Cameron County press. [volume] (Emporium, Cameron County, Pa.) 1866-1922, 1900-06-14
FIGURES THAT AMAZE
Proportion of Our Imports and Ex-
ports in American Ships.
Foreign Attack Ccntcred on only
American Line in That Trade
Some Enemies of Our
Shipping.

Charles Ii. Grosvenor, chairman of the
house merchant marine and fisheries
committee, Alexander X. Smith, of
New York, a former member of the
New York commerce commission, an
swers an attack on the ship subsidy
bill which has been favorably reported
to each branch of congress. Mr..
Smith openly charges that the foreign
shipping interests, aided by the free
traders and other enemies of Ameri-
can shipping, are striving with might
and main to destroy the one American
line now engaging in our trade with
Europe.
In his letter Mr. Smith says in
part:
''Mr. Pcabodys assertion that the
cream of the subsidy is designed to
fall to those vessels of the Interna-
tional Steamship company is not
only erroneous, but seems purpOscly
designed to prejudice the public
against that line-the only line, by the
way. engaged in our trade with Eu
rope under the American flag. This
line has been singled out for the most
yirulent, malignant and frequent at
taclls ever since the shipping bill has
been before the public. 1t has been
asserted, but without a word of truth,
that it is controlled by the Standard
Oil and the Pennsylvania Railroad
companies.
THAT line has been pictured as part
of monopolistic trust. whereas it is
battling, singlc-handed and alone,
against the most powerful steamship
Lines in the world. These other lines
all under foreign fags-are
backed up with unlimited wealth and
the support of their several govern
ments to whatever extent may be nee
essary to enable them to successfully
compete for the transatlantic trade.
The American line in question is
struggling at considerable pecuniary
loss to succeed and to still further in
| crease its tonnage under the stars and
stripes in the face OF this concen.
trated and united opposition. In doing
so it has been subjected to the un-
bridled abuse of every free trader,
| every free trade newspaper, every
| enemy of American shipping. an6
| every defender of foreign shipping in
the United States.
"If the stockholders of this line are
ready to invest still further in Amer
lean ships, in the hope of ultimately
earning a profit. and are ready to sub
! ject themselves TO the fiercest and
most concentrated competition of the
most wealthy and powerful ships in
al hn finT ba
American people will applaud and
commend them.
The deadly purpose of this opposi-
| tion is manifest. when we study the
| statistics of the United States for the
last fiscal year. OF the total foreign
tsade of the United States. G707 per
cent. is with Europe-mOre than two
! thirds of our total foreign trade is
with Europe. OF our imports from
Europe, valued at 1888, ,534, only
! $15,430, ,242, or 4.35 per cent. was car
ried in American vessels. Of this, the
ships of the American line carried i'm
, ports valued at $14,S13,033. OF our eX-
ports to Europe. valued at 1886, Co.,
O93, but $27,55S,076, or 100 per cent,
was carried in American vessels, the
! ships of the American line carrying
| exports to Europe valued at So, ,O77,-
| 749.
The value of the imports and eX-
ports carried in the ships of this line
| was $39. .S90.TS2. out of a total of $780,
| Gl2. .2O6 carried in all of the American
ships engaging in our entire foreign
trade. The ships of this American line
tod /, -, ,r
cent. of all of the imports and exports
| of the United States that were car
| ried in American ships. If, therefore,
| the four steamships of the American
| line-which rendered such exception
| al and invaluable auxiliary naval serv-
ice to our government during the war
with Spain-can be driven out of our
| trade with Europe, the proportion of
| our carrying under the American flag
| in our trade with Europe will drop
| from the present 2.15 per cent. of the
| total to but 0.2 (two-tenths of one)
| per cent. That is to say. the foreign
| ships now monopolze 97.Sj per cent.
| of our carrying with Europe. and are
| striving with all of the power and in
| flucnce at their command to increase
| their proportion of our carrying to
9o.S, leaving for the stray American
vessel that will dare to venture into
that trade the carrying of 0.2 of our
| imports and exports! BY driving
! these ships out of our foreign trade,
| the proportion of the entire foreign
| trade of the United States carried in
American vessels would be reduced
from 50 to just seven per cent, leav-
| ing for foreign ships the carrying of
% per cent. of our imports and eX-
ports, and the estimated $2OO,OOO,0O0
| in freight earnings that are taken
from the United States each year.
"NO WONDER" concluded Mr.. Smith
| in discussing this portion of his re-
ply. "the foreign steamship lines, and
all other friends of foreign shipping,
and every enemy of American ship