The morning call., 1894-02-11
SHIPPING TRADE.
A Movement to Better Its
Condition.
A FEW LOCAL INTERVIEWS
The Effect of Competition North and
South of Us Observation-Disclosures
Times Coming.

At the present day there are two branches
of San Francisco bay in which are bar
bored about half of the idle marine car
riers of the Pacific Coast One branch Is
Oakland Creek and the other is the narrow
stretch of water near Port Costa.
One bv enc ships, barks, briggs, schoon-
ers. steamers and scows have been
dragged away from their "llfe on the ocean
wave" II a quiet rest upon the mud0anks
OF the Oakland estuary or an anchorage
in the shadows of the upper bay. where
winds never blow gales and waves never
become dangerous seas.
Whether it does a vessel any more good
TO be ''laid up'' in the matter of wear and
tear to her hull and rigging than 1t does to
place her in active commission is CUES.
ton which has long ago been decided in
the negative. The presence of the de-
structive teredo and the obnoxious barna-
Gle, ana the absence OF the able seaman
with holystOne and tar-bucket, lend an
inanimatiGn TO the vessels IN silent row.
which revert the memory OF the witness
10 the opening lines of the old Norwegian
song, which begins thusly:
Our tarnished ships of commerce
sleep"
Port Costa attracts the surplus grain
fleet-the big iron ships that cannot find
water enough in Oakland Greek to float
them. But Oakland harbor boasts Of the
majority on the list Of uncnRrtered.
Thus it becomes apparent that silent
row is making dangerous stab at the
Yitals of our shipping trade.
The conundrum of how shall we de-
populate the mudbanks of Oakland har-
Dor and give employment to our western
fleet is not vet answered to the entire
satisfaction of interested persons, but
a
present agitauDg movement whereby 1t
is hoped TO find cargOeS to fiji the idle huliS
of our unengaged shipping and again turn
the steering wheels of our Stagnant coast
and foreign trade.
The pOpulous condition of silent row is
attributed by the Chamber of Commerce
to those sort of hard times that the old
song so cheerfully declares shall come
again no more" 1t IS only a question OF
time, according to this commercial body,
when the mudtiats of San Francisco bay
will bear the burden of nothing suggestive
OF "a forest of maSts."
Reviewing the situation and the pro-
posed plan of action for its remedy
member Of the Produce Exchange said
yesterday:
I'VE must look to the north, to the south
of us for partial solution of the problem,
and give a few hours Of attention TO tariff
tinkers' 1t can be found on eXamina-
ton of the prone: statistics that fifteen
years ago We enjoved an exclusive trade
with the Northwest, including Alaska,
British Columbia and Oregon State, that
was practically untTampIed on by foreign
commercial agents or houses CT even SINH
lar persons ana business aggregatiOns of
our Eastern United States.
I'VE nave blamed the several American
competing railroads of the northern sec
ton of the coast with having injured us.
but when carefully looked into and
rhf fIll lU ie hos
railroads that are hurting US or is it some
unknown factor which we have not had
the courage or ambition to try TO discover?
Would il not be well to watch the danger
Gus movements of the Canadian Pacific
Railroad and its subsidized lines of steam
ers?
There remained with US but one plan
of action when we observed our coast and
foreign trade diminishing. 1t still rests
with US TO pursue proper course and we
shall soon recover our lost prestige. Con-
gressiOnal action must come to our aid in
contending with the Canadian Pacific on
the north. while TO Offset railroad cOmpeti-
ton to the north and south of US in the
United States we mnst positively build and
support a system Of local State railroads
paraleling every branch of the Southern
Pacific.
1--WE must find a cheap means of trans
portatiOn 10 the seaboard before we can
possibly hope TO load our merchant ma
Tines with paying cargoes and wash away
the mud stains If Oakland Creek with a
rapid flow of trade.
acknowledged that we cannot compete
with our Canadian nelghbors and Eastern
houses in all lines of manufacture, still is
not the field broad enough for nur business
men to find room to stand on? We must
conform TO rules that govern competition
If we wish to compete. Business is not
going TO come TO us for the waiting"
rf,Ia MI frr, aha rnd nv
all of our business men. Some ship
owners say that coast trade is Frightening
up and that in the next sixty days 40 per
cent of the unchartered light draught
steamers and sailing vessels in Oakland
Creek will be put in commission.
A number of merchants think that a
transcontnental railroad line would be
the salvation of the maritime interests.
''SaD Francisco should be made a gen.
eral distributing point. Los Angeles,
Portland, Seattle and Tacoma cut US off, -
said one sof these gentlemen. ut is not
business like for US TO ship goods up or
down the coast 10 to seaports, because the
towns named have branch roads which
reach towns IN their vicinity, and it is i'm
possible for local house to get figure on
their goods which can offset the cheap
railroad rates which these cities enjoy to
Eastern points. C0asting vessels would be
able to secure full cargoes for all points
north or south of San Francisco if we had
competinR transcontinental line connect
ing us with the East"
Foreign trade-that is, the trade of Aus
tralia, China, Hawaii ana Central and
South Americas being grasped by other
nations, ana has weakened our deep-sea
commerce to great extent. The Traffic
Association and other commercial bodies
lave had this question under considera-
ton. 1t is hard one to solve. as the Pa
cfc Mail Steamship Company is largely
co blame for our loss of trade with all
points except Australia.
The ''einch" plan OF the Mail Company
has so exasperated China and Central and
South American shippers that when COM
petition is offered them by a line of tramp
steamers or the vessels of the European
powers they are only too happy to jump at
the opportunity TO better their condition
of Transportation.
& Spokane CVash.) house which is will
ing to trade with San Francisco and put a
mum Der OF sailing vessels In operation be-
tween this city and Seattle makes the fol-
lowing statement concerning the reasons
why il stopped trading with this city:
'We at one time purchased from San
Francisco whenever an opportunity pre-.
sented Itself Until We were Obliged to de-
sist on a. count Of the tendency on the
hi III boneaa 70