New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1915-02-17
The House Goes to the Rescue OF
the Presidents Prestige.

The passage by the House Of Representatives
- n revised ship purchase bill (the tenth or
eleventh edition of this great emergency" meas
ure) will hardly help the President and MI
McAdoo in their efforts TO create public conn
dence in the administrations plans for gov
eminent owned and operated merchant marine
The action Of the House was not spontaneous
The big Democratic majority in that body would
gladly have lodged the unpleasant duty of gong
on record on this scheme. There was some
serious talk In August and September last OF
LEGISLATION 10 relieve the shipping situation.
Then there was some real apprehension that
American exports-particularly cotton exports
wopld be tied up here for lack of ships. But
what looked like an emergency passed, and the
House quickly lost interest in plans to put the
Government into business an ocean Garner
II would never have voted yesterday on the
Weeks-Gore bill except for the unusual pressure
nut upon the majority by the President Inere
;s q ne,y emergency" TO be dealt with now. II
IS not economic and has nothing to do with the
needs Of American shippers. It is exclusively
political and personal and concerns the Presl-
dents prestige as party leader. lie has staKeo
his authority on the passage by Congress OF some
sort of ship purchase law and is appealing TO his
followers in Congress to save him from the hui
initiation Of having to acknowledge that he had
conjured up an imaginary economic emergency
and had offered the country remedy in which
il refuses to interest itself.
Speaker Clark put the case bluntly IN the
Democratic caucus when he said that regardless
Of the intrinsic merits Of the House bill 1t was
necessary to follow the leader in the White
House. That is the subservient spirit in which
the Senate bill, now sidetracked, was pushed.
The Presidents pride of opinion has been touched
and he is battling desperately not to give the
country law based on his original conviction
Of what was needed, but to rush through any
sort of hodge-podge which will, politically speak
ing "save his face"
The House form Of the bill is just as obnoxious
as was the Senate form or any other Of the
earlier variations. 1t is proposed now to give
the Ship Purchase Board life Of two years.
But If the board should purchase interned ships
land they are about the only available purchases
in sght) Il may be two years before the right
TO operate such ships is adjudicated in the British
prize courts or before boards of arbitration.
Then the ships acquired to be turned over to
the Secretary Of the Navy, who, with the APP
proval of the President is TO decide whether they
are TO be retained in use as freighters or con-
verified into naval auxaries.
So far as the navy's needs are concerned il
would be much better to let the Secretary buy
auxiliaries at first hand. So far as giving aid
10 American shippers is involved, buying law
suit In the British prize courts would only be a
Joke at their expense. The creation of a govern
ment owned merchant marine would be serious
blow TO our present shipping interests and would
deter private capital from going into shipping
ventures, in spite of the temporary inducement
Of very high freight rates.
Who would benefit by the passage of ship
purchase bill? SO far as we can see, only those
who want TO sell their ships because war condi-
tons have made il impossible TO operate them
The great government ownership scheme really
tapers down to a mere purchase scheme and
the House bill is just as vicious as any of its
predecessors because it retains the purchase
clause. The President has fallen far when he
can allow his prestige as a party leader to be
tied up with what looks like a mere project fol
the relief Of a small class Of foreign ship owners
and their selling agents in the United States.