Arizona republican., 1899-01-30
BOUNTY TO VESSELS
Bill 10 Encourage Merchant
 Marine Nay Pass.
Senator Hanna Hopes 10 Push inc Measure Through Before Con- reSS AdjournS-CCm Of
 Terms Paid by inc unifed Sfates.

Washington. Jan. 29.-The friends of the bill to encourage merchant marine for the United States and giving a bounty to American built vessels en-
 gaged in foreign trade. are confident it will pass this congress. Every eff fort will be made to push the bill through the senate, and if it passes it will undoubtedly go through the house. The measure gives a bounty to all yes sels. steam O. sail, according to ton mage and -speed, of one and one-half cents per gross ton for each hundred nautical miles, both outward and homeward bound, for the first fifteen hundred miles and one cent for each hundred miles in excess of that dis tance.
 Some vessels are to receive bounties according to tonnage and speed. Those over fifteen hundred tons making be- tween fourteen and fifteen knots, one cent per ton per hundred miles sailed; those between fifteen and sixteen knots, enc and one-tenth cents; those sailing sixteen knots and over, one and two-tenlths Vessels of over 5000 tons sailing between seventeen and eigh- teen knots, one and four-terths; be- tween eighteen and nineteen knots, one and siX-tenths, and over nineteen knots, one and eight-tenths Vessels of over 5000 tons sailing twenty knots are to have two cents ton, and twen- ty-one knots and more, two and three Is more than twenty-two knots and less than twenty-three, two and seven tenths per ton, and over twenty-two knots three and tWo-tenths.
 COST TO THE GOVERNMENT.
 The expectations, if this bill be- comes law, are that it will encourage the construction of large fleet, at cost to the government for the first year of about s2,000,00O. Of course, the future increase depends upon the num- Der of new vessels built. Last year the foreign mail service cost the United States government $1563, ,7S4, and the estimate for the next year is $2 154 900.
 Of this sum S1 ,165, ,765 was paid under the subsidy law. The Venezuela steamship line received 1,228, the Mexican service $13O,1O4, the Cuban service $73, ,476, the transatlantic ser vice $575,3 and ether lines S123, ,569. The Cunard company received $172,177 the North German Lloyd $S8,029, the White Star S53.535, the Hamburg American $27, ,431 and the French line 7S31.679.
 The Pacific Mail company does not receive a subsidy, because 1t prefers to accept the ordinary sea pay, which is 2 cents a iGtter, rather than comply with the conditions. The cost of the trans-Pacific mail to Australia, Ha- waii, Japan and China was S179, 9,545.
 The Unit5d States stands sixth in the list of nations paying subsidies to steamships. France comes first and pays $5, ,038, ,525; Great Britain second, s. .534 ,475; Germany third, S2,127 900, which will be increased over million dollars during the next year for the extension of the service to China and Japan; Italy fourth, s1,853 695, and Spain comes close on the heels of the United States with $1,044 ,556. Austria, Prussia, the Netherlands, the Austral- ian colonies, British India and ether countries also pay large subsidies for the encouragement of their mercantile marine
 POSTAL SERVICE COST.
 We spend more money by $16,GOO, 900 year than any other nation for our postal service, the total last year being S80, 626. 296, Germany is second, with STA, ,337, 43O, and Great Britain third, with $40, 139, ,835.s
 We stand secand in the amount of mail matter handled per capita New South Wales is just little ahead with 92-9 packages per year per inhabitant, while we handle 92.4 packages. Great Britain is third, with 77.8.
 hon ters. received and sent, than any other nation. Austria handles the largest number of foreign postal cards. and the United States the largest number Of newspapers sent and received in. the l foreign mails. We are fourth in the rumber of letters handled.
 The United States has nearly twice | as many postoffices as any other coun- | try, the total being T ,468, and the | largest number of employees, 19S.6O5. i Germany is second, with 39,389 offices | and 1S3,212 employees, and Great Brit i ain is third, with 20,750 offices and 1 IA, 700 employees.
 In proportion to area we are behind ! having only one ostoff1ce to every fifty 1 six square miles of territory, but we l count all the; mountains and plains. | Switzerland is first, having one post office to every AT square miles Great Britain second, and then come Ger many, Belgium, Portugal, Holland, | Luxxemburg, Italy, Roumania, Den mark Austria, France, Hungary and Japan New Zealand has a pOstoffice for evsty 5l0 inhabitants, Canada fer every 531, New South Wales for every GAY, Switzerland for every S59 and the | United States for every S97