The Washington times., 1915-12-13
BUYERS PAY FREIGHT
ON BIG EXPORT TRADE
Amount Of Money Going to Own.
ers of Foreign Ships a De-
Ceptive Measure.

NEW YORK. Dec. 13.---A review Of
maritime conditions before and during
the war, together with explanations for
the present exceptional situation in
ocean transportation. is contained in
monograph published by the National
forcign Trade Council, an organization
composed OF representatives OF big man
uiacturing and commercial interests.
The pamphlet. prepared under the di-
rection OF r. il. Patchin, secretary Of
the council. discusses at length trans
portatlon costs on imports and exports.
aiu 81 presents the view That the burden
ol expense Tor outgoing goods devolves
n3t 80 much upon the country from
wnicn they are shipped as upon the
countries TO which they are consigned.
1t is the buyer who paws the freight
the monograph states. and for this re1-
son tine total freight bill is de-
ceptivc measure of the total amount OF
| purpose of paying the foreign owners of
Vessels engaged in oversee traffic"
U. S. Carried 10 Per Cent.
For the normal year ended June 30,
1914. the estimated transportation cost
Of the foreign commerce Of the United
States is fixed at $l5S,520 79l. of which 10
per cent. the National Foreign Trade
! Council estimates. was carried under
| the American flag. The 90 per cent, cs-
| timated as having been carried by for
Sisn Ssss vessels, is represented as $780,
About si6,a0.00O is all American in
| tcrests had to pay out of the total
| transportation cost, it, is stated, this
payment being upon imports "since the
| freight on exports as general rule is
paid by the consumer"
1t is asserted that the total cost of
| carrying American exports and imports
| in time of peace is much lower than
| fhn CT taf Of mn dr. hat
from s200.O00.00O to s3OO,00o,000 annually.
| and that 1t is a charge on the United
States because nine-tenths of the COM
| merce is carried in foreign bottoms. The
disnuisition continues:
I'm the fiscal year ended June 80
| 1914. the water-borne imports were 81
| 737, ,70S.653 and the exports $2.o27. .7S0 $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 per
cent on expensive and valuable goods
such as are imported into this country
| from Europe on the passenger liners.
and it 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 moi =
maliy is light and steamship space plen-
tiful, creating a tendency to keep rates
down owing to competition.
ON the latter basis g per cent?. ad-
mittedly high, the total freight bill on
imports did not exceed s52, ,1$1. $50 in the
fiscal year 1914. of which about $5.213 =
l25 was the share of American ships
and A6,SlS,lS4 the portion of foreign
vessels.
The proportion borne. by freight
charges to the total value of our eN-
ports is higher than in the case of im-
ports due both to the character Of the
mercha ndise and to its far greater
The estimated bill on exports for the
fiscal year 1914, taking an arbitrary rate
of per cent as a basis, Is given a.
Sl0l .SS9 ,21o, and the total for both sea
borne exports and imports at slsS,5eo,-
79l.
On the assumption that one-tenth the
value and the tonnage of this ccmmerc
! was carried under the American na".
the American vessels are said - have
received $l5.G5e.0T9. the foreign vessels
Sl2S. .l6S7l2
TIE monograph points out that not
!, inconsiderable sum went to Americans
= who before the war had between !. .GCo tO'
I and 100000 tons of shipping under foI-
] eign flags.
New Sources of Income.
"' Freight represents payment
for m actual service performed uf
treatise continues. 80 This cues
+, ton Is usually linked with the genera
a | ore of balance of trade. and thouSl
= | free traders would contend II pays
e nation to have foreigners do its carry
= ing. il It is unable to perform the sam
: service at equal price. there is no Hnes
, tion that the carrying trade OF such I
Il nation AZ the United States represents
o huge business. which gives employmen
!. to q considerable portion OF the tosa
- tonnage owned in the WORD: ana therG :
e fore the psrticipa ton OF Americans II
= this business would open new sourS
e OF national income.S
The monograph cites the report
the National, Monetary C9mmissiSSn Commits Sa+ @
e the trade balance of the unlteo S!a.ei
II in which Sir George Paish stated III
. United States paid only the freight o
o imports, and. it anonymously quote
o can manufacturers who upholds ina
d view. .,,. -o... =.
= On the subject of freight rates 20
n Damphlet states the present scale Cal
l. not continue after the war,
il THE main question M to e Getermine, m frs,.,
market will take place following II
- cessation of hostilities.