The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1906-12-09

Compromise on ~, Much Mooted
Measure May Come of
/ + Presidents Work.

washington. Dec. S.-Ihe tone OF
the presidents message on the ship
subsidy question has had its effect upon
congress. More than one prominent
member of the house is ready to go
upon record that no general subsidy
legislation can be passed at this seq
sion, but the understanding among
members of the house who stand
closest to the speaker is that Uncle
Joe will not this time stand in the way
of report to the house of some kind
of subsidy bill, with a chance for
the house to debate the same, and that
from the preparations now being made
to amend the bill which passed the SEN
ate last session, the probability is that
if the house passes anything on the ub-
iect it will be bill providing sub
sidy for ships trading with South
America only.
This much, it is the general impress
sion, will be accepted by the country,
whereas a general subsidy is regarded
party to father. Indeed, one leading
member of the committee having the
subsidy bill in charge says he believes
the republican party would be- sent to
the bottom of the sea at the very first
succeeding election if it ventured to
pass general subsidy measure. This
member said:
Fears Sugar Trust Grab.
"The trouble with general subsidy
bill is that it would work harm in so
many directions that no party could
explain them all. The bill as it passed
the senate provides for a subsidy for
ships trading between the United
States and Cuba Now. the chief bust
ness between the two countries is car
rying sugar for the sugar trust, and no
one wants to stand in the light Of Civ
ing that trust a grab into the treasury.
rying lumber from Washington and
Oregon all the way around the horn to
the Atlantic coast cities, distance Of
$4,000 miles, which would not get l
cent of subsidy because they would be
held to be in the United States coast
wise trade. The people would be in
clined to think it better to pay sub
sidy to those vessels and thus lower
the price Of lumber rather than to pay
trust which is so manifestly beyond the
need of government charity.
81 know of line of boats which
was under contract to carry lumber
around the horn last winter when the
senate passed the subsidy. bill, and,
thinking the bill would be passed by
the house at once, the owners of the
vessels threw up their lumber contract
and prepared to go into the foreign
trade. They afterward renewed the
lumber contract, but suppose the house
had passed the bill and the lumber car
rying contract had not been renewed,
what would the people have had to say,
especially if the price of lumber, al
ready high enough in all conscience,
had gone still higher? Why, with the
bonus OF So ton proposed by the SEN
ate bill on foreign cargoes, I don It be-
neVe there would be. a single ship left
IN the American coastwise trade They
would all DO hunting for business to
foreign parts just as the line I refer to,
was intending to do if it dropped the
lumber contract around the horn.
The Philippines, Too.
'Then there are the Philippines. In
year or two now it is the intention to
make them a part of the coast of the
United States SO far as shipping is con-
cerned Suppose we passed this bill
placing a premium on foreign trade
what would the effect he on. the Phil
1pplnes9 Wouldn It ships take on a
cargo for Japan in preference to one
FOR the Philippines uni ess the shipper to
the. Philippines paid enough more
freight to make u p the difference be-
tween subsidy and no subsidy? The
Philippines are supposed to, be our
wards, yet what kind of treatment
would they think it if it cost them SIS
a ton more to get goods from the
United States than it cost their neigh
bors the japanese or the Chinese or
any other of the oriental countries ?
What effect would that have upon the
tTade Of the United States with the
Philippines
But you take the countries of South
America and perhaps we can do some
thing there in the way of encouraging
trade, that will not hurt us more than
1t helps. L am not sure that we can,
put L guess we, are going to try. At any
rate, they tell US there are 5O,OOO,OOC
to 90 business with us, and only waiting
Tor the chance, and it will probably pay
us to take that end of the question nh
and discuss it on the floor of the house.
IT we can do something to bring these
people nearer to us in Il trade way with
out cutting our own threats it will per-
haps be good business to do it. But if
1t has the effect of interfering with our
lumber or coal trade along our own
the consumer, | will have to be against
that, too.
1t looks, to me now, and I find
other members of the committee AGREE
with me, that if we do anything With
the ship subsidy legislation at this SOS
sion it will be confined to South Amer.
ca. am Informed that the speaker,
Whlle not a subsldy man, does not feel
that he is the whole works. and that as
long as the president wants to have
the, matter aired he will raise no OBJ
jections.'