The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1907-01-25

Washington. January 23.-President
Roosevelts message in support of ship
subsidy was received and read by both
houses OF Congress today.
After the reading in the house, the
message was referred TO the commits
tee on merchant marine and fisheries,
from which a mail subsidy measure
has just been reported. In the senate
the message was sent to- the committee
on commrce.
The President calls attention To the
great desirability of enactment of
legislation TO help American shipping
and American trade by encouraging
large and swift steamers to South
America and the Orient. The urgent
need of our country's making an effort
to do something like its share OF its
own carrying trade on the occasion has
been called TO his attention, the Presl-
dent says, in striking fashion, by the
experiences of Secretary Root on his
recent South American tour. State aid
to steamship lines, the President says,
is as much a part OF tho commercial
system of today as State employment
Of consuls to promote business. The
President discusses the bill now before
the committee and says: at would
surely he discreditable for us to sur
render to our commercial rivals the
geat commerce of the Orient, the great
commerce we should have with South
America, and even our own commu-
| nication with Hawaii and the Philip
pines.
"The urgent need Of our country's
| making an effort 10 do something like
| its share of its own carrying trade
| on the ocean," the President says "has
been called to our attention In striking
fashion by the experience Of Secretary
| Root on his recent South American
| tour.
The facts set forth by Mr.. Root ore
striking, and they cannot but arrest
the attention Of our people. The great
| continent TO the south OF us, which
| should be knit to us by the closest OF
commercial ties Is hardly In direct com
mercial communication with us at all,
its commercial relations being almost
exclusively with Europe. Between all
the principal South American ports and
Europe lines OF swift and comnlodious
steamers, subsidized by their home
governments, ply regularly. There is
no such line Of steamers between these
ports and the United States. In conse-
quence our shipping in South American
ports is almost a negligible quantity
for instance in the year ending June
Both, 1905, there entered the port oi
Rio Janeiro over 1900 steamers and
sailing vessels from Europe, but from
the United States no steamers and only
seven sailing vessels, two OF which
were in distress. One prime reason
for this state OF things Is the fact tha'
those who now do business on the 81
, do business in a world OF natura
competition, but OF subsidized competi
ton. State aid TO steamship lines Il
also a part of the commercial system
OF today as State employment OF con
suls 10 promote business. Our bushes
competitors in Europe pay in the ag
gregate some twenty-five millions /:
year to their steamship lines-Grea
. Britain paying nearly seven millions
Japan pays between three and fou
millions.
; BY the proposed legislation tn
, United States will pay relatively les
than any one OF our competitors. Thre
, years ago the trans Mississippi con
gress formally set forth as axlomati
the statement that every ship Is mis-
sionary of trade. that steamship line
r | work for their own countries just a
] railroad lines work for their termina
: points, and that 1t is as absurd for Oh
e United States TO depend upon foreig
: ships to distribute its products as
g would be for department store to dc
Q pend upon wagons Of a competin
v house TO deliver it's goods. This state
ment IS the literal truth.
The bin provides for IA steamsnip
subsidized to the extent or over
e million and a half, from the Auant
II Coast, all to run TO South America
wNE