New-York tribune., 1906-11-21
COMPETITORS WITH SUBSIDIES

or war, are fostering their steamship lines by
me payment of subsidies. England is paving to
her steamship lines between S6OOONO and 81
OoOUOO a year; 1t is estimated that since 1910
she mas paid to them between $3.50 600 600 and
SoOOtOo,OOO. The enormous development OF her
commerce, her preponderant share of the carry
ing trade of the world and her shipyards crowd
ed with construction orders from every part of
IIIe earth lldlcate the success Of her policy.
France is paying about SS0000OO a year Itaiy
ana Japan between S300000O and $4,000 900
each; Germany, upon the initiative of Bismarck
Is building up her trade with wonderful rapidity
by heavy subventions to her steamship lines
ana by giving special differential rates of car
rage over her railroads for merchandise shipped
by those lines. Spain, Norway. Austria Hun
gary and Canada all subsdiZe their own lines
IT is estimated that about S2S0O0OOO a year
IS pald ny our commercial competitors to their
steamship lines
Against these advantages to his competitor
the American shipowner has to contend: and it
is manifest that the subsidized ship can afford
TO carry freight at cost for long enough period
TO drive him out of business.
we are living in a world not OF natural COM
petition but of subsidized competition State
ana 10 steamship lines is as much part Of the
commercial system of our day as state employ-
ment Of consus to promote business
1t will be observed that both of these dtsadvan-
tages under which the American shipowner la
pors are artificial; they created by govern
mental action, by our own government in
raising the standard OF wages and living bv the
protective tariff, the other by foreign govern
ments in paying subsidies to their ships for the
promotion of their own trade For the American
shpoWner 1t is not contest of intelligence skill
qualities
his competitors it is contest against his COM
petitors and his competitors governments and
his own government also.
flalhlv these disadvantages created by gov
ernmental action can be neutralized onlv bv
governmental action, and should be reutraized
by such action.
Tor the accomplishment of this lust purpose,
Three kinds of action have been advocated
Flrst.A law providing for free ships; that is
permitting Americans to buy ships in other
countries and bring them under the American
nag. nag PIainiy this would not at all meet the
dltncuues which / have described The only
thing 1t would accomplish would be to overcome
the excess In cost Of building a ship. in an
american shpyard over the cost of building 1t
III a foreign shipyard; but since all the materials
which enter into an American ship are entirely
relieved Of duty The difference in cost OF con
struction is so slight to be practically
negligible quantity and to afford no substantial
obstacle to the revival of American shinninp
The eXpedent OF free ships, therefore would he
merely TO sacrifice American shipbuiIding
Industry, which ought to be revived and on
larged with American shipping, and to sacrifice
it without receiving any substantial beneet ~
ls TO be observed that Germany, France and
italy all have attempted to build up their own
shlpplng by adopting the policy Of free ships
nave failed In the experiment, have abandoned
subsidy. P'NS VI
Second-It has been proposed to establish A
discriminating tariff duty in favor of goods i'm
Porled IN American ships. that is to say, to i'm
pose hisher duties upon goods imported in for
elsn Shlps that are imposed on goods imnortnd
In American ships We tried that once many
years ago and have abandoned #. In its place
we nave entered into treaties of commerce. and
navigation with the principal countries of the
world expressly agreeing that such discrim-
ination shall he made between their vessels and
ours To sweep away all those treaties and en-
ter upon a war Of commercial retaliation ana
repIlsal Tor the sake of accomplishing Indirectly
what can he done directly should not be serious
ly considered.
TO OVERCOME DISADVANTAGE
Third-There remains the third and obvious
method: 10 neutralize the artificial disadvan-
tages imposed upon American shipping through
the action or our own government and foreign
governments by an equivalent advantage In the
form or a subsidy or subvention. In my opin-
ion this Is what should % danA;att = the SEM