The Washington herald., 1915-02-05
REDFIELD URGES
PURCHASE Plan
Tells Chamber of Commerce
Alien Companies Dominate
Our Foreign Trade.
BURTON OPPOSES 1T
Stormy Session Witnesses Debate Be-
tween Ohio Senator and
McAdoo. .


panies upon merchants of this country,
approval of permitting American COM
/ merclal interests reasonably to combine
/ for the furtherance of their trade in
| other lands, and an appeal to the busi-
\ ness men of the nation not to stand at
this critical time in the way of the
development OF American commerce
were features emphasized by Secretary
| OF Commerce Redfeld in an address
last night at the annual banquet of
the Chamber Of Commerce OF the United
! States at the Willard.
The chamber at the close Of its
| afternoon session voted overwhelming
ly in condemnation of the ship-pur-
| chase bill. The vote was 161 to 90
in favor of a majority committee re-
| port in opposition to the pending
| measure, but the motion just failed OF
passage because of the need of a two
thirds majority to carry. A minority
| committee report, condemning the
| general principle of government own
ership of merchant vessels, but urging
the approval of the ship-purchase bill
as matter of expediency to meet
| present economic emergency, was voted
| down by almost unanimity. The
| question Of favoring or disapproving
the passage of the measure then was
chambers of commerce composing the
national body for referendum action.
Calls Conditions IntoIerabIe.
Secretary Redheld, throughout his
| speech, emphasized that he had no in
tention Of referring to the ship-purchase
| bill, but he pointed out that conditions
| were intolerable and that they demanded
| immediate attention.
NI do mt care To suggest a renpdV' he
| said. Il am open to any remedy that
| will remedy. and remedy quickly: but in
i my judgment 1t is the worse politics and
| equally bad business to get in the way
| Of American commerce now
Indirectly he was attributed to have
taken a slap at the action Of the conven-
ton in submitting the question of ap-
proval or disopproval OF the ship-pur-
! chase bill to referendum vote. He said:
This situation is something not to be
resolved about year or two hence, but
something to be acted upon at once
Secretary Redfeld emphasized three
distinct points in the course OF his speech
the attitude OF the administration to
business, explaining in detail what has
been done during the past two years for
the benefit OF American business men;
the attitude of business to business, uTg-
ing the business men of the United States
to uphold the honor of American COM
merce from being blackened by the per-
petration of fraud. and the attitude OF
America toward the rest OF the world
declaring that foreign steamship COM
panies are openly and ruthlessly break
ing their contracts and fatty refusing
to handle American trade other than
that which they please to handle.
Opposes Alien Domination.
He said in part: "I am very much
amused and very much surprised at
the idea OF American merchant ma
rine being mixed up in this particular
problem that I have laid before you.
1 do not regard them as at all the
same things. The navigation bureaus
OF the government are in the hands
of our department. 1 regard the un-
folding and the development of the
American merchant marine as some
thing that is going to take a good
while and require many thoughtful
steps. I do not propose to dogmatize
upon 1t at all. I do not know what
will solye the question of the Amer
lean merchant marine. 1t will prob
ably take more than one and more
than two things to solve that prob
lem. All I am concerned with is
this: That no foreign steamship COM
pany shall have the right to deprive
us of our opportunity now; and what
want to get done in any way is to
move the goods and to open the shops |
and to get the commerce going"
Chief Justice Covington, Of the District |
Supreme Court, indirectly praised the |
principle of the ship purchase bill when
he declared that business men Of Amer |
lea should not look sskance at public |
enterprise. and should not fear that the
government is impotent to conduct the
affairs Of this great nation"
Charles s. Hamlin, governor Of the |
Federal Reserve Board. declared that |
the United States now has the best |
banking system in the world, and that
the Federal reserve act, when IN full |
operation. will make this country the
center of the financial exchanges of the |
world.
McAdoo Pleads for Bill.
The afternoon session was a stormy |
one. The debate was opened by the |
guests of honor, Secretary of the Treas |
ury McAdoo and Senator Burton. of |
Ohio.
Secretary McAdoo appealed for support |
for the purchase bill on the grounds that |
the country has not available sufficient |
ships to provide for an easy flow of our
commerce. He said exorbitant freight |
rates are being charged for shipments |
on available vessels and denied that any |
complications would be /
Senator Burton declared the /
organization of shipping corporation |
would be nothing more than a mask and /
that IL would be real government owner
ship and government operation. This, he /
said, might plunge the country into in
ternational controversies in the end the /
seriousness of which may not be foreseen.
Report Is Against Plan.
William Harris Douglas, chairman of /
the ship-purchase bill committee, sub
mitted the majority report. the principle /
sentences of which read: Government
aid is absolutely essential to upbuild our
merchant marine. and we recommend II
be freely and adequately given. We be-
lieve the proposed government plan of
purchase or construction. even IL opera
ton Is avoided by chartering to private
persons, is wrong in principle and unwise
II the result sought can be secured by pri-
vate initiative supplemented by reason
able government aid"
The report embodied a substitute rem
edy for the situation-the formation Of a
Federal shipping board and a marine de-
velopment company, the company to ad-
vance funds to buyers or builders Of
steamers and the board to supervise ship
ping, with full authority TO handle all
matters pertaining to oversee transporta-