The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1901-08-28
A SMALL MERCHANT MARINE
The Republican Party and It's
Protective Policy Responsible
for It's Size.

Protective Policy Responsible
for It's Size.
Mr.. w. ID. Woods, of Darlington, in
reply to an inquiry from well known
and popular clergyman in the State,
shows how the protective tariff of the
republican party works injuriously to
me growth OF the merchant marine in
TINS country as contrasted with Eng
lands free trade policy, which has
built the huge fleets OF merchantmen
that are flying the British flag in every
cline. Mr.. Woods writes TO the News
and Courier:
1t ought 10 be sclf-evidcnt fact or
proposition that where, for illustration,
two men or corporations are engaged
in the same line Of business, but pur-
suing directly opposite methods of con-
ducting that business, and one sue
cecds and the other fails, that the plan
of the one must be founded ON good
business principles, while that of the
other must o. necessity have been
managed according to system al vari.
ance with both experience and com.
mon sense. Free trade and protection
arc as diamctrically opposite as the
poles, and whichever can be shown to
be right must of necessity make the
other hopelcssly wrong.
Then, too, what is wanted in busi-
ness affairs is not theories, but practi-
cal results, and it is just here that the
pernicious doctrine VI protection has
been, for the United States, dismal
and costly failure, forcing us to de-
pend almost entirely upon foreign yes.
sells for the transportation of both our
exports and imports.
Our navigation laws, to put them in
nut shell, make it impossible for n
vessel to fly the American flag unless
that vessel is built in this country.
This law has been in practical opera
tiou for good many years, with the
| legitimate result that if citizen of the
| United States wanted to build vessel
he must pay exactly what the protected
ship.buiidcrs choose to exact in the
way of cost. Finding that it costs SO
much more to build the vessel here
than it would in some other country
and that with this enhanced cost he
could not compete with the ships oil
other nations, he would simply aban
don the idea of building and use ship!
which, as they were built at the loves
possible cost, could give the very low
J est rates for transportation.
An illustration Of how this law, a
well as iothors based on a protectiv
tariff, enables ship-buildcrs and manu-
l facturers of material used in the con
: struction of vessels to put their price
} up to the highest limit was forcibly cx
, posed by Senator Tillman and other
C IN the bill before the Senate, calm
: for appropriations for steel plates use
y in the construction of wal vessels.
: was clearly shown ny Senator Tillma
Il that the bids for suppl, ing this armt
a were not competitive, and that I'll
it price demanded was far in excess
II that paid by the European Power
Now, If the manufacturers felt
&c strongly cntrenched behind the bu
+. warks of protection that they cou
r ovclChargc the government, il is We
le easy to perceive how they could bic,
n the private citizen.
I'd The United States has cheaper co,
n. cheaper IRON, that is far more of
e. and a great many other advantag
not possessed by England and, this /
ii. ing The case, it Is sclf-cvident that if
it has very little merchant marine Il
ar. the protective policy of the Republic
ra- party, the party responsible for [
no present navigation laws, must be
,re fault, and that this is the main, if
in the only, reason that our coun
makes such miserable show In
ws way of q merchant marine.
lchl England las pursued policy dire