The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1915-12-13
BUYERS PAY FREIGHT
ON BIG ENPORT TRADE
AmOuntOf Money Going to Own
ers Of Foreign Ships a De-
CeptNe Measure.

NEW YORK, Dec. IA review Of
maritime conditions before and during
the war, together with explanations for
the present exceptional situation in
ocean transportation. il contained in
monograph published by the National
Poreign Trade Council. an organization
composed OF representatives OF big man
uiacturing and commercial Interests.
me pamphlet, prepared under the d.
Iecuon OF K. III. Patchin, secretary Of
lhe council, Discusses at length trans
portation costs on imports and exports.
apo presents the view That the burden
not 10 ,n,,c 1Sr eutgoing goods devolves
mnlcn they are shipped as upon the
countries to which they are ccnsIFned
,Ln ~ Is tne buyer who pays the freight,
son tine total freight bill e. de-
ceptive measure OF the total amount of
money which leaves a country for ths
y ypIse o Oh Psying the foreign owners Of
U. S. Carried 10 Per Cent.
For the normal year ended June 90.
1914. the estimated Transportation cost
OF the foreign commerce OF the United
states is fixed at tl5s,52O, 79I, of which 10
per cent. the National Foreign Trade
Council estimates. was carried under
the American flag The 90 per cent es-
timated as having been carried by for
elsgn vessels, Is represented as $685.
About H6,s4O.OOO is al, Americsn In
terests had to pay out OF the total
| transportation cost IL ia stated fhjs
| payment being upon imports 'since the
freight on exports as general rule is
| 1t is asserted that the total coat OF
| carrying American. exports and imports
IN time or peace is much lower than
the statement often madetthat 1t runs
from $2O0,O00O0O to 5000 100000 annually.
and that 1t is charge on the United
States because nine-tenths Of the COM
| merce Is carried in foreign bottoms. Tho
| discussion continues:
In the fiscal year ended June 30.
1914. the water-borne imports were 81
737, 7O8.653 and the exports $s.027 TO. $40.
| The true proportion OF freight charges
TO trade value. in the opinion Of freight
experts. does not. in time Of peace, ex-
ceed onc-third of per cent to I per
cent on expensive and valuable goods
| such as are imported into this country
| from Europe on the passenger liners
and 1t does not exceed per cent on
cheap commodities.
Rates Are Kept Down.
I'm the import traffic from all Euro
pean countries. at least, the traffic nor
mally is light and steamship space plen-
tiful, creating tendency to keep rates
| down owing to competition.
On the latter basis g per cent?, adj
mittedly high, the total freight bill on
imports did not exceed So, 1889 in the
| fiscal year 1914, of which about $5.2IS
125 was the share OF American ships
and $46,SlS,lS4 the portion of foreign
1.-THE proportion borne by freight
charges to the total value of our ex-
ports Is higher than in the case of i'm
ports due both to the character OF the
merchandise and to its far greater
The estimated bill on exports for the
fiscal year 1914, taking an arbitrary rate
Slol .SSs ,21o and the total for both sea-
borne exports and imports at S1sS52o,-
On the ,assumption that one-tenth the
value and the tonnage Of this ccmmerca
was carried under the American 1as.
the American vessels are said to have
re re- i've $i6.SSe.079. the foreign vessels
The monograph points out that n not
inconsiderable sum went to Americans.
who before the war had between 7 ion 900
and 20o0.OOO tons of shipping under for
eign fiags.
New Sources of Income.
"' Freight represents payment
for an actual service performed" the
treatise continues. %" This uues-
ton is usually linked with the general
free traders would contend 1t pays a
nation to have foreigners do its carry
ing. il u Is unable to perform the same
service at equal price. there Is no Ques-
ton that the carrying trade of such
nation as the United States represents
huge business, which gives employment
to a considerable portion of the total
tonnage owned in the world; and there
fore the PARTICIPATION OF Americans IN
this business would open new sourcs
Of national income" A., uo.~. =,
the National Monetary Commission on
the trade balance Of the Unite states,
in which Sir George Paish ated the
limited States paid only the freight on
imports, and Il anonymously quotes
lone OF the largest shippers OF Ameri-
can manufactures" who upholds that
ON the subject of freight rates the
pamphlet states the present scale can
not continue after the war,
1.-The main question to determine, y
states, sis how soon the drop IN trelght
market will take place following the
cessation of hostilities.