The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1912-02-16
He Advocates No Tolls and a
Strong Naval Force as
Nations Policy.
TALKS MUCH TO COMMITTEE
Declares Shippers Will Have to
Shoulder Burden of Any
Tariff.
tFrom wednesday, Is Advertiser.l }


George S. Dearborn, president of
American. Hawaiian Steamship Company
was one of the important shipping men
appearing before the congressional COM
mittee on interstate and foreign com.
merce in the hearings on the subject of
tolls for the Panama Canal in the fight |
which the railroads are making to have |
heavy tolls levied on ships plying be-
tween the Atlantic and Pacific and fly
ing the American flag. He presented
his arguments for free canal in clear
and convincing arguments, pointing out
first that the canal was military neces-
sity and good investment for the gov
ernment from this point alone if no mer
chant ship ever used it. c. p. Morse,
general agent of the company, has re-
ceived copy of the statement.
he pointed out that if tolls were
levied it would be the shipper who
would pay eventually as the rate would
be added to the regular freight tariff
by the steamship companies. He also
said that the whole country would thus
be taxed for traffic that was of more
especial benefit to the Pacific Coast than
to any other section.
Continuing, Mr.. Dearborn said:
A Commercial Enterprise.
"Having considered the canal as
public work created to meet a military
necessity, its commercial aspects NAV
be discussed. In broad sense it will
perform the function of transporta-
tion line. Instead of actually handling
the freight, it gives the ship, the freight
container, the privilege of using its
waterway, which will be exercised
whenever the value of the time saved
exceeds the amount of the tolls. If the
canal were private concern it's traf-
fic manager in fixing a tariff (particu-
larly by the old method of tariff makers,
i.e., basing it upon what the traffic
would bear) would attempt to procure
business up to the capacity Of his ser.
vice and producing the maximum rev
enUe, and working upon lines of least
resistance would seek to divert business
from existing routes over which the
canal has the greatest advantage. In
the application of this method the
coast to coast business, both as to vol
ume and revenue, would more than any
other meet these requirements.
The competition in this domestic bust
ness that would be first considered is
that of the Tehuantepec route, which is
now the advance agent of the canal. The
steamship company operating it, hav
ing provided service approximating
that of the transcontinental railroads
as regards time and more uniform anG
at materially lower rates, has within
comparatively short period developed
an annual movement of 100000 tons o,
reight. This steamship company ha
within eleven years created feet o,
eighteen 10000 ton, high-class freighter
all from American shipyards and il
building five additional steamers, and
in the belief that any canal tolls that
may be levied will permit of its use
has announced that it will abandon the
Tehuantepec route and direct its ships
through the canal. The Tehuantepec
with its great port works, rep
resenting an investment of $50, 100000
gold, will be in the unprecedented posi-
tion of losing its entire transshipment
business in the twinkling of an eye;
and it seems proper to express the opin.
ion that this country owes a debt of
gratitude TO the Mexican government
for creating this route, the gross earn
ings of which have not in any year
amounted to the fixed charges on the
investment.
The rate of tolls via the canal that
would divert the business from the TIE
huantepec route would be such as woul(
divert large additional tonnage from
the transcontinental railroads.
S'The purpose of discussing the man
agement of the canal on business line
is to demonstrate that such n metho
could not be applied to coast to coas
traffic as il would be charged a highe
fhan anu nthar. tharafnra tha n
tentative method should apply, that o
treating it on broad lines of nationa
policy. AS all of the people are take
for this public work there should not b
specific tax through an assessment o
the domestic traffic passing through il
Precedent for Free Tolls.
sfThe precedent for free tolls o
coast to coast business has been mad
by the government in its rate-makin
policy via the present Panama rout
which has resulted in a loss to its stean
ship line in transporting this freigh
and for the purpose of regulating rat,
by other routes. The Sault Ste. Mar
Canal is free of tolls. If the State
New York contributes $l00,00O,0(
through its 1000.ton barge canal for II
benefit of small section of the cou
try, surely the federal government CT
give the whole country the benefit of
$40O, 900, 900 investment in the Panan
Canal.
"The canal offers better opportu
ity for the development of an Amerie
merchant marine than any subsidy
that was ever proposed-if that is n
offset by the agitation of governmeI
owned bill. Nothing better than su
action as that could be devised to pl
vent capital (always timid) from e
barkation into steamship enterprise
''The apprehension existing in sol
quarters that the transeontinental "a
roads win in some underlined mann
cause the suppression of traffic throu
the canal, SO as to reduce the diversi