Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1901-12-05

The natural line of development for
policy of reciprocity will be in connection
/ with those of our productions which no
| longer require all of the support once
needed to establish them upon sound
4 basis, and with those others where either
/ because of natural or of economic causes
we are beyond the reach of successful
competition.
L ask the attention of the senate to the
reciprocity treaties laid before 1t by my
| predecessor.
| Merchant Marine.
The condition of the American merchant
marine is such as to call for immediate
remedial action by the congress. 1t is dis
creditable to us as n nation that our
merchant marine should be utterly insig-
| nificant in comparison with that of other
nations which we overtop in other forms
| of business. We should not longer submit
to conditions under which only trifling
| portion 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 it would
| also result in benefit to all who are inter-
| ested in the permanent establishment of q
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, if established to
| the principal countries with which we
| have dealings. would be of political as
| well as commercial benefit. From every
| standpoint it is unwise for the United
! States to continue to rely upon the ships
| OF competing nations for the distribution
of our goods. 1t should be made advan-
| tageous 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
N wi nc Of T,~
steamships, 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 Ameri-
can officers and seamen are very much
higher than those paid the officers and
seamen of foreign competing countries
and that the standard of living on our
| ships is far superior to the standard of
living on the ships of our commercial ri
| walls.
Our government should take such action
as will remedy these inequalities. The
American merchant marine should be re-
stored to the ocean.
Financial.
The act of March IA, 1900. intended I'M
! 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 judicious The price of our govern
ment bonds in the worlds market when
compared with the price of similar obli-
cations issued by other nations is a fat
tering tribute to our public credit. This
condition it is evidently desirable to MAIN
tain.
/ In many respects the national banking
| brric cue n ant fN,, ~
/ proper exercise of the banking function,
but there seems to be need of better safe
h 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 on 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 a deficit,
1 but after providing against any such con-
tingency means should be adopted which
will bring the revenues more nearly with
in the limit ofto actual needs. In his re-
port to the congress the secretary of the
treasury considers all these questions at
length, and ask your attention to the re-
port and recommendations.
| call special attention to the need of
strict economy in expenditures The fact
that our national needs forbid US to be
niggardly III providing whatever is actu-
ally necessary to our well being should
make US doubly careful to husband our
national resources as each of us husbands
his private resources by scrupulous avoid
ance of anything like wasteful or reckless
expenditure. Only by avoidance of spend
ing money on what is needless or unjusti-
fable can we legitimatey keep our in
come to the point required to meet our
needs that are genuine.
The Interstate Commerce Law.
| 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, To-
calities and commodities should be &C.
corded equal treatment. A commission
was created and endowed with what were
supposed to be the necessary powers to
execute the provisions 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 it's requirements are wrong
certainly that the means devised for the
enforcement of its provisions are defec-
tive. Those who complain of the manage
ment of the railways a1lege that eStab-
| ilSueu rates are mol 1flaltllalneQ, tnaC re.
bates and similar devices are habitually
resorted to, that these preferences are
usually in favor Of the large shipper, that
they drive out of business the smaller
competitor, that while many rates are too
low many others are excessive and that
gross preferences are made affecting both
localities and commodities. Upon the 9TH
er hand, the railways assert that the law
by its very terms tends to produce many
Of these illegal practices by depriving car
riers of that right of concerted action
which they claim is necessary to estab-
lish and maintain nondiscriminating rates
The act should be amended. The rail-
way is a 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 so and
should provide a speedy, inexpensive and
effective remedy to that end. At the same
time it must not be forgotten that our
railways are the arteries through which
the commercial lifeblood of this nation
flows. Nothing could be more foolish than
the enactment of legislation which would
unnecessarily interfere with the develop
ment and operation of these commercial
agencies. The subject is one of great i'm
portance and calls for the earnest atten-
ton Of the congress.
Agriculture.