Iron County record. [volume] (Cedar City, Utah) 1893-1982, 1909-03-19
Friday. March 70. 1909.
IMPORTANT ACTIONS IN CONGRESS.

Two or three recent actions By
Congress immediately before its nd
jonrnment are Of considerable Inter.
est 20 the average Citizen. One 10 IL
action on the Ship subsidy bill. by
. vote OF It's 10 172 the house OF
Representatives rejected this measure.
The vote was n olose one. and the
fight snssndeFsd considerable bitter.
mess and even aorimony. Rep. Moon
OF Tennessee Indignantly declared the
measure 10 he IAN 'infefnal' fraud
designed TO plunder the national
treasury" Champ CLARK declared
that lobby had been carried ON In
favor Of the bill fright on the floor
Of the house,
The bill provided for bounty 90
be paid out Of the national treasury
20 ell American steamboats, carrying
q regular trade with certain foreign
countries. All ships Of sixteen knots
or over and Of not iess than 5000
tons displacement we're, according TO
the bill, to be paid sA.6o per maui
ioaI mile on outward routes Of 1000
miioe or upwards TO South Amsrius.
tho Philippines, Asia. or Australia.
The object OF the bill was TO encour-
eye American ship building add com.
merce. To illustrate; A ship own.
or who sent out n ship with q cargo
20 the Philippines, or to China or TO
any country OF Asia. or OF South
Amerioa besides getting the profits
which accrued through carrying the
feisht In his ship, would ret an add
tioaai sum OF %. 90 per mile paid TO
him out OF the national treasury for
every outward trip. Thus q ship
owner running between San Francisco
and the Philippines would recsivs
out Of the treasury between s1b, 900
and els, 900 ~ bounty on his enter
prlsiDg spirit for every trip his ship
made.
We believe under certain oircum.
stances that n bounty might work |
good results; bnt we think that such |
n provision would be- too sweeping.
AZ 10 only tho wealthy capitalists that
csn build ships for carrying ON our
trade. aud only that class could reap
any possible benefits from such /.
bounty. Moreover, We ara not cor
tain that the commerce carrying bus.
iness on the ocean 10 such poor In
vestmept that II needs such bolstering |
up out OF the national treasury. II
the steamboat companies reap any
where near the profit our railroads
do, they certainly mead no such fos.
tsring care. II the national govern.
ment would pass q bill giving every
farmer In tho great arid tracts Of the
west bounty OF Ave or ten cents for
every bushel OF wheat raised ON those
great wastes that are not under irri.
cation, IL would we think, DO engag.
ing itself In u more laudable enter
prise. IL would certainly strike at
the heart Of every poor man who 10
anxious TO build a homo and turn tho
desert wastes into profitable wealth
producing sections. And we feel that
the venture into arid farming Ia as
hazardous, aud the difficulties as
great as those confronting a capital.
ist who builds "a ship aud sends II out
under the management OF skilled sea.
men,
The history OF the ship subsidy
scheme seems rather suspicious on
its face. IL was the pet project Of
Mark Hanna, who over sixteen, years
ago introduced tho measure into the
senate and fought so hard for itS pas
sage. AT that time IL was novel
scheme; Il was denounced Ia unmeas
ured terms as pure graft. aud met its
death by an overwhelming vote.
Since that time II has been preached
several times, until at present on ao.
count OF its familiarity IL does not
look so bald but II lie the same old
measure whose end 10 TO pamper the
capitalist GLASS at the expense OF the
government.
The light this time was bitter and
close one but thanks TO the judgement
OF the majority the measure was de.
fsated. II Is interesting Co Utah
people 20 learn that Rep, Howell
was not among those who voted
against the bill.