The Mt. Sterling advocate. (Mt. Sterling, Ky.) 1890-current, 1915-02-17


studiously avoid fixing a definite time
for disposlng OF these purchased ships
and OF getting out OF business.
How. then, is this emergency pro-
posed to be met? Either internec
boats owned by belligerents must be
plications or they must be built, be-
cause all other vessels are carrying
their full capacity, and to purchase
those already engaged In service
would In nowise benefit or remedy con-
ditlons. II 1t Is not the policy Of the
Government under this bill to pur-
chase these interned vessels Of the
combatants, and IL 1t be true that the
rates are so excessively high, then
necessarily the owners Of all the YES
sells now engaged in the traffic must
be reaping harvests so rich that none
valuation II the Government sought
to purchase. The only course, then,
left open to the Government, would be
to have them built. am informed
that II would require at least 16
months for the shipbuilders to flll the
order. The s4O,OO0.O00 to be invested
under this plan would give our Gov
eminent a merchant marine of about
80 ships ready for service, say, In
about one year and a half. Under
normal conditions 1t requires on an
average of about so days for ship to
be loaded at the home port, make the
voyage, be unloaded In the foreign
port, to take on cargo, make the re-
turn voyage, to unload, to be reloaded,
and ready for another voyage, one yes
sci thus making about six trips year.
Under present congested conditions,
however, the number of trips would
probably not exceed four or five, If
vessels were available now. Then, If
the purpose of the Government is &C
tually to relieve this immediate con-
gested business condition, Is this not
pitable, and. viewed solely from a
practical standpoint, futile effort?
Any emergency which may now exist
will have passed long before this bill
could possibly become effective. and
the vessels provided either by pur-
chase or construction.
Economically unsound.
AS a business proposition this meas
ure can not be defended. 1t must be
| conceded-in fact, 1t Is conceded-that
as such it is failure, and would be
doomed to bankruptcy but for the
backing of the Federal Treasury. So
apparent is this that 1t is freely ad'
mitted that private capital can not be
induced to take the 40 per cent of the
| stock, or, in fact, any part, for which
| iC is permitted to subscribe, and the
Government will be compelled to go il
alone, take all the stock, furnish all
| the money.
If the Government corporation un
dertakes to purchase the vessels re
] quired by 1t at this time, when, owing
| to the war, freight rates have ad
yanced so rapidly the price paid mus
be correspondingly higher, and doubt
less from so to 100 per cent in excess
of what they could be purchased fol
under normal conditions, unless it IL
| proposed to tempt fate and throw dis
erection to the winds and purchase In
termed ships owned by the warning ma
tions. This aforementioned cor
poration would then begin business by
investing its capital on rising mar
ket in vessels at enhanced prices ant
be compelled to sell on declining
market. Having purchased these yes
sells at exhorbitant prices, when the
war Is over and the law Of supply ant
demand bring freight rates down t
the ordinary level, then, II II be con
templated for this corporation to re
tire from business and turn Its vessels
over to private concerns, as the spon
sors Of this bill aver is the expecta
ton, are We not sure to have a repe
tition In the disparity of the purchas,
price and selling price as was expert
enced with the vessels purchased b!
the Government during the Spanish
War. with which we are all familiar
when many Of such vessels sold TO-
less than per cent of the purchas,
price. and this deficit which this Gov
ernment-owned corporation will sus
tain, and from which the shipper ant
exporter alone will benefit, will hav,
to be supplied by the taxation OF thu
whole people. This difference be
tween the purchase and selling pric,
which the Government will supply. Il
1t anything more than a subsidy in dis
guise?
Am I, as representative Of the PEG
Pile of Kentucky. authorized to vot,
to tax my people to raise these mil
lions which will only benefit the ex
porters? Nearly every bushel Of grail
and pound Of cotton or farm produc'
is now out of the hands of the pro
Queer and In the hands of the ex
porter, or will be shortly. The freigh
is paid by the purchaser on the othe
side, not by the farmer.
II is we'll known--and a practica
demonstration OF the fact is brough
to our notice every day-that Govern
ment management and operation 4
vaetlv more exnansiva than nriya n