Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1914-09-22
DONE I'm PHILADELPHIA

FRIEND put INTO manu- tle OIhSi
Aday an old pamphlet written by John
Roach, the shipbuilder of Chester, which
describes rather fearlessly the causes of
the decline of the American merchant
marine and denounces in positive terms what
has been called free ships. Both these ques-
tlons are uppermost in the minds of the peo-
pie at the present time, and 1t Is curious to
note that they occupied somewhat similar
position 40 years ago
Roach was an Irishman, who came to this
country as boy early in che S0s, and first
went to work in a foundry for 20 cents
day. In the course of his long career as
ship and engine builder he failed four times
and, had he survived undoubtedly would
have successfully passed through his fourth
failure to fortune again. He built four of
the warships which were known as the White
Squadron, the beginnings of our present mod
ern navy, and 1t due to his suggestion
and advice that the United States ventured
upon the development of it's navy along mod
ern lines.
TT WAS this venture that finally caused
1.-the death of John Roach. First he aston
ished the Naval Advisory Board by making
his bids on four ships far below their esti-
mated cost. When the Dolphin was COM
pleted the new Secretary of the Navy,
William c. Whitney, would not accept it.
Although another board conducted a strin-
gent test and also rejected the vessel, Sec
retary Whitney changed his view. His action
came too late Roach, with so much of his
capital tied up, stopped business for the
benefit of his creditors. He declined in health
from that time, and two years later, or in
1887, he died, a broken hearted man.
Roach was responsible for large proper
tinp nP thn irnt, cto chi in ,ip1,
carried the American flag after the Civil
War. 1t is said that his yards built in all
ia ships of the most modern type for their
day. He was naturally a stern advocate for
the protection of the ship industry in this
country, and one had only to mention Clyde
built ships to him to start him off on
TRADE.
TN ROACHS pamphlet which my friend
handed me, find an explanation of the dis
appearance of our flag from the merchant
marine of the world. when our Civil War
began" the shpbuilder states, I'VE had
large commerce but a small navy, and the
latter, to protect national life, purchased
215,sTS tons of our best steam tonnage The
War Department absorbed, by charter and
otherwise, 1891 tons more. OF the re-
mainder, to avoid war rates of insurance
destruction by Clyde-built cruisers, under the
rebel flag, So1,311 tons sought refuge under
the flag of England or other European bunt-
ing, while 1o46o5 tons were actually destroyed
by the Alabama and other pirates.
"Of the ships of all sorts employed thus
by our Government few were afterward of any
commercial value, though resold at compare
lively low rates, partly because of the altera-
tions they had undergone in the process of
adapting them to uses, but more
account of the revolution which had taken
place in commercial naval architecture and
in the application of motive power"
D OACH comments upon this procedure as
~ one of the most extravagant and ruinous
methods that could have been devised for
supplying the United States with a navy.
But at the opening of the Civil War, as at
the beginning of every other war in which
this country has engaged, something like this
has had to be done We always have been
unprepared Indeed, the method appears to
be the approved method of augmenting naval
services all over the world. We chartered
ships during the Spanish War, and Eng
land, Germany and Japan, with their subsi-
dized lines also have found it convenient to
take over certain vessels from their merchant
marine In war times
1t has been generally understood that it
was during the period of our Civil War that
England-aRd to a lesser degree Germany
took advantage of our preoccupation to
snatch away from us the commerce carrying
trade of the world. From 1880 until the open
ing gun of the Civil War was fired our for
egn trade increased regularly and enor-
mously, and in 1860 it questioned whether
the United States merchant marine was not
first In any case. it was a close second to
that of England.
Turing that long-continued strife how
~ ever, England had her opportunity and
was keen to take advantage of it. Some per-
sons may have thought that our present con-
Germ to regain our proud position on the seas
while Europe is busy is a trihe unethical
but to the persons who feel that way about
it Mr.. Roach 40 years ago supplied the
answer
Listen to this: England saw the oppor-
tunity thus afforded her and availed herself
of it to the utmost. She spent millions on
millions in subsidies under various forms;
she used even the agonies of our strife for
her own advantage. and the Clyde builders
were enriched in the construction of blockade
runners, not to speak of the Alabama and
other representatives of the British neutral
service Unobstructed and unrivaled by the
only people who had shown a capacity for
competing with her upon the sea, she made
tho frst fruits Of he great naval raVolItion