Washington sentinel., 1901-01-19
SHIP SUBSTDYLOBBY.
ITS CHARACTER AND ITS METHODS
EXPOSED.

Mail scnnduIs-BuI Drawn by It's
Benenclnries $500 The international
Navigation Company, Pennsylvania
Railroad nnd Standard on COmpu-
ny Interested In the Deal.
The Hanna
Frye.Payne ship subsidy bill has been
and stR, Is the most pcrsistcutly and
contluuh lobbied bin that has been
before congress in many years. Indeed
| it is doubtful whether such lobby as
that back of this bill has been known
of in Washington since the scandals
unfolded by the Pacific Mall steal
shocked the country.
1t Is not in any sense % secret that
the pending ship subsidy bill was
drawn by its chief beneGciguies Under
the kindness OF Senators frye and
Hanna their beueGcput services were
called into reQulsiti0n for the aun0uuc-
ed purpose Of framing q shipping bill
which was to build up the American
merchant marine. They were called
into the senatorial councils because OF
their interest in shipping and slIpbuild,
ing, and It is not natural to suppose
that In taking care Of the subject in
general they were going TO neglect
their own pockets. They helped to
draw the bill, they made IT, as the
farmers would say, "Log tight and
mule high in protection Co themselves,
and they have been on hand at Wash
ington early and often fl not always,
4 nH..l
continuous effort to bring to legislative
fruitiou the results of their advisory
labors.
Selections from this committee who
drafted the bill taken tn connection
with their well known presence In
Washington during most OF the leglsla-
tive days I'm which the bin has been
under consideration leave no doubt OF
their purposes and of their entire ear
nestuess to use all means within reach
to see these purposes accomplished.
Prominent among them are: General
Clement a. GrisCOm, president Of the
international Navigation company and
chairman Of this committee; eN-Sgna-
tor George L. Edmunds of Vermont,
the most capable and the highest priced
lobbyist in the United States, who Is
likewise leading counsel of the Inter-
national Navigation compauyi Charles
II. Cramp the great philadelphia ship
builder; G. Z. Huntington, whose pow
er with congress Us ut subject Tor rl-
maE0a and whose interests since DIS
death are capablv represented; William
Z. Clyde. president ana Thomas Clyde
secretary, of the Clyde line; Aaron Nau-
derblIt. secretary of tho American
Shipping league; H. p. Booth, presi-
dent Of the New York and Cuba Mail
Steamship company; Samuel $. Sewau
and Edwin w. Hyde, representing the
shipbuilding interests OF Bath, Me;
Alexander r. Smith, former editor OF
Seaboard and later secretary of the
New York commerce commission, and
Theodore c. Search, president Of the
National Association OF Manufacturers.
"Au, all honorable men," of course,
but none Of them, so far as the records
show, ever accused Of uuglgctiug his
own interests.
In opening the senate hearings Sena-
tor Frye. chairman of the senate COM
merce committee, naiyely said: 81 was
aware that to succeed iu ouactiug any
bill into law there must be an agree
ultuL OIL etINllll|Ib HAI...AtH- NaA" Al .".At"tf'
Of such a measure; that it would be
hopeless to go into congress with these
people entirely divided as TO what the
remedy should be-. [ then concluded
that l would take the responsibility
myself Of naming q cOmmlttce-ncces'
sarily Of men who owned ships or
built them or ran them or were IA
millar with the conditions of the mer-
chant marine and It's necessities" He
then named the committee, from which
the names above taken are selected
After eulighteuug the uuiuitated con-
cerning these gentlemen, senator Frye
added, 81 will say right here that the
committee has been interchangeable I'm
this business and has had nuumcrable
meetings I'm New York. philadelphia
and Washington" The humor OF this
statement will be appreciated I'm pro-
portion to the knowledge which the
reader hereof has OF the situation.
When the time came To exploit the
bill before the c0ugrus 7.ulgl committees
Of both house and senate, these gnutle-
men and others came CD Washington
and took charge of things. They filed
the committee rooms and controlled
the hearings. Ex-senator ElmuuIs,
who seemed to be considered smarter
than anybody else, acted us grand
sachem. The committee "sltaL h.s feet
and learned" when some doubling
Thomas Of the committee asked
question, the chairman of the commit
tee-Grosycuor on the house side and
Frye ON the senate sile-o.tler made
him feel like 30 cents by the crushing
Ha D. 90 .H#.. D D
over to Edmuuds, generally the lat
ter After the advocates Of the bill
had used up all the time Of all the
hearings telling what "a great thing it
was they were told bg the respective
chairmen that they could put lu writ.
ing, TO be printed MS q part of the hear
ing, anything that they had forgotten
or omitted or had not had time 90 say.
This open privilege wa# added TO by
special requests for further detailed
| information wherever &c was consider
ed possible that such Information could
be OF s, vice. with this sort of in-
dorsemt by the committee, these gem
tlemen or the third house sailed forth
upon congress at large. couGugr.u- and
| to conquer.
These are by mo- means all of the lne
italian hands that have been played TO
the advocacy OF the h"L Francis b.
Thurber of the New York ENuaut us-
ISOLATION, whatever that is; Lewis Nix.
on, the well known sLipbullder; =. p.
Wilson, secretary OK the Mluufactur'
ers' association, numerous representa-
tiyes Of the Pennsylvania Railroad
company and various representatives
| Of the Standard OH company have all
| taken conspicuous part u helping along