The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1912-05-01
REBUILD MERCHANT MARINE,
 URGES COMMODORE BENEDICT
Returning From South America Where American Flag Cm osity He Advocates Legislation Restore United States Shipping the Proud Position it Once Hed-Ol Fuel Aid to Regaining Trade

Commodore E. c. Benedict, at his home, Indian Harbor, Greenwich, has given to the New York Herald an in- terview regarding the American mer-
 chant marine and oil fuel for steam ships He said:
 "The articles in the Herald of Sun
 day and Monday on the subjects of
 our merchant marine and oil fuel for
 ships are intensely Interesting, parti-
 cularly the latter, which forecasts a
 revolution in the use of oil as a mo-
 tive power for shipping.
 "The action taken on the part of
 the Bluecher's passengers on her
 twenty thousand mile trip to South
 America points to an awakening to
 the need of a merchant marine. To
 the forest of shipping which in 1S49
 encircled Manhattan Island, particu-
 larIy on the East River, nearly all
 under the stars and stripes. 1t is ex
 ceedingly humiliating to note the al-
 most entire absence of that banner at
 country was just recovering from the
 hard times resulting from the Mexi-
 can war, yet our shipping merchants,
 who did ninety-three per cent. of our
 foreign trade, made fortunes which
 are still enjoyed by their descendants. l
 shipping is exactly reversed.
 'In frequent trips across the Alt lantic and up tho Mediterranean, I have seen but one American flag and that was on MT. J. P. Morgan's yacht. Corsair, at Alexandria, Egypt. have made four trips on board my yacht to South America, and on recent one. just terminated. Red D. Line steamship and a disabled schooner at Barbados furnished very lonely ex-
 hibits of our flag.
 American Flag Nowhere. While at Rio Janeiro, President Fonseca invited me and my party
 three times to visit him. On one of these occasions I asked him if he
 see a curiosity in his harbor, viz., the American flag. He accepted, and with about dozen of his Cabinet and staff came aboard the yacht. The event being so unusual, he arranged that when he left his private wharf all the forts and the warships in the harbor should give him President ial salute (to which I responded in good shape, so he said.) The harbor was filled with noise and smoke and ships of all nations except ours. One of your correspondents speaks of sec ing the stars and stripes on a yacht. This was undoubtedly mine.
 "At Buenos Ayres I was most hos pitably received by Acting President de la Plaza, who throughout the visit seemed very anxious that his coun- try should increase it's business with ours, which could be done by line of steamships between the two coun- tries. The great fair held in that wonderful city two years ago stimu- lated and increased that country's jn- tercOurse with other nations, and he deplored our seeming blindness to the oppo1 tunities for profitable traffic with them.
 q saw and counted f1fty-four large oceangoing steamships anchored just outside the harbor waiting to enter
 the wharves. six or seven miles long,
 already occupied by other steamships.
 There was not an American flag in
 the lot, while nearly every other coun-
 try, was represented.
 Suggests Remedy. "How long is this condition to con-