The labor world. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1896-current, 1915-12-18

sOQp0slt10n IN congress- has contrib
l1teda more to the defeat 81 this sort
Ct legislation than any Their factor III
Americ It holds that slip subsidy
Will be g sbeciaI privilege granted BY
the government to a favored few, out
Of which will grow a shipping trust
that will stif1e competition on the
seas, and operate against every small
manufacturer in the country, 1T GER
tainly possesses no attractions for
labor. There will be an affinity Of
interests between the government
gu psidized vessel owners and the big
manufacturers sof the nation. all Of
whom will set their capital from the
same source =. LIT .=....', .ss Is 8
since the European war began the
ships Of Germany have been driven
from the sea, and England and
france have withdrawn a large num-
Der OF their vessels from foreign
trade to serve as auxiliaries to their
navies, This situation has resulted in
making the countries to the south Of
Jig, for time at least, more depend
ent upon the United States than they
nave ever been before. We also are
looking to these countries for a sun
ply Of much that they have to sell
In all our history there never y was
such. a trade opportunity presented an
the nation now has with South Amer
lea and the Orient.
l. South American Trade.
Our trade with South American
countries has remained practically
stationary since 1892. There are no
figures available for .the Orient,
The day of grace is at hand. The
markets these countries offer are
ours for the taking. At least four
factors must be. utilized to develop
them. These are: Hustling repre-
sentatives> Of American shippers to
drum up the trade; a closer banking
| and credit relationship; the manufac-
ture OF our goods for their use In
conformity with their styles, weights
and measurements, and the establish
ment Of a merchant marine. he-
lleve am stating the in their proper
order.
"A government owned merchant
marine will offer the only possible
means OF breaking up the shipping
POOLS which at present has our manu-
I 1acturers in its grip. I would use
government ships to do what prt-
yately owned ships cannot afford to
do-break down the extortfonate
trans-Atlant1c rates by threat Of COM
petition.
Nov the question-Why not sub.
sides?
1.-THE answer is very simple. SUBJ
sldy might be a fine thing provided
we can be the only country to give
subsidies. The reason that England
and Germany and other countries.
have used subsidies to such advan-
tage is that they were a unit and
alone In the field. Moreover, now
that they are SO we'll entrenched. it
would take $100,000,000 and gener-
alton OF time for us to secure q foot
ing by their methods. AS fast as we
gave a subsidy they would add sim
liar amount to their, present subsidy.
and they would continue to be Just
as much ahead Of US as they are now.
Competition In Subsidies. !
:. Competition in subsidies is the
same as competition in armaments:,
at the conclusion both sides bear the
same relation to each other as they
did at first. but both are greatly ,hurl-
dened with both debt and corruption,
when: our government ships shall
have been CONSTRUCTED, we can be
frank with these foreign shipping
corporations and tell them that Il
they will give up their pools and give
our merchants and manufacturers a
square deal with just rates, we will
hold to schedule rates and compete
only in the character OF the service
rendered. But IL they are going to
continue to discriminate against our
commerce we will step in and, cut the
rate, destroying their pool and COM
pelling them to deal Justly with our
people.
.S 5 Seamen's Law. . !.
This brings us to a discussion: of
the. Seanen's law, q law that has
been more misrepresented to. the peo-
pie of the country than any other
measure that has been passed. by
congress in recent years. We have
read something in the daily papers
of the so-called drastic requirements
of the measure relating to it's safety
provisions and the additional cost it
involves to vessel owners but not one
word has, been said about those fea-
lures Of the act which have released
American :seamen. and which after
June next will release the seamen Of
the world whose ships land in Amer
lean ports, from a bondage equal to
that which was fastened on the chat
tel Slave scarcely more than a halt
century ago. q ,i..,.,. =, -, = -.
"After "a legislative struggle Of
more than twenty years the last YES
tige of serfdom by legal requirements
has been stricken from our. statute
books. The ,seamen are free men
now and are able to stand erect be-
fore all the world, the. owners Of
themselves and their own labor.