Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1913-10-16
Star Bureau,
metropolitan National Bank Bldg,
a nof

METROPOLITAN National Bank Bldg,
WASHINGTON. Oct. 10.
Senator Marines blunt declaration
in the Senate the other day that If
the treaty with England interferred
with the rights of the United States
to grant a reduction in duties on ma
terial imported in American ships, 1t
should be the treaty, and not the re-
bate law, that should be repealed,
seems to express in a word exactly
the opinion of the President and
Oscar Underwood, author of the new
tariff bill, on this subject.
Underwood's assertion that the pro-
posed per cent. rebate was planned
for the purpose of giving the Presi-
dent reason for reVoking the pres
emit trade treaties seems to have
White House approval, and there Is
little talk this week of repeating the
8 per cent. proposal.
In effect, the rebate plan is nothing
more nor less than a ship subsidy. 1t
is designated to encourage the re-
building of an American merchant
marine. In recent years American
ships have almost disappeared from
the seas. So few have been built in
this country that when our war YES
sells go on a cruise they have to hire
foreign ships as golfers. The Re-
publicans for years tried to get
through a plan for substituting the
building and operation of American
vessels. as many European countries
have done.
The Republican plan was to pay
outright from the treasury certain
amount for the building of American
ships. The Democratic plan is to give
a rebate on the goods carried in
s.J,.. thnY- hui
It is a subsidy in both cases, the main
difference being that the Democrats
will not collect the per cent, while
the Republicans proposed to collect
the full taxes and then pay the money
back to the shipbullders
1t so happens that we have treaties
with Germany, England and half
dozen other countries, under the
terms of which we promise to give
them the same privileges we take for
ourselves in commerce. These coun-
tries with which we have these trea-
ties. as soon as the per cent. rebate
to American ships was put into the
new tariff law, protested that under
the treaties we must give them tho
same rebate as we might give to
American ships. Then the other coup-
tries with which we have not trea-
ties protested that if we gave this
rebate to the treaty countries ii would
be a form of favoritism and discrim-
nation against the other countries.
There are two ways out of the mix
up. We may either repeal the . per
cent rebate law or revoke the trea-
ties. The beautiful thing about trea-
ties is that they may be annuelled
and new ones made at almost any
time. Of course, if we serve notice
that we want new treaty and have
annulled the old one there may be
some countries that Will refuse to
make the new one and Will want to
fight Any sort Of war that will re-
suit, however, will be at most Il trade
war. There is a growing belief in
Congress that the United States should
be free to take care of its own COM
mercial interests without consulting
other countries, and the outlook is
that Congress and the President are
very likely to take Marines view of
it and repeal the Hay-Pauncefort
treaty rather than the rebate law.
There are about 800 mad congress-
men in the United States. Some Of