Saint Mary's beacon. [volume] (Leonard Town, Md.) 1867-1983, 1901-03-07
SHIP SUBSIDY CLAIMS AnAlY1ao

The mn wn Neither Promote Gem
meree Nor Provide Fast Cruisers
For Time OF War.
The subsidy bill eialms to be- a bill
10 promote the commerce of the coun.
try and It's foreign trade aud 60 profit.
ably employ the surplus products OF
the farms Of the United States
To Justify the expenditure Of tho
100000 year proposed rs this bin
It ought 70 be shown that al these
objects arc accomplished by this bin
better than they could be by any other
means. for II the other 20 called ob.
Jeets OF the biii Ito provide cruisers
and transports 20 lie considered
by themselves. II Is clear that q cheap
or and surer way u having efficient
service would bc for the government
70 build its own ships.
Just how the bin VIII not promote
the commerce IN d manner at all com.
menRurate With the enormous cxpendi.
ture is easily seen by q study Of one
outward lgc. taken 1T random. 81
the stsamh ~ New York q vessel be-
longing 20 the International Nav,Ea.
ton company. the chief Beneficiary or
the blll
on her flrat voyage fratn Sew York
81 1900 this shipfrarFle ~ TIE
value Of less than S70o.0gD. aud Of this
only $4,000 was agricultural prod.
ucts. Now. compare the statement "
the president Of this cbmpany with
one made by Mr.. strattpn. represent
ing before the house committee III
January. 1929. the board 81 uBdcrwrit-
ers Of New York and fhc American
bureau Of shipping. Mr. GrIscom has
repeatedly said that the cost ~ his
four fast steamships waa sle0G0,000.
Mr. StFatton, at the hearing mentioned
above. said. when speaking % the re-
latlonship existing between a vessel
and her cargo, Say a ship Is worth
$4,000 or 100000 and that vessel
goes TO sea the cargo Is worth on an
average twice what that ship U.s. aud
a little later. III you aud a ship ls
worth 100000. you viii and the cargo
IL worth Sl.i00.Oo0 or 81 100000"
On this basis ship worth S2,0OOOg0
to S2.50O.000 ought 20 have cargo
worth from 100000 TO 5000. 900. Ia.
stead OF one worth less than three
quarters OF a million OF dollars.
4 Surely this ship, which under the
proposed bin would receive subsidy
OF quarter OF a million dollars or
more ycnr-that IL. about one-eigbth
OF the entire subsidy TO be paid Amer
lean steamships already built before
Feb. ], 1S99-cannot be said 90 pro-
mote commerce or foreign trade or
provide profitable employment for the
products Of the farm 10 any apprecia-
BILE extent.
Whatever else she does she cannot
In any way be said to help IN any OF
the commercial objects or the bill I'M
less thu promoters and supporters OF
the bili can show that MFR. Strntton Is
as Ignorant" as they claim every one
not agreeing with them must be,
The defenders of the bin are con
stantly setting forth before those wbe
In their Ignorance" are opposing Il
that the British and German govern.
ments and other nations are subsiGiz
Ing their fast steamships for war pur
poses in case Of need and we mus. dc
as much Then they nppenl TO tbs
work done by the two ships of the Ia
ternatIonal Navigation company in the
late fraeas with Spain as an instance
OF what might happen again. But Tho
bill as now amended gives no subsidy
for speed beyond is knots while th,
fast ships OF the English and German
merchant marine attain speed Of ?;
knots or better. In the event, then. OF
a war with these countries the New
York, which can make at most y
knots, her owners say, could neither g
in pursuit Of the enemy's fast ship'
nor run away from them. But by th'
bin no new fast ships are TO be called
into existence, so that the 50 called oh
ject of providing fast cruisers Is no
fulfilled by the bill II fails az lament
ably as It does TO promote commerce
and foreign trade.
Inasmuch as the government ln lS0'
employed as temporary transports 70
her soldiers to and from Manila (se'
report of commissioner OF navigation
pages 203 and 205l certain ships which
would under this bill have heen sub
sidy winners had the bill been in force
we can Judge the Kind Of ships tina
would be used were this bill now Il
operation. There were eight of thes
vessels. One was IA years old, one II
one IS and the other six from q TO A
years old.
This is the kind Of ships the compa
niles would turn over TO the govern
ment to carry her soldiers II they wer
called on for transports Il Ii no