The Republican journal., 1903-07-09
Sentiment and Business in Ship Owning

which appeared in The Times OF Mon
, day, derives special interest from the
fact that it is almost pathetic. Mr..
Pendletop is probably the most enter
prising young man in the ocean carry
ing trade. He is President OF the At
lantic Carriers Association, and is
probably the largest American owner
of wooden ships sailing in the foreign
trade under American registry. lie IS
in the best sense of the term self
made man, and his prominence in the
shipping business is due wholly to his
own efforts, guided by an unfalterng
purpose to make himself prominent
and successful in a business with which
his family have been connected since
Colonial days. His large experience in
the shipping business both as builder
and owner, should have given him very
clear views concerning the policy OF the
United States in the substantial en-
couragement of the interest with which
he is identified. What his views are
may be summarized in few words, and
were perhaps best expressed in his testl-
mony before the committee OF Congress
to the effect that no American vessel
of which he has knowledge engaged IN
foreign trade has, during the past ten
ytdIS, Cltdlcu lAoOA0oo, Aiiouie'AioC, eSAi>>
! depreciation.
His suggestion as to a remedy for
conditions so unfavorable to an impor-
tant interest with which he is SO promi-
nentlv identified is that, since every
other line of business is protected to
the point of profit, his should also be.
His argument is as follows:
The country elects, as you say, to pursue
tho nrotpDtiya nDllrN | am cUlnOelleu TO
operate my vessels under it upon free
trade basis But | feel that my vessels
should be protected as much as the indus
tries on the land are protected, as long as
the protective policy lasts. am at present
unjustly Disseminated against b! my Gov
/ ernment. AS protection would help me,
why should | not ask for protection, par
ticularly as it is given to my neIghnor who
runs his factory on the land, while run
mine on the sea? And besides, the men
employ would be invaluable to the Govern
ment if we became involved in war; the
very best sailors are those employed on
medium-sized sail vessels, such as am in
terested in, i'll our foreign trade. 1t looks
to me like mutual hing; If the Govern
ment protects me, l shall be able to help
protect the Government. And by "protec-
tion' | do not necessarily mean subsidies
and bounties-I will leave the method OF
the protection to the Government.
AS an abstract proposition what Mr..
Pendleton says sounds fair enough,
but it leads to what would appear to
be lame and impotent conclusion.
What form of protection can be given
to the owners of ships which cost near
ly twice as much to build in this coun-
try as in Nova Scotia and cost nearly
twice as much to run under an Amerl-
can registry as under, say, British reg
istry, which will make such business
profitable? Is not the whole basis of
maritime enterprise under our tariff
system hopelessly artificial as it is, and
would conditions be materially or per-
manently changed for the better it we
should pile Pelion upon Ossa by in
creasing the protection? How is it pos
sible for the Federal Government to
supplement policy specifically design
ed to restrict foreign trade, so as to
make foreign trade satisfactorily prof
liable for those who engage in it in
American ships so heavily handicapped
in first cost and operating expenses
that the only profit man in Mr.. Pen
dleton'S position sees in the business is
in the saving he effects by not insuring
his vessels?
/ No fact would seem to be more self
proving than that high protection and
profitable participation in foreign COM
merce cannot 60 hand in hand. If
, bounties and subsidies are needed to
recoup the losses of shippers, we should
do we'll to abandon any idea OF the re-
habilitation of our merchant marine.
New York Time, June oath.