The record-union., 1896-11-22
AFRAID OF RETALIATION.

The United States Commissioner Of
Navigation is reported by wire to have
filed his annual report, and in it to have
recommended that some sort of a free
shipping bill be enacted. Unfortunately
we are not told just what kind Of free
bill he wants. For that we must await
the arrival Of the text of his report.
Whether he wishes the bill Of 1888,
American ship construction should come
in free Of duty; whether he means a free
registry bill for foreign ships; whether
he means the old rebate bill for return
Of duties on materials actually used in
construction of American ships, we can
not tell at present.
But it Is sufficient to know that the
Commissioner has seen fit to antagonize
the discriminating duty proposition ad-
vocated in the National Republican
platform, and to the promotion Of which
the party is sacredly pledged. He fears
that such measure would destroy the
reciprocity policy in shipping which he
says all important nations now main
tain. In support Of his antagonism the
Commissioner points out that the dis
eliminating duty bill would put an ad-
ditional tax of over 59,000,000 upon
American consumers.
The Commissioner shows that our
total imports in 1895 were valued at
S731 1863, 500, of which $500 53S, ,362 were
brought in foreign ships AS an in
stance of what he claims would be the
injustice of the discriminating policy he
points out that in 1895 we imported
Sl2o, 100000 Of tea and coffee and the
proposed tax on these imports would
equal S5,400,0 900 on coffee from Brazil
alone, or sufficient to subsidize steam
ship lines including twenty-five steam
ships equal to the St. Paul or St. Louis
more than enough TO carry the entire
South American, Asiatic and African
trade. He argues, we are told, in this
strain at length, and concludes by the
warning that a discriminating duty Will
be defeated by retaliation.
For thirty years we have been hae-
Cling over free shipping and free reg
istry bills and have accomplished moth
ing. In the meantime our carrying trade
has been slipping away from us until ii
has dwindled to a humiliatfng figure
and Americans are fortunate, indeed.
who discover their flag anywhere
abroad. Our merchant marine which
once carried 30 per cent. of our foreign
traffic carries now less than 10 per cent.
and the American tar is so scarce an in
divfdual that we cannot secure men suf-
ficient who are trained to the sea to man
our new navy.
We do not propose to go over the
ground now which we so frequently
traversed during the late campaign as
to the merchant marine. Suffice It TO
say that the discriminating policy
worked well once with US, and no rea-
son has been advanced TO show why it
would not work well again. II fear Of
retaliation is to paralyZe our efforts to
develop our resources, then We should
cease TO exert energy in any direction
for there is nothing we may attempt to
do to gain and maintain a foreign mar
ket that our foreign competitors may
not frighten us out of by the threat of
retaliation If we are ever to try the
experiment now is the best of times.
Let us engage in it promptly and see If
other nations are TO dictate to us con-
cerning the promotion OF our own indus
tries.
The argument of the Commissioner
that the discriminating duty on coffee
brought to us on foreign bottoms would
be a grievous burden upon the consumer
may well be answered by the statement
that the consumer would have no cause
to complain since he could procure cof-
fee, without advance upon present COST
from cargoes brought in upon Afneri-
oAn bottoms, and that u hs oad not