Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1902-03-18
a EAIkL Birth MARX.

The ship subsidy bill passed the SEN
ate by vote of AZ to 33, but it failed
to receive the support of six of the
leading republican senators at Wash
Iington. Senators Allison and Dollivel
of Iowa, Spooner and ouarles of Wis
consin, and Proctor and Dillingham; OF
Vermont voted against the bill, which
will greatly weaken it in the eyes of the
public and presages its defeat in the
house. 1t seems that the same ques-
ton raised by the T.-R. in discussing
the bin yesterday has failed of a sat
| isfaetory answer In the mind Of Sem
ator Allison, who spoke TO a represen-
tative of the Chicago Record Herald as
follows:
Il am in favor of building UP an
American merchant marine, but l am
unable to see how this bill is going to
do it. Either 1t goes too far or II does
not so far enough. 1t proposes to sub
sidize everything ahoat; steamships
and sailing ships. vessels In the foreign
may get into 1t. The owners of these
ships are probably making money now.
Under this bill they are not asked to do
anything to develop the trade. All they
have to do Is to go running their
ships, just as they are running them to-
day, and the government will give them
q subsidy. In other words, it is gift
from the treasury.
What 1 would like to see is the es-
Establishment of new lines of American
ships to South America, to China and
Japan, and perhaps to other parts Of
or this bill will establish them or not
There is no Greet provision to that eff
established. But that Is only an opin-
ion. In other words, we are asked to
pay out large sums of money without
any assurance that we shall secure the
results we want. The effect of the bill
may not be the building of the new
ships or the establishment of new lines,
and all our outgo may be used simply
as gift to ships already afoat, and
which so far have been able to get
along very well without subsidies.
Il for one am unable to see how SEN.
ators can conscientiously vote for UNI
limited appropriations for a scheme of
doubtful value. 1t would be different
if we knew what we We're getting in re-
turn-if, for instance, we knew we
should get new steamship and mail
lines. But we don't know anything of
the sort. 1t is guess work. A large
part of the mail subsidy on the Allan
tic ocean will go to an existing corpor-
alton now running ships to Southamp-
ton. The company promises to put on
Southampton. That is not new line.
And this, 1 fear, will be the effect ev-
erywhere. Instead of establishing new
lines, am afraid owners will take their
gift from the government and either
put it in their pockets or use it to
strengthen lines already in existence"
The T-R. called attention to the fact
that the bill was very dangerous
measure in that should it fail to devel-
OPP a merchant marine as intended it
would simply line the pockets of indi-
viduals This has been the great fear
of the bill from the start. and if such
recognized leaders In the senate as AL
lison, Spooner and Proctor have not
been convinced of the bills capacity to
do what is claimed for it the country
at large will soon lose what little re-
spect it has entertained for the meas
ure 1t is hardly probable that the bill
will pass the house. With the disap-
prevail of these senators it has been
born with a birth mark that will for
ever mar it's beauty.