Washington sentinel., 1901-02-09
SHIP SUBSIDIES.
THE DIVISION OF THE sPolLs.
who VIII Get the Subsidy Under the
Pending BiIIR

When a proposition to loot the pub
lie treasury, like that Of the Hanna
Frye-Payne ship subsidy bill, /,
brought forward, It Is always loudly
heralded as n beneficent system OF
prizes for which all citizens so disposed
can engage in stimulating competition
There Is usually "nigger in the wood
pile" with such assertions, as we all
know, but it Is not often that he is So
easily discovered as in the case OF this
impudent measure. Accepting on theI
face the figures put forth by the friends
OF the bill, some Of which are most pal
pably falsihed, the facts are that about
nine-tenths OF all full subsidies upon
existing steamships Of IL knots speed
or over would be gObbled up by just
four concerns, which it Is well known
are those from whom the bill has ema.
mated. These are the International
Navigation company, owned by the
Pennsylvania railroad and the Stand
ard Oil circle, which would get over
81, 1,lO0O 900, or with the Paris on her full
service again about $500 900; the Pa
cihc Mail, $157OOO; the Ward line to
Cuba and Mexico, SAP 900, and the
American Mail company, owned by the
principal stockholders in the Ward
line, whose share would be S1O2 900,
bringing up the interest of that clique
to from one-half to one-third that Of
the Standard oil crowd.
Outside of these companies, receiving
in all about $2,OOO,OOO, there are nine
more whose vessels would be eligible to
a share in full subsidy, but who must be
content with a meager 5000, 900 divided
up among them. More than half even
Of this sum goes to one concern, the Pa
cific Coast company, which has already
enjoyed an exceptional amount Of gov
eTnmental favOrs In connection with
transfer service to the Philippines.
OF foreign built ships which are 10
receive only one-half subsidy the Inter
national Navigation company is esti-
mated to claim only n modest $3.50, ,OOO
added to the subsidy on It's express
steamers as noted above, but the Stand
ard OIL interest in Its ownership has
quite little fleet OF vessels Of its own
which, unless excluded by the tank oil
amendment introduced in the senate,
will probably come In for an additional
S250,0OO, while the Atlantic Transport
company, whose affiliations have been
growing closer through Pennsylvania
railroad shareholdings, is set down for
a 1884 600 plum in the pie. Still anoth-
er railroad interest, the Chesapeake
and Ohio, will have a right to demand
$1,000 on its boats, but a search out
side of this little family party does not
reveal enough American owners TO en-
10y as much all told as the smallest Of
the interests Just enumerated.
That there may -be ehansesein the fB~
ture cannot OF course be dis sputed, but
these must come slowly for outside in
terests that had not been laying their
plans in advance as had the group
which have prepared and are backing
the bill. That these latter gentlemen
have not been anxious TO pose as fool
isb virgins may be discovered on look
ing up the position of affairs as to YES
sells now under construction I'm the va
rious shipyards. on the Pacific waters
the leading interest next TO the Pacific
Mail and Pacific Coast companies hasal-
ways been that Of the SpreCkels sug-
ar monopolists Like the Pacific Coast
companies, they have been engOrging a
particularly large meal Of government
pap In transport service, and this may
have rendered them a little sluggish at
getting into the pool, but they are just
putting some new boats into operation,
from which they expect TO draw S2l2,-
900 subsidy annually, about NTH Of
t-lt frtrr a. a
the wolf from the door.
In the way Of looking to the future,
however, no one can accuse the Inter-
national Navigation company with be-
ing improvldent, and we accordingly
find among the owners Of vessels under
construction entitled to subsidy they
again lead the list with about S46S,OOO
prospective benefits to their credit
while the Pacific Mail are close on
their heels here, as they look for S433,
600 additional when they get their new
boats. Curiously enough, the Ward
people have only S1S5OO subsidy ca
pacity under way, the smallest Of any
Of the leading conspiratOrs, although
for requirements Of trade proper we
might expect them TO be at the head,
as a number Of their vessels are grow
ing old, and theirs is notably the most
prosperous Of all our transportation
companies, with the exception Of the
Mallory line, who are honorably dis
tingulshed, by the way, in "A practical
absence from the list Of subsidy bene-
fciaries.
Still another classification under this
inquiry is that of vessels building
abroad, and here we find that the ubiq-
uitous International company with
$307, 900 in sight and the Atlantic
Transport with $4,000 are the only
ones that seem TO have improved the
shining hour, but as those two will
have nine times as much coming to
them from this source as all outside
interests they are readily seen to have
nobly kept up the average.
Summarizing the situation, II would
appear that Of subsidy benefits that
can now be calculated upon the Inter.
national company would have about
S2,5OOOOO annually; the Ward inter
ests, $4,000; Atlantic Transport,
1874. 900; Pacific Nail S59O,OOO; stand.
ard oil, $3.50 900; Spreckels, S2l2,OOO;
Pacific Coast, S126,OOO; Chesapeake
and Ohio, 100000 or, say, Sj,35O,OOO
among these eight concerns, while all
other possible interests I'm sight lin
cluding S3S3,OOO to the Great Northern
railroad. which has not asked FOR sub
sldy at ALI, would be able to draw
1913 600 only. Further comment seems
unnecessary.