Amarillo daily news. [volume] (Amarillo, Tex.) 19??-current, 1914-03-20
AME R|CAN FLAG
ONCE HELD SEA
MERCHANT MhRINE ADNO AIS
shy LEGISLATION HAS LOST
TRiDE PRESTIGE.

special 10 Tho HsFs
WASHINGTON. D e. March -.
Sixty years aso one-ihirl % the
merchant shipping Of the world
carried the American flag England
also had about one-thlrd, the 70
naming third being scattered Mul-
hall the ENGLISH .lat.sticisn. con-
cedes that American tonnage aas
growing more rapidly than British
shipping We we're Oh the point oi
becoming the first maritime nation
American merchants were The first
private ship owner. 20 engage direct.
~ IA trade with China and the far
East without me support Of groai
government corporation or mon
op0iy like 90, East India companies
Of England. Holland and France
The American CHINA fleet which
dates from is1l. Developed aud
maintained f1r century the largest
and fastest 4liug ships 800 thr
world
In steam tonnage our early record
are equally favorable Tho first 7ur-
ccssful steamboat Robert Fulton
"Cierm0nt Raa built in the United
states In 1900 n was followed los
a large commercial development 90,
steam NAVIGATION. in advance of amy
other country
The firH steamship 90 gro. the
Atlantic. the savannah. 1919, carried
the American Tag
The first REGULAR steamship line 10
international trade was established
iu iS2O from Sew York 90 Cuba
To- the nr-t twenty years OF rrgu-
lar transatlantic steam navigation.
lslu-GO. the largest and fastest ships
carried th, American flag and in
the same period the tonnage Of
steam shipping under the American
flag vas ur in excess ~ that Of
England or amy other country
To-day ON flag has almost disap-
poared from the worlds commerce
We have ON the Atlantic one second
class passenger line 20 England. a
small surviving line 90 Venezuela.
aud q frci-f line go Brazil. only re-
Gently established Cuba d. helping
as out by Keeping up the old Amori-
can line from New York 90 Havana.
aud also assists ms with "a line 90
South America On the rdciiic Wc
have two lines 10 the Orient. owned
by railroad. one Of them having only
one boat. aud both losing money. and
line 10 Australia backed as patrlo-
tie enterprise by one Of the wealth
lest of Pacific Coast families
We have the kind but humiliating
assistance BOO our foreign trade OF
steamship lines maintained hy Cuba,
Brazil. Australia. New Zealand. Chi
ma. Japan Canada and European
countries We also like Spain and
Portug.l have fond recollections Of
our giofious past The American
FLAG. once supreme on the seven
seas. Is seen no more In a thousand
ports whose commerce n proudly
shared bat Yesterday
WHY have We nllon7 The usual
answer Is that We do not pay subsi-
dies. bui this Is Incorrect only a
few sorond class nations pay subsi-
dies for freight service. England
never paid dollar iu suhycntions Co
freight line. and subsidies only a
few fast passenger lines which con-
troll routes 10 India q purely mill
tary provision for the defense OF the
, empire Only one of the great Ger
man lines ever received subsidy.
aud that one only for q line 10 Aus
tralia and the Orient. where u must
compete with British India policy
| We have been paving mail subsidies
| for over twenty years. and have less
I to show FOR II than any other second
I GLASS nation. Tho trouble lio. deep
OF
Th, Nmcrirau merchant marine Is
/ the most remarkable example iu the
I world uf business that ha been
/ destroyed by legislation Railroads
can carry an indefinite amount %,
legislation Ike lb' Elkn, lass or
On, Hepburn Jaw Dr. all DumupiHs
railroad. get 1u equal sh1r, ISN'T
cougr, does mot CONTROL an tho
competing lines in ocean traffic and
Oh, ldH which o. has enacted have
made f.s American flag too heavy
. Oh burden for merchant h.p 90
carry .H competition with the ,gro
ships ler ioreigu ilae-
American laws increase the pay
ron 90 ship go 10 100 per cent by
uurlcu restrictions on che employ.
mrut men. In the eighteenth CEN
/ fury IN European nation, vvr,
almost 0cnstautly 40 each other S
throat. these restrictions may have
. been uu. essary 10 congress want.
/ American citizens TO go 20 sea a. said.
/ Or coz officers OF ships the expense
should Hot be laid on the ship owner
Repair. and maintenance are nca.
/ N item on steamships Congress
hr laM Increase this burden fully
+ 30 p,r nj by tariff duiio, and 9th.
. or absurd restrictions Nominal Law
laE, b.n passed for forty years. O..
trail5 10 permit free importation
o. materials for shipbuildlng, 1It as.
90 under the last tariff. Tie most
liberal U all. free materials cannot
. De- used or repairs
t.ul IS has forbidden OL any
tu. 81 recently. the Phi 'u1 a
o.. t ican ia- o ship omit Ir
a iur, country An American cit.
ilcu N.. buys a foreign built ship
BIAS been denied the protection OF
our fIal md our laws. No successful
MARTINI, nation does this. because
70 would bind the ship owner hand
aud foo, to deliver him 10 a domes-
to- continuation OF ship bnuildors
This ado, enormously TO the initial
investment In American ships. which
ar Dtpocted To compete viih On,
free maritime nations No ships "a
engage iu foreign trade have beer