The San Francisco call., 1896-04-06
COMMERCIAL PROBLEMS.

| Senator Elkins has been overwhelmed
| with attention by reason of his recent
| declaration that the commercial interests
OF the United States should be protected
against the Canadian Pacific Railway. 1t
| will be remembered that the Massachusetts,
| Republican Convention adopted this idea
in its platform. and now it is said that Mr..
Elilns is working to secure its insertion in
the platform of the National Republican
Convention. His position is that the
Canadian Pacific, living upon its subven-
tions and being free from the operation OF
such law as the interstate commerce act
of the United States, is the great enemy of
our transcoutinental hauling interests and
hence Of our National commerce. There
is just sufficient foundation for these asser-
tions to make them interesting, at least as
matter of discussion.
Consideration OF the subject has been
precipltated by q proposition before the
Senate Committee on Postoffices and Post
Roads to grant subsidy of $500 to the
Oceanic Steamship Company for trans
porting the mails between the United
States and the British colonies of Aus
tralia and New Zealand. Senators Elkins
and Perkins are strong advocates of the
measure, and they are preparing TO show
to the Senate the damage which American
commerce has suffered by reason of the
generous subsidies granted by the Do
minion of Canada to the Canadian Pacific
and by Canada and the British dependen-
cies of Australia to the line of steamers
connecting the latter with the western
terminus of the Canadian Pacific and
operated as part of that transportation
system.
1t is true, as Senator Perkins has pointed
out, that the Canadian steamers receive
subsidy of $125, 900 a year from Canada
and $4,000 additional from Australia,
making total of $175,OOo a year for two
steamers, or $14 ,533 for each voyage. Not
satisfied with this, the Canadian COM
pany's agents are now industriously So
Letting additional subsidies from the
Hawaiian and Society groups of islands.
1t is manifestly impossible for an Ameri-
can steamship company to compete on
equal terms with the Canadian company
in the absence of something approaching
reasonable subsidy.
1t is by means of such subsidies that
England to large extent has secured her
supremacy on the seas. There is nothing
wrong in the idea, as Englands successful
treatment OF it over so long a period has
amply proved. The only ground existing
for whatever unpopularity it has in the
United States is that furnished by the
overland railroads in their shameless
abuse of the Governments generosity. 1t
is now proposed to condone those evils by
indefinitely extending the time for the re-
payment of the loan, and that may make
the subsidizing of trans-Paciic steamship
lines all the more difficult. Still, the
proposition regarding the Oceanic line is
an annual subsidy, and not lump loan,
and may be Cancelled at any time. As,
however, such an encouragement of trade
between the United States and the
Australian colonies would tend to increase
the traffic of the American overland roads,
this effect of subsidy to the steamship
line might properly be considered in any
plan looking to settlement of the railroad
debt. The subject is comprehensive, and
deserves the most serious consideration of
Republicans, both in the present Congress
and in the approaching National con-
yentiOn.