The herald., 1896-07-20
SUBSIDIES AND THE PACIFIC
MAIL

Unnecessary CAdTAty 10 AnJuA iouS w SAio
recipient It Injuries materially and
morally. This fact now generally rec
| cognized as to man individually has
perhaps not been recognized as also af-
fecting corporations. This must be ad-
| mitted, at least as to the moral side OF
corporations. The great corporations
that have received the protective taxes,
the land grants, drawbacks and bounties,
are those that have been most guilty
in this country Of bribery and corrup-
tion, credit mobilier scandals and op-
preston and injustice to the people.
OF these demoralized corporations none
have fallen lower than the Pacific Mail
Steamship company. This concern was
responsible for one Of the most notorious
Of the many notorious bribery scandals
in congress 1t was the chief incident
of the company's campaign for a sub
sidy. The subsidy was given on account
of the patriotism of the promoters in
sailing American vessels. Their pat
riotism in paying two hundred thousand
dollars to congressman Is also said to
have affected the result. The company
Is now in receipt of subsidy from the
government, the object being to increase
American trade and commerce to Cen
tral America, the west coast Of Mexico
and also between New York and Califor-
mia. Instead Of carrying out their con-
tract, to pay for which the American
people have been taxed and are taxing
themselves. this patriotic Pacific Mail
under our public spirited man buyer,
Huntington, has been taking a railroad
bribe Of vast subsidy not to carry out
the contract. 1t takes the money of the
people with one hand to increase our
trade and the money of the Southern Pa
cifo with the other hand not to do it.
Under contract to stop at a Southern
California port. 1t refuses to do this and
when for a short time forced to stop at
San Diego. 1t interpreted the contract
and subsidy so that absolutely no gain
could accrue to the people. The company
would neither land nor receive freight or
passengers. Besides these things, it is
reported that the Pacific Mail has a
contract with foreign traders and
steamship lines whereby prohibitive tar
ifs turn the business of large part of
the west coast of Central America to
Germany and away from California
Under their scheme 1t is cheaper to ship
goods from Germany or New York to
Colon, and by rail across the Isthmus of
Panama and then in ship again to a
port OF Central America than to ship di-
rect from San Francisco to the same
port. AS for Southern California, We
cannot do business with Mexico or Cen
trail America at all. The crews Of this
Pacific Mail Steamship company, that
is so patriotic as to deserve our taxes,
help American TABOR by What the Chi
nese will distribute from their wages.
The decentralization of this company
we are sorry to see, has extended to the
management of its ships. Accident sue
ceeds accident We have hardly recov-
cred from what may fairly be termed
the horrible and brutal greed Of the
over-deck load and loss of whole famil-
les in the Colima disaster before we have
the wreck Of the Colombia in a calm.
It Is difficult to understand how both
Republican and Democratic officials
have allowed this corrupt Huntington
side show to go on taking the peoples
taxes in It's subsidies and betraying its
trust and refusing to abide by the true
intent of its contract.
The power Of this subsidy was last
used to destroy the steamship COM
pany organized by the San Francisco
merchants to escape from the rank in
justices and oppression of the Southern
Pacific company. Rates were run down
below an existing scale. The free COM
pany had nothing but the voluntary
subscriptions of some OF the merchants
of one city OF California. The subsl-
died company had the forced taxes
contributed by seventy millions of peo-
pie. The free company went to the wall.
The American people being on rather
short feed just now, it might be good
| thing to let the Pacific Mail paddle its
| own canoe.