Santa Fe new Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1898-1951, 1898-10-11
Revival Of American Ship Building.

| The London Times is considerably
worried over the prospect Of a revival of
ship building in the United States, and
supremacy of this country as a CONNER
cial maritime power.
Prior to the civil war the shipping of
the United States covered the seas and
carried fully three-quarters of all the
cargoes in the world. The American
clippers were noted for their speed,
great carrying capacity and their num-
Der. During the great struggle which is
now regarded as finished for all time
and everybody is trying his best to for
get, except as an historical incident, the
ship building industry was neglected
and allowed to pass into other hands.
About the same time England began to
use iron in the construction Of ships, and
that innovation sounded the death knell
of what had been the principal source of
wealth on the Atlantic seaboard for
many years, the carrying of merchan-
disc from one country to another in
ships.
That state Of affairs has continued for
more than 80 years. Legislation looking
to the rehabilitation of American ship
ping has been tried to little effect; sub.
sides have been voted and other meth
DDS tried for the purpose of stimulating
ship building, but the English had Sc
cured control of the enterprise and it
seemed that no influence the United
change the situation. But the forces of
development and progress have been to
work during those years, and the Times
laments over the ultimate outcome.
During the greater part of the su-
premacy of the English as ship owners
and carriers since the intro
duction Of iron into ship bilding the
Americans could not compete for the
reason that iron could be produced in
that country cheaper than in this. That
has been changed. The United States
today is able to furnish steel for the
purpose at a less figure than English
iron can now be produced, and the steel
manufacturers are sending plates and
beams to the famous Clyde yards to be
used in building English ships. Then,
again, nothing succeeds like success.
The war with Spain demonstrated the
superiority of American vessels over
those built in other countries, and the
London Times is of the opinion that II
has already become a fad among ship
owners to contract for vessels which are
to be made in Yankee land.
The logic of the situation is that if
American steel manufacturers can lay
plates and beams down in England
than they can be turned out in
that country, If American ships are bet
ter than those built elsewhere, the |
Americans will not be long in arriving
at the conclusion that American labor
would better be employed in the ship
Yards on this side of the water than to
ship the material to foreign countries;
that American sailors would better be
wages now paid to English sea-
men, and that American goods will COM
just as high prices when sent to
lands in American ships as II
tent in English bottoms.
Putting these things all together, the
Times declares that it is useless for En-
merchants and shippers to longer
lttempt to retain their present position
Is masters of the mercantile marine of
world, but they must gracefully SUBJ
nit to the inevitable and make the best
possible with the e~nterprising
Yankees for the carrying Of goods to the