Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1889-07-29
ESPECIAL TELEGRAM TO THE pfsp ArcH.

ESPECIAL TELEGhAM TO THE DISPATCH.l
WASHINGTON, July 28-The vast
amounts being spent for the rehabilitation
Of the navy has encouraged the friends Of
subsidies to think that sufficient national
pride may be aroused to induce Congress to
do something now for the merchant marine.
This, with the fact that both branches OF
Congress are in the hands of the Republicans
has already spurred such champions of sub
sides as Representative Dingley and Sena-
tor Hale, of Maine, to take steps to insure
success at the next session OF bills that have
been defeated again and again.
During the discussion Mr.. Dingley and
his sympathizers will probably be called
upon to explain some figures not exactly in
the line of their argument. In 1884 bill
known as the Dingley shipping bill, enti-
tied "An act to remove certain burdens
from the American marine, and to encour-
age the foreign carrying trade" in Ameri-
can bottoms, of course, was passed. The
ostensible object of this, as shown
in the discussion in the House,
was to aid American shipping,
and especially to increase the number Of
vessels of American build engaged in COM
merce between the ports of South and Gem
tral America and the United States. This
bill was in the nature of subsidy in that 1t
provided lower rate of tonnage dues for
American vessels than for foreign ones. and
it was expected that within q few years
there would be great increase in the num-
Der of vessels engaged in the South America
trade.
A FUTILE HOPE.
Statistics that have Just become available
have not justified the hope In 1884 the to-
tai tonnage Of vessels engaged in the foreign
carrying trade with American registers was
1,276, ,972. In 1888 this tonnage had fallen
to 912, 1902. In 1884 the total trade of the
United States with Brazil amounted in dol
lars to S5S, ,961 ,5S4, and of this $50, ,265, ,S89
was the value of imports. In 1888 the
trade had fallen to $5S, ,279, ,9S1, while the
imports had increased to $51, ,1S1, ,734. In
1884 the total exports of the United States
to Brazil were valued at $8.695. .659. In
1888 the exports had fallen to 81 ,078, ,247. In
1884 imports were brought to this country in
160 American vessels, with a total registry
of 90, COZ tons.
In 1888, under the operation of the Ding
ley bill. for some cause not explained, the
number of American bottoms engaged in
this trade had fallen to II and the tonnage to
81, sos. In 1884 the number of foreign ves-
sells engaged in this trade vas 500, and the
register was 327 ,693 tons. In 1888 the num-
Der had fallen to 497, but the total tonnage
had increased to 331, 9S5. In 1884 the ex-
ports from the United States to Brazilian
ports were shipped In 202 foreign vessels
with total registry of "a, 571 tons. In 1888
the number of vessels had fallen to 151, but
the tonnage was increased to SO, ,728.
THE SCHEME DOES NOT WORK.
Hence the American imports from Brazil
in 1888 were S915, ,845 more than in 1884, and
our exports were 81, ,617, 412 less than in
1884, while the number of American ships
In the Brazilian trade fell from 100 in 1884
to rs in 1888, and the American tonnage de-
clined from 98, 100 to 63, 581, or more than
one-third. Similar results appear on COM
parison of the trade between the United
States and nearly all of the ports of Amer
lean countries on the Atlantic Ocean. The
Dingley bill, it is true, has removed certain
burdens from the American marine" but it
seems to have utterly failed 10 encourage
the foreign carrying trade"
One of the most striking effects of this at
tempt to subsIdize the American marine
into new life is seen in the trade between
this country and Bermuda. one of the coun-
tries especially favored by the Dingley bill.
There entered and cleared in 1888 but one
American vessel of 30 tons from Philadel-
phis, while Al foreign steamers, with an ag-
gregate capacity of 74S,704 TONS cleared
from New York, and AZ foreign vessels, ag-
gregating "A, GAG tens, entered from Bermuda
from the same ports.