Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-05-25
FAVORS TONNAGE BILL
Bounty Based on Mileage
for Ships.
MARINE COMMISSION
FORMER REPRESENTATIVE FAR
QUHAR TALKS TODAY.
Question Strictly a Commercial One
j. ]. Hill Favors Subsidy for
American Bottoms.

American Bottoms.
NEW YORK, May 25.-When the mer-
chant marine commission resumed it's in
vestigation into the cause of the decline of
American shipping today former Repre-
sentative John M. Farquhar Of Buffalo
spoke in favor Of the tonnage bill of 1891,
which failed of passage by Congress. The
bill provided for bounty based on mileage
covered by the ships. Mr.. Farquhar said
that however Inadequate the bill Of 1891
was, 1t would have served at least as the
entering wedge. He believed the question
was strictly a commercial one, and that 1t
should be taken out of politics entirely.
Mr.. HIPS Gloomy View.
Jemes J. Hill, president of the Northern
Securities Company and of the Great
Northern railroad, appeared yesterday af-
ternoon as witness before the merchant
marine commission, the joint congressional
committee which is investigating the causes
OF the decline Of American shipping, In or
der to suggest measures for remedial legis-
lation.
THE first thing necessary" said Mr. Hill,
rs to create desire in the people Of this
country to own ships. 1t lis a purely COM
mercial question If there is profit in 1t.
people will engage in it; If a loss. 1t is a
question how long people will stick.
Our conditions on the high seas. as a
nation, seem hard to meet On land, In
spite of high rates of labor, the United
States has been able to work out 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 / have investigated 1t / be-
ueve that no amount of direct bonuses will
build it into life worth living.
Need of Markets.
what the country wants Is a market
Outside of our agricultural products. cot
ton, grain, OIL there are very few things
we can export because cost of production
Is so high. We cannot sell them. If we
would carry these products in our own bot
toms it would be a source of great profit.
They can build ships in England much
cheaper than here. Citizens of other coun-
tries have owned ships for the last forty
years to a greater extent than We.
Il have had experience in building two
ships-the largest freight carriers in the
would rather undertake to build 1000 miles
of railway than two ships. 1t has taken
four years instead of two, what through
strikes and other delays.
'If we are going to buy a merchant ma
rine out of the treasury of the country it
won't last long. We must give people con-
hdenee to invest.
''In Japan they have built UP large
marine, tney nave pdiu 'toHHdSe, put uo
not remember the details.
''Our business on the Pacific is hard: we
have to compete with all nations. and they
are fighting very hard for the oriental
trade. And I think that we have placed
Instructions in the way of this trade. We
cannot comply with the regulations placed
on US and compete with ships Of other ma
tons. We have been forced out.
No Success by Buying.
81 don't think you win make much Of
success of buying merchant marine; 1t
won't stay with you. You must get people
interested, but. there does not seem to be
much disposition on the part Of people to
go into shipping
In answer to question of Representative
McDermott Mr.. Hill said that his two big
ships cost % to 80 per cent more to build
here than abroad adding:
Besides, we have very few sailors, even
on pleasure ships. Go to Puget sound
the heads of the unions are the boarding
house keepers A man who is dead broke
and broken down by excuses is the man
sent to us. Same way along shore; you
hire 200 men as steyedores, good, eompe-
tent men, and tell them to come next day
They don't come as long as they have
money; the others are sent.
Suppose your firemen leave your ship at
some port. What are you going to do?
Hire Asiatics and the result is that while
can flag you are sailing under a foreign.
You might just as well try to catch black
bird in the air as to make those firemen
come back.
away our coast trade. But let me tell you
that on the lakes the lowest rates are paid
that are paid anywhere In the world. Six
years ago wages were high, but ingenuity
and dispatch gave the best service In the
world
Governmental Aid
Mr.. McDermott pressed the question Of
governmental aid.
But is the government able to go far
enough?" asked Mr.. Hill.
IF you will admit foreign built ships
free" he said, you will get a merchant
marine quickly"
How are we going to get back a mer-
chant mariner? asked Mr.. McDermott.
If you are willing to put a tonnage tax
on all that goes to foreign market, every
thing that goes out of the country, even to
new markets think you would get the
ships. That would come out of the people
The ship subsidy started In about thirty
minutes. i had induced the Japanese to
take our cotton to mix with theirs so that
1t would make better yarn. The Boer
war broke out and we could not get ships
on the Pacific coast. 1 had to cancel an
order for sixty thousand bales of cotton in
December. / came east and saw Senator
why we could not get ships to carry our
goods Senator Hanna said he would see
me in the morning, and he did. The result
was that he opened his campaign In Ohio
on the ship subsidy"
A Remedy Suggested.
Then your remedy" asked Mr.. McDer-
mott. lis an export bounty?
Yes, that is it."
'You seem to be very pessimistic over the
outlook" said Senator Gallinger.
THAT Is because I have looked at it
from a purely business standpoint. l built
those two ships simply as a regula tor-to
try the experiment. There are only two
courses open; either an export bounty, or
government assistance which would rise
into very large figures
Then you are convinced that we shall
have to give some sort of government aid
or go out of busness?" asked Senator
Lodge.
Exactly. If you Ak a limit of ten years
or the subsidies the favored party must
make the cost of his plant in the ten
years. Otherwise he will sell out to the
other fellow"
"How much do you think would be re-
auired for subsidy?" asked Senator NAL