The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1899-12-24
SOME OF THE REPLIES.

IE REPLIES.
adapted to American conditions and re-
quirements.
e. T. Chamberlain,
United States Commissioner of Naviga-
ton.
1t should be the duty of every citizen
who appreciates the situation to see that
his representative IN congress fully I'M
derstands that remedial laws should be
enacted at the earliest date possible In
undertaking to enact such laws as may
be deemed expedient. the issue must be
sQuarely made that unless governmental
aid IS extended to the American ship
builder and owner the merchant marine
of the United States cannot regain its
former foothold on the ocean; but once
regained it is probable that the benefit
would be such that the ship building in
dustries and foi eign transportation bust
ness would soon become seIf-supporting
George Y Wisner,
Member of the United States Board on
Deep Waterways.
There IS only one policy that Is prac-
ttcaIly possible and
that is the payment one P0hcy
of direct bounties poesihya
for service per-
formed. II any mistake Is made 1t should
toe large rather than too small. If too
small it will fail to accomplish the desir-
ed result; If too large it will bring about
the creation Of vessels more rapidly than
would otherwise be the case, with a re-
Su!ting competition that will return to
our people in reduced rates of freight any
over-payment made in amount of bounty.
In conclusion, 1t is well to remember that
the United States wants its citizens to
create merchant marine and ship-h1ild-
Ing industries that do not now exist, and
that cannot exist without government
aid These ships and ship yards are not
called into existence for the purpose Of
benehting any particular individuals.
They are demanded in the interest of the
national safety in time Of war and Of the
greatest prosperity Of all Of our people
in time of peace
Frank J. Firth,
President of the Lake Carriers Associa-
ton.
am firmly of the opinion that reason
able subsidies at the present time will
result in the rapid upbuiIding of the
American marine and place it before ten
years have gone by In the same com
handing position 1t held before the war
Without government aid there is no tell
ing how long viii be the delay of Amer
lean capital going into ships for the gen
y. >
EX-President of thu Lake Carriers AS
ISOLATION.
If we had ships and trade with the
world, 1 think the great depression lust
passed would not have been SO severe
We have the products to make a ton Of
steel as cheap as any other country. The
low cost necessary to put this steel into
ships will come later, but with our bet
ter paid crews, etc, We cannot yer oper-
ate as cheaply as other nations We
need some help from the people at large
for few years until we learn how to
build and operate ships as we have
learned to build and operate railroads
Later on the industry can take care Of
itself without aid from the government.
and the cost will be so small we VIII
get 1T back a hundred fold in a hundred
different ways with advantage to all Sec
! tons Of the United States.
Alexander McDougau,
Inventor of the ,Whaleback.
If we desire to enjoy the benefits here
Difference referred to, which
are to be derived
IN Wages. from the establish
ment of an Ameri-
! can-owned and Amerfcan-b1liIt noorchan,
/ marine for foreign trade, we must in
some way overcome the disadvantages
| from which American vessel owners SUI
| fer by reason Of the greater cost Of
| American labor than of foreign labor.
| Shall we attempt TO do this by lowering
the scale Of American wages? Far be 1t
| from the writer to suggest such a course
! The contrast between the American wage
! scale and the foreign wage scale is per
| haps the most striking proof Of our ma
! tional success, and should be most ZEAL
ously guarded. But this obstacle to the
establishment Of an American merchant
marine for foreign trade must be over
come nevertheless, and the only way in
which 1t can be overcome without dirriin-
ishing the earning power Of American
labor is by direct and adequate govern
| ment aid to American shipping.
Thomas Clyde
| While the business interests with which
m identified t. Did.
| with adequate mall poyc,
/ Legislation, such
| a measure would be obviously insufficient
/ to promote our maritime interests gem
! orally and to provide the policy to which
| you refer and which the country desires.
/ The choice, therefore, seems to he he
| tween senate bill $3.50 and no Iegisla-
ton whatever. Because it is the onIv
| practicable measure, I favor its enact
ment. 1t Is the most carefully considered
/ measure relating to the American mer-
/ chant marine which has been presented in
! congress IN my generation. BY the terms
| OF the proposed bill the maximum ex-
| penditure applicable to any one year is
fixed at $4,000 900. We now spend 81, 500 900
annually for ocean mails. As the hin
does away with this expenditure. the new
! appropriation called for at the utmost
will be 81, 50o, 900 per annum This amonnt
cannot be reached for several years. AS
Stunning that all our available regis+ered
vessels were In operation under its nro-
visions this year, the expenditure would
! be about 100000, from which should he
deducted about 100000, paid already for
ocean mails. Between an initial new ex-
penditure of about s., 800 600 and the max
/ imum new expenditure of 81, 500 600 sew
eral years must elapse, during which our
/ ship yards will have multiplied, our shin
| ping In foreign trade will have increased
! ocean freights will have diminished. and
| from being insignifcant on the seas we