The Morris County chronicle. [volume] (Morristown, N.J.) 1877-1915, 1910-03-01
WASHINGTON
ASSOCIATION
OF New Jersey Holds Its An
nual Gathering at Head
quarters, Feb. u.
HON. LESLIE M. SHAW'S SPEECH

Leslie M. Shaw, former secretary Of
the treasury, before the Washington
Association of New Jersey at it's an
nual meeting held in the Lafayette
rooms Tuesday. The distinguished
statesman was most emphatic in his
declarations regarding the necessity
of American built ships and his ad-
dress made profund impression upon
the three hundred members and
guests of the association present.
He traced the evolution of the coun-
try from the Revolutionary war, which
he described as whipping by the
Wings of England and America ad-
ministered to the Tories, through the
Civil war. and the Spanish American
conflict down to the present day. He
showed how Congress by subsidy had
first built a highway to the Ohio
river, followed by the subsidy of the
Chesapeake canal, the giving Of exclu-
sive rights to American vessels to the
coastwise trade, policies adopted BY
the present minority party and later
by the majority party. Large sums
have been spent for the dredging
of streams and harbors for the en-
couragement of someone TO engage in
commerce, he said, and the govern
ment was now practically subsidizing
the magazines in handling them at
the present rates through the mails
Agriculture, too had been subsidized
by the creating Of experiment stations
and distribution of seeds while the ir-
rigation of arid lands had been under.
taken.
The country was now substituting
the commerce of the world, said Mr..
Shaw, by the building OF the Panama
canal, all the countries of the world
being permitted to use the canal on
the same terms as it will be used by
ourselves. He touched upon the tariff
by the assertion that we have taken
care of our producers and have some
thing to show for it, squoting facts
and figures illustrating the bulk OF
manufactures of the country.
/" We have taken care of everything
but our merchant marine," was the
assertion of the former secretary, in
our politics we are wonderfully selfish
and the man that rises to statesman
ship at the polls is the exception
rather than the rule for we are al
ways thinking of our own interests. "
(" We can make the Pacific ocean an
American sea if we have the courage,
fortitude and merchant marine to pos
sess it. e The canal will bring US
close TO Pacific ports, where before it
was the same distance from New York
TO San Francisco around Cape Horn as
it was to the latter city from Eu-
ropean ports"
. Japan proposes to dominate the
commerce of the Pacific or make it
run red, (" was the bold assertion of the
speaker, "there have never yet been
causes of war between too countries,
with the exception of religious fanat-
icism, which do not exist between
this country and Japan to-day"
. There is race hatred, you go there
to live and you live where you are told,
but the japanese wants TO live any
where you can't buy land there for
any amount of money, but the Japan
ese would own land everywhere your
children can't go to school there but
the Japanese man would go to school
in this country with your little girls.
Mr.. Shaw told of the Spanish Amer
ican war ; how commission visited
Cuba and reported the conditions ex-
iSting there; how Mckinley asked for
$50, 900, 600 and got it voted by Con
greSS two and One-half hours lateS,
by a nOn-partisan vote how he called
for $50, 600 volunteers and five times
that number offered themselves. men
who fought under Grant and under
Lee, their sons, sons Of bCndmen,
sons of the Indians of the plains, sons
of men who fought at Trafalgar and
atWaterloo, of all political complexion.
"They were recruited, armed and
equipped at corn planting and they
had whipped great nation with the
aid of our great navy and were back in
time to pick the corn"
The wonderful records of the marks
men of the United States navy were
told by Mr.. Shaw, navy which he
said cost $142 per capita but which he
considered worth SLAP to him to talk
about. g AS long as the world knows
we have that kind of navy we need
no navy, was his assertion, but we
have no transports, colliers or mer-
chant marine to support our BATTLE
ships" When the fleet went around
the world the speaker said it was ac-
companied by sixteen colliers belong
ing to other flags and one hostile shot
from the meanest country in the world
upon that feet and those vessels would
have deserted the battleships and left
them without coal, their countries
having no wish to engage In an em-
broglio. Japan has 500 ships on the
sea and 100 more on the ways ready at
cnce7-ready to quit the peaceful life Of
commerce and transport troops. He