New-York tribune., 1916-07-25
The Blacklist and the McAdoo Bill


ton dispatches Administration leaders II
the Senate are going TO use the British
blacklist as a new argument in favor OF
the passage of the Wilson-McAdoo ship
purchase bill. They certainly are in sore
need of a new argument.
The supporters Of this measure started
out by urging it on the country as ar
admirable, up-to-date experiment In state
socialism. The government was to go
into the foreign shipping business in order
to build up the American merchant marine
and TO protect American shippers against
excessive freight charges. 1t was to
undertake at sea what Mr.. Bryan some
years ago tried to pledge the Democratic
party TO undertake on land, when he came
out in favor of government ownership and
operation Of all the instrumentalities OF In
terstate commerce For it is obvious that
if the government goes permanently and
unconditionally into deep-sea transporta-
tion all private American capital must
speedily be driven out.
The Wilson-McAdoo bill has been de-
natured so often in the last two years that
only a sickly shadow of the original gov
ernment ownership scheme now remains.
The governments interest in the purchase
and operation project is to terminate five
years from the day on which the world
war ends. There is to be no government
operation at all unless the Shipping
Board fails completely to lease the pur-
chased ships to private operators. Severe
restrictions are put upon the purchase Of
ships. and the overcrowded waiting lists
of our shipbuilding yards make it unlikely
that many new vessels can be finished for
the government before the life of the
building, purchasing, leasing and operating
corporation runs out.
Only one gorgeous possibility-one
dazzling opportunity-survives in the
denatured and redenatured act. That is
the issue Of S5OOOO,O0O of Panama Canal
bonds with which to create fund to be
spent on a prospective government mer-
chant fleet-ships whose keels may never
touch the waves in fulflment of the oo-
public money has nominally in view.
But there the S5O,OOO,OOO hangs, only
waiting to be detached from the limb-the
biggest, richest orb that has ripened so far
en- any Of the Administrations plum trees.
1t has resisted all shaking so far. No
wonder that the plum hunters want a new
argument-a new pole with which to bring
it to earth.
But what an inept argument The
British blacklist may serve to strengthen
the conviction that the United States needs
to create a mercantile marine large enough
to make American shippers Independent Of
the services of alien merchant marines.
There will be little disagreement about
that. But if we wish to create a real
American merchant marine, we could
absolutely do nothing more farcical, more
certain to defeat our purpose, than to pass
the pending Wilson-McAdoo bill.
What permanent benefit to our merchant
marine could come from the governments
spending $5OO0O,000 at this juncture in
building new merchantmen? The Bureau
Of Navigation reports that for the first
time in half a century the United States is
building more merchant shipping than any
other country in the world. Our construc-
tion for the calendar year will probably
reach 672, LOG gross tons. The construc-
tion Of all the other maritime powers to-
gether is not expected TO run much above
that figure. On July l last our yards were
actually building or had on order ,225, ,791
tons-an unparalleled record in the ship
building industry.
If private capital is meeting so gener-
ously and eagerly our needs in the way Of
construction, why should the government
step in with orders, which, if accepted
would only displace the orders private con-
Germs are ready TO give? There has never
been time in the history of our merchant
marine or our shipbulding industry when
government aid of the sort proposed in the
Wilson-McAdoo bill could have been more
misplaced and more superluous than it i,
to-day.
If we want to look ahead and to max,
sensible preparation for sustaining our
rapidly growing merchant marine in the
period Of reaction which may come after
the end Of the war, the thing to co is not
put the governments money into ship:
necessarily competing with private-owneC
merchantmen, but to put it, in moderate
sums, into a system of subventions which
will help all American bottoms and aic
them to keep the sea in spite Of the high
er costs Of operation entailed by our ship
ping laws. Fifty millions spent on ship.
would not relieve the situation for q day
or for an hour. But S50,OOO0O0 spent
over series Of years in subventions and
subsidies might restore the American mer.