Evening star., 1901-12-03

marine Is such as to can for immediate
remedial action by the Congress. It Is
discreditable to US as nation that our
merchant marine should be utterly insig-
nificant In comparison to that of other ma
tions which we overtop in other forms of
business. We should not longer submit to
conditions under which only trifing por-
ton Of our great commerce is carried in
our own ships. To remedy this state of
things would not merely serve to build up
our shipping interests, but 1t would also
result In benefit to all who are interested
In the permanent establishment OF wider
market for American products. and would
provide an auxiliary force for the navy
Ships work for their own countries just
as railroads work for their terminal points.
Shipping lines, II established to the prin-
cipai countries with which we have deal
ings. would be Of political as well as COM
mercfal benefit. From every standpoint II
Is unwise for the United States to con-
tinue to rely upon the ships of competing
nations for the distribution of our goods.
1t should be made advantageous to carry
American goods in American-built ships.
At present American shipping Is under
certain great disadvantages when put in
competition with the. shipping Of foreign
countries. Many Of the fast foreign steam
ships, at a speed Of fourteen knots or
above. are subsidized: and all our ships,
sailing vessels and steamers alike, cargo
carriers Of slow speed and mail carriers
OF high speed, have to meet the fact that
the original cost OF building American
ships is greater than is the case abroad /;
that the wages paid American officers and
seamen are very much higher than those
paid the officers and seamen OF foreign
competing countries: and that the stand
ard Of living on our ships is far superior
to the standard Of living on the ships
Of our commercial rivals.
Our government should take such action
as will remedy these inequalities. The
American merchant marine should be re-
stored to the ocean.
The Gold Standard.
The act Of March II, 1900 intended un-
eQuivocally to establish gold as the stand
ard money and to maintain at a parity
Herewith all forms Of money medium in
use with us, has been shown to be timely
and tudicious. The price Of our govern
ment bonds in the worlds market, when
compared with the price of similar obliga-
tions issued by other nations, is fiat
tering tribute to our public credit. This
condition 1t Is evidently desirable to main
tain.
In many respects the national banking
law furnishes sufficient liberty for the
proper exercise of the banking function;
but there seems to be need Of better safe
guards against the deranging influence Of
commercial crises and financial panics.
Moreover. the currency of the country
should be made responsive to the demands
Of our domestic trade and commerce.
The collections from duties and imports
and internal taxes continue to exceed the
ordinary expenditures of the government,
thanks mainly to the reduced army ex-
penditures. The utmost care should be
taken not to reduce the revenues so that
there will be any possibility Of deficit;
but, after providing against any such con-
tingency, means should be adopted which
will bring the revenues more nearly within
the limit of our actual needs. In his re-
port to the Congress the Secretary Of the
Treasury considers all these questions at
length, and I ask your attention to the re-
port and recommendations.
I call special attention to the need of
strict economy in expenditures The fact
that our national needs forbid us to be
niggardly in providing whatever is actual
ly necessary to our wen-being, should
make us doubly careful to husband our
national resources, each Of us hus-
bands his private resources. by scrupulous
avoidance Of anything like wastefuI or
reckless expenditure. Only by avoidance
OF spending money on what is needless or
unjustifiable can we legitimately keep our
income to the point required to meet our
needs that are genuine.
In 1887 a measure was enacted for the
regulation Of Interstate railways. COM
monty known as the Interstate Commerce
Act. The cardinal provisions Of that act
were that railway rates should be just and
reasonable and that all shippers. localities,
and commodities should be accorded equal
treatment. A commission was created and
endowed with what were supposed to be
the necessary powers to execute the pro-
visions Of this act.
That law was largely an experiment.
Experience has shown the wisdom Of its
purposes. but has also shown, possibly
that some Of Its requirements are wrong,
certainly that the means devised for the
enforcement OF its provisions are defect
i've. Those who complain OF the manage
ment Of the railways alege that estab-
lished rates are not maintained: that re-
bates and similar devices are habitually
TcSOEtcu ", tudL IucS0 preferences are
usually in favor OF the large shipper; that
they drive out of business the smaller COM
petitor; that while many rates are too low
many others are excessive: and that gross
preferences are made, affecting both locali-
ties and commodities. Upon the other
hand. the railways assert that the law by
it's very terms tends to produce many of
these Illegal practices by depriving carriers
Of that right OF concerted action which
they claim is necessary to establish and
maintain non-discriminating rates.
The act should be amended. The rail-
way Is public servant. It's rates should
be just to and open to all shippers alike
The Government should see to it that
within its Jurisdiction this Is 50 and should
provide speedy, inexpensive. and effective
remedy to that end. At the same time 1t
must not be forgotten that our railways
are the arteries through which the COM
mercial lifeblood Of this Nation flows
Nothing could be more foolish than the
enactment of legislation which would un-
necessarily interfere with the development
and operation Of these commercial agen-
cies. The subject is one Of great impor-