The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-12-19

dueed. The largest freiehter in the world.
the steamer Pennsylvania, built in 1897, has
a carrying capacity Of 1900 tons, a re-
| markedly small coal consumption for so
large "A vessel and an average speed of
thirteen knots. Other mammoth vessels are
| building for The Hamburg, White Star and
other lines, and they will Illustrate the
| meaning of the new era in freight trans
pOrtation.
All the transatlantic vessels. until within
"A few years past, We're built with a view
to the ever-increasing emigration 20 the
United states without which they could
not be made 20 pay on account of their
| large consumption OF coal and small freight
capacity. Freight earning was subordin-
ated TO steerage passenger earnings. But TO-
| day emigration to the United
States has largely fallen off,
ana the new type of freighters
is buiit TO consume a minimum amount of
coal and carry a minimum amount of
, freight When the White Star Line puts
the Oceanic on the sea next spring she
will be even larger than the Pennsylvania
and the Kaiser Wilhelm der Crosse.
The era of cheap freights makes it pos
sible to transport heavy and bulky goods
of comparatively small value for long dis
tances. Within the past four years large
amount of lumber has been carried from
Puget sound TO Kimberley. a thousand
miles In the interior Of South Africa. An
immense amount Of building stone, ipartcu-
larly granite, is used in the Netherlands,
and the entire supply is drawn from for
eign countries. Norway furnishes most of
il and our consuls in Holland have been
calling attention 10 the fact that with the
prevailing cheap freight rates our great
Maine quarries, contiguous TO Atlantic
ports, may deliver building stone in Hol-
land as caeaply as the quarrymen of Nor
way and Germany.
The world would have opened It's eyes
In wonder twenty years ago at the amount
of pershable freight that IL now carried
without deterioration half or two-thirds
around the world Previous to the late
unpleasantness the United States had for
some years been importing from Spain
immense quantities of onions, The ship
ments to Great Britain of tomatoes grown
in Spain amounted, in 1898, TO 100000 BUSH
els. Last year Great Britain consumed
the earcasscs of 100000 sheep, which had
been sent l2,000 miles from New Zealand
in frozen condition, and the meat was
sold to British markets at only a little
over half the price of home grown NUT
ton The quality. 10 be sure, is much in
ferior 10 the famous mutton which kngn
land produces, but none the less the Inn
ported article has become an important
manstay OF life TO the laboring classes
Of che United Kingdom.
Those countries which, like the United
STATES and Russia, have not the advantage
OF great fleets Of merchant marine owned
by themselves, are not always able to
avail themselves Of the prevailing cheap
rates. We depend almost wholly upon
foreigners TO carry our goods, and these
steamship owners, not always as enter
prising as they might possibly be. have
not established lines of direct eommunica-
ton between our leading ports and some
promising centers of foreign trade. We
have no direct lines of communication
with Russia nor with most Mediterranean
ports, nor with a large part of the Afri-
can, South African and Asiatlc coasts.
All goods passing between the United
States and Constantinople, for instance
have to be trans-shipped, at considerable
loss Of time, heavy rates Of freight and
some damage to the goods. Before we can
do any trade with Greek port our goods
whether shipped to England, France, Ger
many or Italy, have TO be trans-shipped
always once, and sometimes twice 1t now
takes from eight to ten weeks for goods
from the United States to reach Rfssia
1t is gratifying to hear that the largest
shipping firm in Copenhagen is about 70
try the experiment of putting on a direct
line OF steamships between New York ana
ST. Petersburg.
The greatest reason why we have no
ocean marine, compared with the aeets
OF foreign countries, Is because we have
been so busly engaged for MANY vears
supplying the varied needs of our own
rapidly Increasing population that we had
little time to think of extending our trade
into foreign parts. The result Is thar We
have had none Of The valuable ADVERTISING
which our own merchant marine wouJd
give 70 our commerce Not a shin under
the United States flag passed through the
Suez canal last year. or 200 vesseIe MAJ
entered the ports of Japan only thirty-two
carried car flag. over 500 merchant steam
ers and ships entered the port of Bangkok
the capital OF Siam, but not one was
American. Asiaiic people are inonressad
by the lack OF American shIpplng ana
often remark that We are not a CONNER
cial nation. We have imported large chin
ments OF bananas from the coast Of Nica-
ragua in Norwegian vessels Chartered n.
500 10 $lOO a day. when moi single Amer
lean vessel was engaged In that friut
trade
But we now have fully entered the usta
for competition in the trade of The world
and there is no doubt that within the noyt
few years we shall witness a great revivat
Of our merchant marine, for, without n
we can never enjoy the fun measure ~
international trade to which our uneonat-
ed resources and energy entitle us.
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