The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1895-11-23
COMMERSE OF THE SEAS.
The Report Of the Chief Of Bureau
Of Navigation.
DECREASE in MERCHANT MARINE
ATTRIBUTED TO BUSINESS
DEPRESSION.

No Navy Can Long Exist without Good
Merchant Marine Says the Commission
er-Repeal eff Many Navigation Laws
Urged-A Report of Much Interest to
Men Who Sail the Sea and Own Ships.
Washington, November 90 The annual
report of Eugene f. Chamberlain, chief
of the bureau of navigation, shows that
the numbers and tonnage of our mer-
chant feet for the year, have been nearly
stationary On June 30, it comprised
23.240 documental vessels of 4,635, $50
tons a decrease of so, 900 tons since June
i3, 1894. This decrease is attributable to
| the business inactivity two summers
ago. The production of four shipyards
in April, May and June of this year,
much exceeded the production during
the same months in 1894
The chief events have been the initial
trips of the St. Louis and ST. Paul. Our
feet on the great lakes outnumbers that
of any nation except England and Ger
many.
The report is devoted chiefly to recon-
|
navigation laws of the last century,
whichSwere copied verbatim by the earli
est Congresses from the. laws of King
George the Third of England. Commits
sioner Chamberlain points out that every
| other nation long ago repealed these
laws, but we alone retain them as hand
leap to our merchant marine. He shows
hat o1iY, 10 IN fI,a
est competition.
First, with merchantmen of foreign ma
tions whose governments have freed them
from the shackles of the old laws which
we still retain.
Second With American railroads, which
are strongly organized and have protected
themselves generally from the burden
some laws under which navigation inter-
ests are compelled to operate.
The free ship BILL which was the chief
measure advocated in the last report, is
again reoonms nded, but more briefly.
Mr.. Chamberlain quotes effectively
Capt. Mahan's statement that navy
| cannot long exist without large msr-
| chant marine as Il reason for its mainte-
nance. Assuming that the free ship bill
may not pass this session, Commissioner
! Chamberlain proposes as an alternative
| the extension OF the act under which the
| New York and Paris were admitted to
| register, and the ST. Louis and ST. auI
were built in the United States. Lead
| ing shipbuilders have declared their ap
proval Of this proposition and the bureau
! believes that it will be adopted at the
coming session, the good RESULTS of the
experiment in the case of the four steam
ors named, proving that the principle
RI afatyr h, do nv.ol
III Other methods of building up the mer-
chant marine are examined, and it is
shown that the scheme of imposing dis
eliminating duties on foreign vessels,
conflicts with 33 of our treaties on
friendship and commerce, with practical
ly the whole world, and that these treaties
were negotiated " the leaders of politi-
cal thought in all parties from John Jay
| to Hamilton Il ish and Thomas +. Bayard,
and that if the treaties were all abrogated,
we should merely invite retaliation on
| American vessels.
| The subject of subsidies is discussed
briefly, as having little support in this
country, but full translation of the re-
| port of President Faure, Minister Sieg-
fried and other French statesmen is
printed, showing the meagre results and
great expense OF the French subsidy sys-
| tim.
The condition of the American sailor
as affected by the laws, received excep
tionally full treatment. Commissioner
Cha mi erlain proposes that the govern
ment take full control of the shipping
comm. ,sioners' offices, with view of
making them, as designed to be. the sole
employment agencies for seamen. Ths
report recommends a reduction from three
cents to two cents per tonnage tax en-
| vessels from nearby ports.
Free ship building materials for Ameri-
can vessels in the coastwise as well as the
foreign trade, are recommended, and the
repeal of IS sections or statutes relating
to minor matters is advised on the. ground
of their uselessness.