New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1915-10-27
Or Prosecuted Merchant Marine

public today opens with this sentence:
"Ths development Of sound national pol
lev permitting and encouraging the steady
growth Of American shipping in the for
eigr trade Of the United States is rendered
5iH.ct ay The general lack Of knowledge
Of che fundamentals Of ocean transporta-
uon." This indictment is politely vague.
II would have been much truer and more
precise 10 say that the development Of a
sound national merchant marine policy is
prevented for the present by the lament
able lack Of knowledge Of the funds-
mentals Of ocean transportation exhibited
BY President Wilson, Secretary McAdoo
and Secretary Redfeld, and by Demo
cratic majority in Congress confused and
denoraHzed by their counsels.
Conditions created by the war have
pushed 10 the front the question Of reviv-
ing our deep sea merchant marine. There
has been an exceptional opportunity TO
enlarge our carrying trade, for Germany's
marine has disappeared and the French,
British and Italian marines have been de-
pleted by military demands. But the ad-
ministration has failed absolutely TO help
along the hoped for revival. Worse than
that. il has thrown serious obstacles IN
the way Of our merchant marines de-
velopment by threatening private owned
shippine with the destructive competition
Of government owned monopoly and by
saddling new burdens on American ship
owners through the passage Of the La
Toilette seamen's law.
When what we need is q united effort
to secure new tonnage, the President, Mr..
McAdoo and Mr.. Redfed propose first to
kill off the private owned merchant ma
rine that we now have and then to start
new and necessarily smaller marine
under government control. Destructive
elimination is TO precede constructive eff
fort The administrations programme
does not aim at expansion Of the carrying
trade. Ii aims only at government mo-
uopoiy. There is no escape from the con-
cIuslon reached in the committees report
that in the event Of government owner
ship and operation Of merchant vessels
becoming a settled policy the problem Of
the future Of American shipping will solve
itself By the extinction of private en-
deayor"
The La Toilette act, as it passed, was
p,ce Of fanatcism. 1t victimized Ameri-
can ship owners and then tried to console
them with the assurance that their foreign
competitors were TO be vctimized to an
equal extent. The administration, after
approving the law, shrank from executing
II, not because Of tenderness to American
citizens. but because of tenderness to for
eigners Il compromised by constituting
the law So as TO spare foreign owners
only The net result is that American
shipping is not only severely penallzed,
but is Disseminated against IN favor OF
alien shipping-a result which the fanat-
les who backed the La Toilette act never
had in view.
The committee naturally recommends
that the President be empowered by Con
ress 20 suspend the operation of such
Provision of the La Toilette law "as he
may consider detrimental 10 the interest
Of American shipping" mot the safety at
sea provisions. Of course). If that be too
much 20 expect. Congress is asked TO
amend the provisions regarding the Ian
guago test and the minimum percentages
Of able seamen among the deck crews.
These are modest petitions. Yet what
chance Of a hearing will they have with an
administration whose Secretary of the
Treasury is now out on the stump urging
The creation Of a government shipping
monopoly? From the point of view OF the
government monopolsts the only good prl-
Ns,e owned carrier is the dismantled one.
Mr.. McAdoo has been telling his audiences
that private carriers are selfish and un-
Trustworthy. According to his theory, the
sooner they are driven from the seas the
better And the La Toilette law is
pretty good club with which to drive 'hcm
into idleness or into foreign hands
We agree with the committees recon-
rendation that Congress should estaDilSh
,shipping board whose duty it shall be 70
work out plan "for the maintenance OF
United States shipping upon an equitable
competitive basis with other nations.
Mr. McAdoo also wants a shipping ooaro
created. but only for the purpose OF OPP
Grating government marine. The COM
hittee and the administration are there
lore helplessly at odds on all points. And
unfortunately, it is the committee which
u sustegically on the defensive. Spiking
Nf. McAdonic ar,1ns H. nhn1,t oil that II