The Hawaiian gazette., 1915-08-10
COMMERCE BODIES
WANT SEAMEN'SAC
REPEALED AT ONCE
Honolulu, Which Is Branch Of
National Chamber, win Con-
-, tribute Its Vote
INDIVIDUAL SHIP0WNERS
ARE HEAVIEST SUFFERERS
This City Will Be Left High and
sa Dry BY Provisions of
Nl O. New Measure

I3sl @! New Measure
Straw ballots taken on the mainland
show that the membership OF the cham
| DER of Commerce of the United States
s almost unanimously in favor of ro.
lpoaling the Seamen 5 Act, which has ro-
suited in the early withdrawal of the
Sacihc Mail from it's service between
San Francisco and the Orient, via noE
nolulu. @..an
1ho Chamber of Commerce of Homo.
| uluSghich is member of the national
| Jrgapization, will contribute its vote
ibis month to the country wide refer
indum which is being taken. Homo.
ulu is harder hit by the Act than any
Ither port of the Union. "1@ftasf3
+ individual shipowners of the Atlantic
and Pacific coasts are heavy sufferers,
of course, but the communities IN which
Ithey liye'fare only indirectly penalized.
5omebody is going to carry their
freight and their passengers-if not
fships under the Aemrican flag, then
dsh1is under foreign flags. ....
honolulu High and Dry
/ But by reason of the coastwise navi.
4
dor the law as q I" non ontiguous coast.
wise port" is left high and dry.
Anne. a, an chips are driven out Of bu-
sincss and foreign ships are forbidden
! ny law to substitute.
/ Therefore President WaldrOn of the
| 'hamEHr of Commerce of Honolulu is
particularly anxious that there should
be full attendance at the meeting of
the chamber, on the eighteenth of the
month, when a vote will be taken on
the advisability of suspcnding the
"oastwigc law
l "ln the past" he said yesterday,
when the same subject has been
4 aiscd, some of thSsmaller members who
ave not the financial interest at stake
# those directly concerned have shown
lcsitancy ~ attending our meeting and
aking parhgn the discussion. | hope
hat will not be the ease this time. This
commtihity matter. We are all
Nffectod!H nj
Serious Freight, Congestion
Even with the Pacific Mail ships still
n commission there is serious conges
ton in the freight business between
he Coast and the Orient. The man
igcr of one OF. the largest commission
rouses in Shh tFrancisco admits that
while, the COMPANY had been able to
'btain all shipments on time by paying
Ibnormal freight rates,ti was limpos.
,ible to engage space ahead. Where
in formerb years arrangements were
made from ten to twelve months in ad.
rance for shipments at guaranteed
rates, the chargtDnOr amount Of mCr.
"handise which would be accepted by
any Japanese line could not be deter,
lmined q week before departure.
"Japanese dimes have been q taking
the major part of the trade for some
time past" says the manager of an
other large importing house, "but the
increase has been especially noticeable
since the war. The amount OF goods
carried in American bottoms is negliG
ible and will be almost nothing whrr
the Pacific Mail Company goes out OF
, existence.
Great Britain Heavy Loser
"Great Britain has lost much by th,
withdrawal of vessels, but the Jaru
nese were competing on better thar
even terms before the war broke our
The cheapness of labor made it posi-
BILE for them to compete against Eng
"American Legislators have provide
that this country shall have no par
) in the development of the Pacif,
Ocean service, and by the British OF
; der that has Just gone into effect Eng
land will lose more than she has Je
suffered
Instead of destroying the Germa,
agencies in China, she win mercl,
turn their trade over to Japan, WI,
, will never forbid her vessels tradin:
with enemy citizens so long as then
is profit to be got from such trade.
Japan Looks Out For Herself
Japan is in the war to night, but no
at the expense of her own develop
f ment and prosperity. On England :
mart, the issuance of such an order an
the request made to the japanese I,
comply with IL seems to give basis T.
, the charge that Great Britain IL in
fuenced to some extenttby jealousy o
the remarkable growth Of German con-
= merce." . .
, AS an indication of the alarmint
manner in which freight rates, Are ris
) ing, this authority quoted figures TO
shipments made at present and shin
ments made a year ago. On elias
of goods ON which the charge for
, ton s space was between SO and 81 las
!, summer, the rate has been advance
to SO. Only three months ago the rat
for delivery from China to this couu
try through the Panama Canal wa
thirty'fve shillings a ton on certai
e merchandise now for the same good
it is sixty-fve shillings.
Y Why the Pacific Mail feels compelle
r to suspend is explained in the state
v ment of Lewis ]. Spence, director o
traffic of the Southern Pacific CO."
= pany, which is the majority shareholde
of Pacific Mail stock.
"CGrtifed publ" accountants -
says, "have recorded their finding this
the requirements of the seamen's la,
will increase the most of operation o
The Pacific Mail service, in wages an
feeding of crews alone, more tina
s6OO,OOO per annum. which is cOnsid
erably more than the company ha
learned in excess of its fixed charge