The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1898-04-21


Dirigo. We are actually building more
| steel tonnage today on the Kennebec
/ than the Scotch are on the Clyde. The
/ slgnlhcance of this may be read in
TWO ways. 1t may be that we are more
/ or 1t may be we are less progressive
/ IMAM the Scotch. Outside OF this uues-
tlon / think that the explanation NAV
( oe that, thanks 10 our wise coastins
laws, the New York-San Francisco
trade which gives the best business
TO sailing ships. is confined to Amer
lean bottoms
The advantage Of steel over wood
IS great. While the first cost is more
the expense OF maintenance is much
less, and even after years of usage
you still have a good steel ship. for
steel is practically indestructible. and
costs little TO keep going.
1.-TWO things have prevented our
turning to steel sooner First, the fact
that we could build the best and cheap
est wooden ships in the world. and
knew how to handle them. from the
first design to the last days afloat. On
the other hand, steel was expensive,
and we did not have the plants nor
the experienced WOrkmen. But the ex-
perlence OF my yard has shown that
we can obtain material cheapel> ON
the Kennebec than the Scotch can ON
the Clyde, and can equip on short no
t1ce better plant at less expense than
our competitors across the water. Our
only handicaps are the greater cost OF
labor and the lack of established busi
ness for our ships. If we can only re-
celve temporary encoura cement for our
shipping from the Government, steel
ship yards Will spring up everywhere.
and it will not be long before, as has
been the case with steel, competition
will reduce the cost, so that we can
build more cheaply than any other
country in the world
I'VE don't ask for anything abnor-
NAL nor permanent. We merely desire
to receive some encouragement from
the Government to help us over the first
few hard years of the business. AS it
is now, there is no disposition on the
part OF capital to go into shipping,
but with such encouragement it would
not be long before capital would enter
the field. And once so established. the
business would soon maintain itself
and draw fresh capital, as needed, with
out further aid from the Government.
COMPETITION MUST BE MET.
But instead of this announcement
at the present time there is a disposi-
ton among some Shipping men to avoid
OFFENDING our British friends and so
encouragement is refused us. But we
n .ust stand on our own bottom. We ara
:. big enough, brave enough, strong
enough country to GO it alone in the
face of the whole world, if only we
will recognize our own strength. To-
day our ships and the cargoes sent in
them are Disseminated against with
out mercy by the great English insur-
ance powers; and this is right. Eng
land ever seeks to protect her own
in every way. But we must seek to-
meet this competition. We must have
some help to meet tine unfair advan5
tages of our competitors.
cit is urged against the proposal to
give American ships discriminating
duties that foreigners would retaIfate
to our disaster. But what if they did?
Our exports are greater than our i'm
ports, and it would simply result in
an additional tax on the foreigners
who consume what we produce. They
don't buy from us because they want
to, but because they wouldn't be in
clined to spite themselves to a. very
great extent.
Il tell you what" said Mr. SewaII.
his clear, blue eyes fairly flashing as
he walked up and down the room, in
his intense interest, 81 want to see a
more American policy toward our ship
ping. / would like to see a law passed
not only every officer, as now,
but every man on board American
ships, to be an American citizen. It
IN To
carried around the world by Dago'
crews. Let every soul on board, no
matter where born, owe allegiance to
the flag that flies above him. The
United States has inherent strength
to do anything, and it can repossess
itself of the carrying trade of the
world if it only will. See what the
Germans have done. The North Ger
man Lloyd lines, among the strongest
afloat, owe their existence and pros
perity to the wise policy of the Ger
man Government in giving them ma
terial encouragement and in building
them up. Every man on board a Ger
man ship is a German subject, and
wherever a German sees his flag afioat
he is filed with pride and patriotism.
His flag afiOat always excites pride
in a man, and this is only one of the
reasons which makes a strong mer-
chant marine the great school for patri-
Otism. Young men going into the Ger
man service find no foreigners on their
ships, and grow to regard shipping
as a privilege that they get from the
ent, to go into the service and
TO stay in it. Aside from the CONNER
cial profits of building up our shipping
again, let US treat it as a school of
American patriotism, and require Am
erican citizenship as a qualification
for shipping on an American vessel.
We would not only build up patriotism,
we would develop quick, ready, patrio-
tic young men of the greatest value to
us in case of war or other emergency,
whether they would be called upon to
serve afoat or on shore"
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