The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1904-05-25
HILL ADVOCATES
EXPORT BOUNTY
Great Northern Railroad Presi.
dent Testifies Before Merchant
Marine Commission.
Declares That Country's Great
Need Is Market for Export
able Produce.

New York, May Z5.-JaInSS y. Till
president of the Northern Securities
comnanv and of the Great Northern
railway, appeared as a witness before
the merchant marine commission,
which Is investigating the causes OF
the decline of American shipping In
order to suggest measures for rem
edial legislation.
"The first thing necessary, said Mr.
Fill, 'is to create desire In the peo-
Die of this country to own ships. 1t
Is purely commercial question. II
there is a profit in 1t people Will en-
HOur conditions on the high seas as
nation seem hard to meet. On land'
in spite Of high rates of labor, the
United States has been able to work
out a system without an equal.
why we are not able to do this on
the high seas is not clear to me, and
as far as T have investigated 1T I be-
lieve that no amount Of direct bonuses
will build it into a life worth living.
What the country wants IS mar,
very few things we can export because
cost of production is so high. We can
not sell them.
Experience in Building.
IT have had experience In building
two ships, the largest freight carriers
In the world, and I don't want any
more. T would rather undertake 10
build 1000 miles of railroad than two
ships. ~, o,-. r,,o,
of a success of buying merchant
marine; 1t won't stay with you. Be-
sides, we have very few sailors even
on pleasure ships. ...
ga foreigner might come IN and
take away our coast trade. buI let
me tell you that on the lakes the low
est rates are paid that are palo any
where in the world.
Mr.. McDermott pressed the question
Of government aid.
But is the government able to go
far enough?" asked Mr.. Hill.
off you will admit foreign built
ships free" he said, you will get
merchant marine quickly"
How are we going to get back
merchant mariner" asked Mr.. McDer-
mott.
eff you are willing to put a tonnage
tax on all that goes to a foreign mar
ket, everything that goes out OF the
country, even to new markets.,
think you would get the ships. That
would come out Of the people"
- Started Agitation.
1.-THE ship subsidy agitation started
in about thirty minutes. I had in.
duced the Japanese to take cotton tc
mix with theirs so that it would make
a. better yarn. The Boer war broke
out and we could not get ships on the
Pacific coast. I had to cancel an or
der for 10000 bales Of cotton in De
cember. T came on east and saw Sen
ator Fairbanks and Senator Hanna.
asked why we could not get ships tt
carry our goods. Senator Hanna sait
he would see me In the morning, ant
he did. The result was that he opened
his campaign in Ohio on the ship sub
sidy." - XII
s''Then your remedy asked Mr.
McDermott, els an export bounty?"
Eyes, that is it,
'You seem to be very pessinisti
over the outlook" said Senator Gall
niger. '...M
THAT is because have looked at !
from a purely business standpoint,
have built those two ships simply a
aregulator-to try the experiment.
There are only two course
open; either an export bounty or gov
eminent assistance, which would ris
into very large figures" a... -.. ..,.}