The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1907-12-04


the Nippon Yusen Kaisha, which runs
to Seattle, has a similar traffic ar
rangement with the Great Northern,
]. J. Hills road. But the fact that the
Hill and Hartman systems are hostile
and that the interest of the one seeks
to bring trans-pacific trade to San
ern port, suggests that both may look
a little blindly at any rate-cutting by
their Japanese allies rate-cutting
which the interstate commerce act
would be unable to check. In any
event the result would be injurious to
American shipping.
Another way in which the eXemp-
ton of Japanese and other foreign
lines from the operations of restric-
tive laws which can be enforced only
on American companies is that it en-
ables the former to quote lower rates
via Suez than the Americans, with
their thirty-day- clause, can
make on freight which they bring
from the Orient to the Pacific Coast.
In the absence in New York of both
Vice-President Schwerin and General
Manager Hyde of the Pacific Mail
Company, the position of the latter
was outlined yesterday by Charles ].
Heggerty of the firm of Knight & Heg-
gerty, who represented the company
in the recent rebate proceedings in the
United States court here.
"The object of all laws" he said,
speaking of the enforcement of the
anti-rebate clause of the interstate
commerce act, lis to prevent some
evil. 1t frequently happens that a law
is so framed that its literal interpreta-
ton in special clauses may not only
work definite grievance, but even be-
come an absurdity.
Take, as an illustration, law
which formerly existed in England
that any prisoner breaking out OF jail
should be hanged 1t happened on one
occasion that a Jail caught fire, and
the prisoners, to save their lives, fled
from the burning building. They were
brought to trial under the law, and
the Judge held that while, technically,
they were guilty and should be hang
ed, yet the trainers of the law never
intended such a result in a case OF
that nature. Consequently the prison.
ers were acquitted.
THE same in regard to our inter
state commerce laws. These were de-
signed to benefit our people, not to as
sist foreign commerce. Yet that is
just the effect they have when they
are applied so as to prevent an Amer
lean steamship line from meeting on
the high seas the competition of for
eign line. If American shipping is to
exist it must not be saddled with han
dicaps from which our foreign rivals
are free.
"Then there are disadvantages. The
Japanese Government allows subsidies
to Japanese vessels. The United States
Government does not The Japanese
vessels are more cheaply operated.
Our laws require that none of the Of
ficers on vessels of American registry
may be other than American citizens.
AS everybody knows, American officers
are higher salarled than are the Jap
anese. Mr.. Schwerin recently told me
that when his company bought the.
White Star steamer Coptic from it's
British owners the vessel became at
once $4,000 a year more expensive It
was the same ship, simply it cost that
much more a year to run with Ameri-
can officers
William H. Avery, assistant general.
manager of the Togo Kisen Kaisha,
the line which has a traffic arrange
ment with the Pacific Mail, has just
returned to San Francisco after a four
months absence in Europe. He said
yesterday that he had seen Mr..
Schwerin in New York a few days ago
and that Schwerin then spoke to him
in the same strain as in his speech of
Friday.
There is no doubt" he said, that
foreign steamship lines which enjoy
subsidy, are operated by cheaper crews
and are under no anti-rebate restric-
tions have material advantages over
the American lines OF course, our
company, because of its traffic ar