The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1915-08-27
SHIPS or PACIFIC
MAIL PIONEERED
TRADE IN ORIENT
l1Ht relta4i %. sslA
They Carried FirstAmerican Cot
ton and Wire Nails
@.. TO Far East IL
r. H.. --4-- nfE
SCHWERlN ATTACKS a..
A.. IL SEAMEN'S MEASURE
Says There IS Nothing LEFT For
Company To Do But
-. Liquidate IT,.

IL is interesting now, in connection
with the suspension, Of the Pacific
Mail and the announced intention Of
the company to 60 out Of business en-
tirely, and, presumably, to give up its
corporate ghost entirely, to note that
q Pacific Mail steamer carried the first
bale of American cotton to the Orient
and introduced the American wire nail
there in 1890. These are two instances
to show what a position the company
has had in American business. .
The first ship Of the line to cross the
Pacific was the side-wheeler Colorado,
1928 tons, which sailed from San
Francisco January /, 1867. Since that
time the company has been continu-
ously in business. No more freight
from Eastern points will be received
by the Southern Pacific Company af-
ter the sailing of the Mongolia from
San Francisco today, although tho
British steamer Persia will continue
to sail for two voyages more at least.
Schwerin Reps Seamen.s Law .
r., p. Schwerin, vice president and
general manager, has made public a
letter written by him July 30 to Sen
ator La Toilette, who Introduced the
Seamen's Bill. In it, Schwerin RAYS
the law and replies to attacks made
against the Pacific Mail
Replying to a statement of Ia Fol
letteH lat "the propaganda put forth
by the shipping interest asserts that
it is ceasing business because of tn"
handicaps imposed by the seamcn :
law" this is wholly and malicousiy
false, Schwerin writes. Permit me
to say AZ an officer of the company
end familiar with its policy, that the
Pacific Mail cannot operate and meet
| its financial obligations under the sea
men s act, therefore it is forced to 20
out of business, This statement 10
neither wholly nor maliciously ia so,
but II is wholly and fatally true"
Continuing, Schwerin says in part.
81 raised in 1911 the sum Of 81, 500
900, of which $12,00O.000 was to be
expended for the building of four
combined freight and passenger ships
Of some $1,000 tons displacement eacn
and these were to be oil burners, anu
81 100000 was to be expended In
changing four ships in service to oil
burners and on alterations to make
the ships more modern in their pass
enger accommodations. - ..
What has happened to this plan 70"
feet augmentation is disclosed by the
winding up of the company s affairs
as announced.
Furuseth Gives Misinformation
He writes "Mr. Furuseth gave you
| misinfOrmatiOn concerning tho
change in the cost of labor and shows
that the payroll of the Mongolia, for
instance, would increase under the III"
from $7l6.l2 per month to $3.50 pa:
month.
in conclusion he states that the
| company was not now converting It's
ships from coal to oil burners because
unless its feet were augmented, thus
warranting the larger consumption Of
oil such change would not be ecOnom.
zeal.
"There is nothing else for this com
pany to do, )" he writes "when the La
Toilette scamen's bill becomes cffcr
tive on November 4, 1918, except QUO
of three things: First, operate in SOM"
other sphere, where wages do no!
have such serious effect in competi
tive oversee trade; second, lay n
the ships; third, sell the ships AMI
liquidate the company.
zone of the clauses of the new Law
most onerous to the company WA
that many members of the crew.
chiefly in the fireroom, consist OF
coolie labor and under the new law
the company would have to replace
them with men speaking the same Law
guage as the officers of the shin.
There were other provisions which
contributed to the decision Of thc
steamship company to sell
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