The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1900-02-02
HANNA AND THE SHIP SUBSIDY.

] HANNA AND The Shlf StbSiDt
AT the annual dinner OF the New York
Board and Transportation on Wednesda :
n ght Senator Hanna, in the course of mis-
remarks on the ship subsidy bin now
pending in Congress, said that the bill
would be passed Notwithstanding the op-
/ position of certain newspapers. which OPP
/ position ne said was not political, but
comes from our competitors and is pad
| for, every word of it
10 was like Mr. Hanna to charge that the
newspaper opposition TO the scheme to
take millions of dollars annually out Of
the treasury for the benefit of an indus
try was not genuine, but was bought
Such a charge would hardly b. made By
senator who was not. under suspicion Of
having bought his way into the Senate
Since he succeeded in getting into the
Senate Senator Hanna seems to think that
| there IS nothing that is beyond the reach
of money Having so many millions at
his command, and having been 50 SUE
cessfu through the use of money ne
places everything on a commercial basis.
The promoters of the snip subsidy scheme
have already found out that there is OPP
position 10 the bill which no influence has
yet been able TO reach They are there
fore advocating a limit 20 the amount that
can be appropriated under the bill for
boosting the shipbuildng interest The
limit is 100000 a year. Under the bill
as it was originally introduced it was es-
timated by some of those who had given
very careful consideration to the matter,
that as much as 100000 a year could
have been appropriated, and would have
been in all probability. if it had become
law.
Among the chief opponents Of the bill are
the farmers They do not see any ad-
vantage to them in being taxed for the
promotion of che shipbuilding interest
The kind Of ships it is proposed to subsi-
die is not the kind that carries the bulk
Of the products of the farms. The tramp
steamers are the great ocean carriers. 1t
is proposed to give subsidies to lines of
steamers which will he employed chiefly
in carrying the mails and passengers.
The ship subsidy promoters say that the
country will never do its own carrying
| trade unless steamship lines are encour-
aged by subsidies. Let Congress change
our navigation laws so that Americans
can sail foreign built ships under the
| American flag. and it will not be long be-
fore American commerce will be carried
in ships owned by Americans. And the
most of them will be built in American
ship yards. Many times we have called
attention 10 the fact that this country is
building locomotives for all the world, and
there is no protection for locomotive build
| ers. 1t requires as much skill to build a
| locomotive as it does a steamship. If we
| can beat the world in building locomotives
without subsidies or protection of any
kind there is no reason why we cannot
build our own ships. and build them at a
| cost as small as that at which they can
| be built elsewhere.
We have the finest system of land trans
portation there is in Che world. Its SUI
| periority cannot be questioned, and Amer
lean freight and passenger rates are lower
/ than those of any other country. If we
have accomplished so much in the way
of land transporta ton without help from
| the public treasury what Is to hinder US
| from doing as well in the matter of sea
| transportation?
Senator Hanna and other ship subsidy
promoters may try to boost the ship sub
sidy bill through Congress by charging
that opposition to it is kept alive by the
free use of a corruption fund, but the
people will not be deceived. The corrup-
ton, whatever there is of it, is on the
side OF the subsidy schemers.