Waterbury Democrat., 1902-01-18
FAVORABLE REPORT.
Senator Frye's Shipping Subsidy
 Measure

WASHINGTON, Jan. 1S.-The sen. ate committee on commerce has au- thorized favorable report of Senator Frye's ship subsidy bill. The report will be made by Senator Frye.
 The Democratic members of the com 1 mittee voted against reporting the bill. They also voted solidly for a motion offered by Senator Mallory to strike out the general subsidy provision of the bill. The committee made several amendments to the bill The lost im- portant were allowing mail carrying vessels under the bill to be either iron or steel instead of steel only, as origi- nally provided, and reducing to 1000 gross registered tons the vessels re- ceiving a bounty under the bill. 1 The report prepared by Senator Frye was read to the committee. It says that the purpose of the bill is to estab- lish the maritime supremacy of the United States in trade with Asia and in the gulf of Mexico and the Carib- bean sea, to establish securely trade between the United States and South America and to give the United States respectable representation on the north Atlantic. The claim is made that all these results will be accom- plished within ten years. The report also asserts that the bill will so extend l shipbuilding as to transfer from abroad to the United States the center of that industry, as the centers of oth- CT industries recently have been trans ferred, and also that it will give to the United States a measure of maritime independence corresponding to our in- dustrial and agricultural independ- ence.
 Senator Frye furnished the press the following summary of the report:
 "'rhe establishment of this complete American ocean mail service, involving much shipbuilding, will require several years! It will render the United States as independent of foreign powers for it's ocean mail service as is Great Brit ain. The cost of the American service | by American mail steamers will be $4,TO0,0O0. The cost of the British and colonial service by British mail steam CTS is $4, TOO, ,000. Receipts from ocean l postage by the United States are now estimated at S3,OoO,OOO The annual OeuClI uQQer tue new AIn0rlcdn system proposed, including minor services, will be about $2,000,0O0. The annual deficit under the British colonial sys- tenn is $2, ,1S8,0eO.
 s"The postal subsidy provisions ena- ble the postmaster general to establish an American ocean mail system supe- rior to the systems of Great Britain, France anu Germany.
 "The American ocean mail system outlined contemplates on the Pacific weekly mail service to Hawaii, the Philippines, Japan, China and Hong kong and fortnightly service to Pago Pago, New Zealand and Australia. The maximum cost would be $2, ,335, GOO.
 'On the Atlantic the bill contem- plates semiweel1ly mail services to Ja- maica, Havana and Europe, weekly to Mexico, once in ten days to Venezuela and fortnightly to Brazil at the maxi mum cost of $2,365.o00.
 Americans have absolute free trade in foreign going ships, so no shipbuild- CTS trust is possible under the bill. l Shipbuilders can import now free Of duty materials for ships for foreign trade, so no combination to raise prices of materials is practicable.