Valentine Democrat. (Valentine, Neb.) 1900-1930, 1901-01-31
|FAVORS A SHIP SUBSIDY
Depew Supports His Views in Character
istically Brilliant Fashion.
THE FLOOR AND GALLERY APPLAUD
An Appeal for the UpbuiIding of Ameri-
can Merchant Marine-DIscussion of
teresting.

WASHINGTON, Jan. Ex-senator
Depew of New York today delivered
in the senate Enthusiastically fore
ible and eloquent address in support
of the shipping bill. The address,
which occupied just an hour, was in
the nature of an appeal for the up
building of the American merchant
marine by the granting of subsidies,
SIS provided for in the pending meas
ure. His discussion of the problems
of transportation which now confront
American manufacturers and Ameri-
can farmers was notably interesting
and effective. The peroration in
which hs urged that the American
flag be restored to the mastheads of
the freight-carrying ships of the Uni
ted States was a brilliant piece of or
atory and elected cordial applause
from the senators On the floor and the
crowds in the galleries. Little prog
ress was made with the Indian ap-
preparation bill. The last hour of the
senate day was consumed II the pass
age of private pension bills.
Senator Depew began with a sur
vey of the country's first century of
development, pointing out the i'm
mense material progress that had been
made in agriculture and manufac-
lures, how our exports had grown to
81, 500,000,0 900 annually in excess of our
imports and how the internal lines
Of communication had developed into
the most comprehensive in the world.
But he insisted that the development
of the country had been one-sided.
While prepared to feed and clothe
half Of the world outside OF the Uni
ted States, we had developed our
transportation system only to our own
coast line and had allowed our mer-
chant marine to remain undeVeloped.
so that there was actually a greater
tonnage of American vessels built in
this country for the foreign trade in
1907 than in 1900. Said Mr.. Depew:
"The farm, the factory and the
mine have filled the warehouses and
docks of our Atlantic and Pacific
coasts with their contributions to ma
tionel wealth, employment and the
happiness of cur people, and left
their transportation to Europe, to
Asia, to Africa, to South America and
to Australia, to the greed of foreign
ship owners, to the protection of for
eign flags and to the hazards of for
eign wars.
ga general collision, which is often
predicted in the European newspa-
pers, among the great powers of Eu-
rope, in the mad haste of their ma
vies and armies to outstrip each 9th
er in the acquisition of spheres of in
f1uence in Asia and Africa, would act
upon the United States, who might
be simply spectator of the conflict
as an embargo upon our coast. We
would be shut up with ourselves as
absolutely as if the navIes of the
world wore klloockoding our ports"
Looking to the reTne3y for TIE pres
ent stagnation in the American mer-
chant marine, Mr.. Depew said the
cry of 'tfree ships" had long ago been
discounted. 1t was not to be consid-
cred as a remedy, for it left out of
American shipbuilding industry. The
plan OF Q1ScrlIDlndIinS uuIleS, uS Sdiu'
was also impracticable. France had
tried it and keen forced to repeal its
law within a year. No nation would
submit to discriminating duties with
cut retaliating against us, and no ma
tion like ours, which is more Of
seller than a buyer, cali afford to
provoke such retaliation and thus
stimulate production in Russia, In
dia. Egypt, against our cotton and our
corn. The speakers conclusion was
that there remained only the sub
sidy as practical solution of the
problem.