Devils Lake inter-ocean and Devils Lake free press. (Devils Lake, Ramsey County, N.D.) 1905-1909, 1906-05-04
Foreign Shipping, Interests Op-
posed Our Own Interests j
Z II eed lie. n. W.

Washing ton, d. q, April 80. The
peculiar status of American shipping
at the present time has encouraged
NJ those who oppose the rehabilitation
of the American merchant marine to
u redouble their efforts to defeat the
ship subsidy bill, now pending in the
4 house committee on merchant marine.
Powerful influences are arrayed
against the bill, not the least Of which
are Americans who have invested i'm
mense sums of money in ships sailing
under foreign flags. These vessels
4 would be ineligible to subsidies and,
f5if compelled to compete with new
.American-built and Americans sub
sidized ships, the profits of their own
\ ers would be seriously reduced. 1t is
& not too much to say that the attention
of the shipping interests of the civil
4 lied world is fixed upon our house Of
representatiy Foreigners have not
forgotten, even IL some Americans alb
pear to have done SO, the time when
American sails whitened the seas and
4 the American flag pred dominated in
every port. The present state OF af-5
fairs pleases foreign ship-build ers and
owners immensely but they see In the
situation even greater possibilities,
4 practically the extinct lion of our ship;
ping. Strange as it may seem, there
are American ships now engaged in
the overseas trade. 1t is true they
are but a handful, but by keeping ex-
penses at q minimum, the exercise Of
Il usiness ingenuity, and, in some cases,
doing without profits, their owners
3 have managed to keep them going.
But they have become disguised with
the business and have announced that
unless something is done quickly they
will either sell their ships to foreign
interests, place them under a foreign
4 flag, put them in the coast wise trade
sSor dismantle them. AS these individ-'
II ual owners control a maj ority Of all
the American ships both sail and
steam engaged in the foreign trade,
should they execute their resolu tions,:
the result would subs tantially be the
sdisap pearance of American vessels;
from foreign ports. That this will be
the case seems a foregone conclusion
have been hanging on for years in the
hope of better cond itions, do not pro-
pose to bankrupt themselves In the en-
sterprise and are extremely weary Of
throwing good money after bad. Com.
sequently, should the foreign ship
ping bill be defeated its defeat would
advantage the foreign interests by re-
aieving them OF the fear OF a possible
powerful competit tor and further by
eliminating the American merchant
marine from the equa ton.
The hopes of the foreign steamship.
owners and agents, however, seem de-
stined to be blasted, for Indications
point to- the passage Of the ship sub
sidy bill before this session OF con-
gress end. The committee win prob
ably give an adj itional hearing AT,
which an expert will testify as to- the
cost sof steel plates here and abroad
The testimony OF the ship-build ers and
5sDf p. Fl. Gary, chairman of the board
of directors Of the .. IS. Steel company,
was clear and convincing on this
point. but to clinch it ] the committee
will hear an expert who is neither a
steel plate producer or consumer. Il
is understood the bill will then be-
taken up and later be reported and
passed Only b short interval will