for
tnis change, how II ia that II does moi
SNOW upon the trade itself and not upon
ths transportation interests alone Ue
ASKS for plain answer and in perfectly
good faith. Ft0''y
Let ne first look at the history Of ,be
birth and development of our merobant
marine. II was no dollhouse plant, and
nsa never been weak sucking Of an
lnIAut drawing susienance from the
puolio treasury, but rather the healthy
development OF On industry which was
puiided upon the broad basis OF courage,
ABILITY and . necessity arising from nat.
ufai causes alone. Very early in our
national life we became commeroisl
people because We were in the possession
OF good business qualifications. The
necessities Of our commercial life de.
manded q merchant marine-the support
OF Q ses-faring population. The qualities
OF manhood in the American charactp ~
which had already asserted itself, Iound
In sea-faring ample room for growth aud
expansion, and we became q sea. farinc
people; one following the other as nat,
urally aa water seeks its level II would
be useless to repeat history In this artioe
which is 30 widely known. American
manhood placed its indelible stamp upon
tnia calling az IL has always done, and
Will always continue TO do, upcr
any calling which II enters. With
the indomitablo skill and pluok which
tne American seaman has always shown
himself to possess, and, upon even terms
with all the world, our rise was free, nat.
ural and rapid. When the crucial test Of
our powers was made by the war which
we were compelled to wage in defence Of
these interests, there was no failure upon
our part to demonstrate our ability TO
cope with-yes, even excel the mistress
OF the seas, eveu.hsnded and upon her
own terms. We continued to grow from
goo1 20 better, until the palmy days OF
tne nttiea when our ships even had their
choioe OF cargoes and almost dared to
name their price. At this time we had
reached the position Of second In the
number Of vessels sailing undsr our flag,
but first, understand, in profit derived
from dollar for dollar OF investment,
Our officers and men were better men,
higher mentally, socially, better fed, bet.
ter paid, better treated generally than
those OF any other nationality. Why tho
decline?
In his summary Of the causes Mr.. Stone
gives expression 10 sons truth, but not
the whole truth. The causes ante. date
the time which he names, and are far
more remote. Our neighboF, England,
long before the time, awoke to the fact
that the Yankee was fast encroaching
apon her boosted supremacy of the seas.
II she wished to maintain II she must
bestir herself and light for It. She was
handicapped, however, by her inability
TO SECURE timber at price which would
enable her to build wooden ships in com.
petition with MS, aud, indeed, timber
equal in quality and quantity 10 ours at
any price. Under the pressure OF ex-
treme necessity she was compelled TO
find some suitable substitute or else step
down and out. To give up her merchant
marine and the position which it occupied
among the nations was to give up the COM
mercial supremacy, and to let 20 Of this
was TO surrender her all. At this stage
OF affairs sbe turns toward her own
natural resources, and iron as
ship building material is the
outcome. The iron ship was pushed
forward and developed as rapidly as pos
sible, John Bull seeming to realize that
II was battle for existence. The more
progressive and broader minded Of our
people readily srasped the advantages
which our neighbor would thus secure
when the development should have been
perfected, but by far the great majority
looked on with ill-conoesled contempt,
losing NO opportunity whatever OF making
John Bull the butt Of their ridicule as he
WAS slowly but pluokily enoountering and
overcoming the mechanical difficulties
which lay in his pathway. These
thorough going Americans rejoiced that
We were in no suoh dilemma; that it was
not necessary for us to resort to such
doubtful expedients, as In our forests
were to be found timber to build the
ships for ages to come. A little Inter
the compound engine and the use OF high
pressure stream at sea were taken up and
treated TO q like development. The
discussion OF tho merits of the iron ship
and the compound engine by american
speakers and writers urcn these subjects
would fill volumes, the effort in the ma
jority OF cases being TO show our superior
position to the one innovation aud the
utter uselessness of the other, the hold
which the protective idea had taken upon
the minds OF the people being RESPONSE
BILE for much Of the short sighted and
warped Judgment. The proteetiontst
position up to this time was that OF re-
ioioipg Ia the growth Of our marine in
terssis through the influence of the pro-
tectiye policy as exerted by onr nayiga-
tion laws, forgetting or rather losing
sight Of the fact that we were in the pos
session of natural resources in the way OF
building shipe, which wee OF such q
character as to give us q very com mand-
ing and superior position. While we
were able TO maintain this commanding
position without effort the navigation
laws were OF no avail, neither were they
o burden. A change came over the
spirit OF our dream and we are now far
enough ahead that oil these events can
be read In history.
Huhn4 lnnnnre nnr, wa lanrn from thAAn