New-York tribune., 1916-07-11
Nothing Left But Pork Barrel.


The Wilson-McAdoo ship purchase bill
has been denatured once more. II was
fearfully and wonderfully transformed IN
the House Of Representatives in order to
meet the objections Of Mr. Kitchin. who
still boasts that he is an old-line Democrat.
Now il has been trimmed. pared, sawed
and surgically remodcled to please the
even more exacting tastes in government
ship purchase ventures Of Senator James
y. Clarke. of Arkansas.
Mr. Clarke prevented the passage of the
original Wison-McAdoo bill at the short
session of 1915 The Arkansas Senator
knows very thoroughly what he wants, and
is seldom satisfied until he gets it. As a
spectacular climax to the denaturaton
ceremony in the Democratic caucus last
Saturday, Mr.. Clarke advanced to the fore
ground and shook hands with the Hon.
William Joel Stone.
Mr.. Stone has been an ardent advocate
of the Wilson, McAdoo scheme in all Its
fading-away phases. He won fame in Mis-
souri, politics a generation ago through
what was apty described as his ability to
suck eggs and then hide the shells He is
still able to control his features, and nc
must have looked more solenrnly cheerful!
than ever when he grasped the hand of his
Arkansas colleague in celebration Of the
final anamifcation-so far as concerns
principle-of the government ship pur-
chase and operation plan.
The shipping bill was originally an
emergency measure, pure and simple. 1t
grew out Of temporary panic conditions IN
the fall of 1914, when it looked for while
as if there would not be tonnage enough
available to carry the exports which we
had hitherto been sending to Europe and
TO other parts Of the world.
The manic subsided when it was demon
strated that we were actually able to sell
and deliver a much larger total Of eX-
ports than ever before. Extraordinary
profits stimulated shipbuilding and pressed
even discarded sailing vessels into service.
But though the emergency quickly passed
Mr.. Wilson and Mr.. McAdoo became so
enamoured with the idea of permanent gov
ernment participation in the ocean-carry-
ing trade that they besought Congress to
pass a bill putting the United States into
the transportation business indefinitely,
not only as a rival Of foreign subsidized
lines. but also of the shipping enterprises
Of our own citizens.
That grandiose scheme passed the House,
but failed in the Senate. Now, merely TO
avoid admitting failure, the President and
Mr.. McAdoo are urging the passage OF al
most any old bill carrying ship purchase
title. They are demanding an appropria-
ton of S5O,0OO,O0O, to be raised by the sale
of Panama Canal bonds, and if they can
only secure that pridesavi authorize
tion they are willing to accept limitations
on the life and freedom of operation OF the
enterprise which will make it practically
worthless for the economic purposes which
they say they have in view
The life of the corporation which is to
build, purchase or operate ships has been
limited to five years from the termination
of the present war-hardly time enough
for the government 10 get started in the
ocean-carrying business. Most shipyards
now have building orders ahead for
two or three years. Building will be too
slow a process. But the amendments to
the shipping bill just ordered by the Dem
ocratic Senate caucus forbid the proposed
shipping corporation to buy any ships reg
istered under the flags of the nations which
are at war, ships now engaged in Ameri-
can commerce or ships which through use
have fallen below IS per cent of their
original efficiency.
There is no great dearth Of shipping
now. and there will be no dearth at all in
year or two. American shipyards have
built 1880 vessels in the last twelve
months. Government aid in the way of
stimulating construction is the last thing
our merchant marine needs. Within five
- years some assistance may be required.
But that assistance can be given effectively
n only by helping our merchant ships to sus-
tain the competition Of carriers under for
eign fags-many Of them subsidized
which can be built and operated on a
cheaper labor basis.
The only feature now left Of the original
government ownership and operation
scheme is the appropriation clause. Fifty
millions are to be spent merely TO satisfy
the vanity of the authors of the "emer-
gency" measure of 1914. As it stands, the
shipping bill is simply a misuse of Treas
ury funds for purposes of trifing national
benefit.
Congress has its pork barrel bills-its
larqess for river and harbor improvements
of merely local consequence and for un-
necessary public buildings. The S5O,OOO,-
900 shipping appropriation is an Admins
tration "pork barrcl"-nothing more moth
ing less. No wonder the Hon. James 7.
Clarke tho chairman of the Senate Com