The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1890-09-10

Frsra The Sew York Nal and Exprezs
One Of the very first measures that
came before Congress after the establish
ment Of the government was the tonnage
act, framed for much the same purpose
as thst which has passed the Senate and
is now awaiting the action Of the House.
The purpose was 10 restrict the trading
between ports of the United States to
ships or vessels within the United States
and belonging wholly to citizens there
Of" In debate in the Senate in June,
l7s9-more than lOi years ago-the ne
cessity Of protecting and encouraging the
building Of American ships vas urged,
and England was pointed 0ut as an ex-
ample to be followed. The British navi-
CATION act was originated in the six
teenth century by Cromwell in a ft Of
spleen against the Dutch, who were then
the rulers Of the sea- It's good Effects
were seen before the restoration, and IL
was re-enacted in 1850. A howl Of anger
went up. Il was argued that the bill
would increase the cost Of all freighting
for the benefit Of the merchants at the
expense Of the landed part Of the COM
munity, The Scotch, especially, thought
themselves in danger Of ruin, and sent
peers TO protest against it, bat in vain.
What was the result to Great Britain
The tonnage Of England at that time
was less than 10000 tons. In fifteen
wears it had doubled, and in twenty years
more it had trebled.
Curiously enough the bill was fought
most energetieaIlv by the southern mem-
bers, who were then, as they have been
since, devoted to free trade, and Senator's
Lee and Grayson, of Virginia, and Pierce
Butler and lard, Of South Carolina, were
unceasingi in their attacks upon il. Only
the week before, when the impost bin
was before the Senate, Butler had famed
ike a meteor, arraigned the whole act.
and charged Congress with 4 design Of
depressing South Carolina. He wanted
to encourage the Danes, the Swedes and
foreigners Of every nation 10 come and
take away our produce. He was in favor
Of navigation act reversed He threat
ened dissolution Of the Union, 50 far as
his State was concerned, "as sure as God
is in the armament" and that his Stale
would live or die glorious. and 50 on.
These southern Senator's we're opposed 10
the whole principle Of drawbacks, and
to quote from the diary Of Senator Mac
Law. the first Senator from Pennsylvania.
they battled the bill with less order, less
sense, less decency, too, than any qles-
ton that have ever vet heard debated
in the Senate. II had stood in need Of
any proof Of the instability Of Lees po-
litical character, this gave me fresh in
stance Of it." Times have not changed
50 much, after ALL
Curiously enough, Senator Maelay's
calm argument in favor Of the tonnage
bill is as pertinent to-day as it was then.
The spirit Of the bill, he said, was to give
the monopoly Of our trade to our own
shipping and sailors. In a solely mer-
camille view this might be wrong, for it
would tend to make our foreign artieles
dearer and our home produce cheaper.
But the object was a national one. Ship
ping and sailers we're .he object, and,
though the landed part Of the commune
ty was not, perhaps, so rich, the nation
was safe, and national power was Of far
more consequence than individual
wealth. We might possibly help the
manufacturing and agricultural popula-
ton little, but it would be at the cost Of
our shipping and our sailors. and without
that protection the foreigners would have
a complete monopoly Of the whole traffic
both foreign and domestic.
This was in the infancy Of the nation,
more than hundred years ago, and We
have seen this foreerst proven correct.
We have succeeded in protecting our
coasting t-sde from complete absorption
BY foreigners. That We have, and now
we wsnt to get our share Of the foreign
trade. We can only do that by encour-
aging our own marine as other nations
encouraged theirs, and it is high time
that We made beginning.