The Athena press. [volume] (Athena, Umatilla County, Or.) 18??-1942, 1918-03-29
Gold Won by Our Ships
Prosperity Of Merchant Marine
Due to the War
Due to the War

, Washington.-The present colder
era for American shipping, resulting
, from great demand for ocean tonnage
and the extraordinary profits that have
. been made In our carrying trade by
: sea, have been shown by research to
be a recurrence of similar conditions
that have prevailed three times before
In the history Of the American mer-
chant marine.
Whenever there has been any extraor-
dinary condition to change political
or economic balances in this or other
great countries, prosperity for shipping
has followed, say experts Of the Unit
ed States shipping board.
In proof of this they point to the
great expansion of our foreign trade
following both the Revolutionary war
and the War of 1912, by which the
merchants of New York and New Eng
land were enriched, and also the for
tunes made by American ship owners
following the Mexican war, with its
resulting great rush of pioneers to
the new gold state of California.
None Of the stories of fabulous earn
lngs Of vessels In the merchant marine
In the first three years of the present
war-before the shipping board began
regulating freight charges at sea-are
more interesting than those of the
wealth won by ships owned in old
Salem, Mass, In the period in which
their owners were developing Ameri
can trade with distant parts of the
earth, following both peace treaties
with England.
In 1893 the ship Mt. Vernon Of
Salem made a profit Of 100000, four
times her original cost, on a single |
round trip to China, going out with
sugar, and returning via the Mediter-
ranean, where she took on silks and |
wines for the American market.
The owner Of the Mt. Vernon, Elias /
Haskell Derby, died while she was on
this voyage and left an estate valued
Mt $1,000,000, the largest American
fortune to that time.
Salem captains were ever on the
alert for new ventures in those days
Of rich profits. When in 1905 Capt.
Jonathan Carnes of Salem heard by
way Of gossip when ashore at BARGE
Iona, Spain, that pepper grew wild on
the coasts Of Sumatra, he noted the
information carefully. On his arrival
home he impaired it to Jonathan Peele
a Salem merchant, who forthwith fit
ted out the schooner Rajah, and dis
patched her to Sumatra.
The Rajah brought back the first full
cargo of pepper to be landed in Amer
lea, and her owner reaped the tidy
profit from Its sale of 700 per cent on
his investment.
Certain ships, known for their lucky
made fortunes for their own
ers. One famous In the annals Of that
period was the ship George-known as
the "Salem frigate"-which made regu-
lar voyages to the East Indies for %
years, accomplishing q voyages in all,
and earned fortune for George Pea
body, afterward famous as a million
aire phllanthroplst.
The value of her cargoes may be
Judged in that in her % years of active
existence there was paid on them at
the Salem customhouse, in import
duties, not less than 100000.
The George was tiny ship, as ves-
sells go nowadays being only ia feet
long, yet she proved a shining example
In other ways Of the glories Of the
early American merchant marine. She
had the reputation of carrying the
most intelligent crews to be found any
whcre--except possibly on certain 9th
nr American shlps-and was famed for
he number Of men who graduated
rom her forecastle to the quarter
leck.
When she sailed on her first voyage
70 India, In 1915, hardly man in her
crew was twenty-one years old, yet
Zach was an experienced seaman, and
lenrly every one was navigator.
OF the sailors who served on her In
Ter long and prosperous career As be-
'ame captains, 20 chief mates, and six
'evond mates. Thomas M. Saunders,
who served on her as boy, passed
through every grade-of ordinary and
lble seaman, third, second and chief
nate-and ultimately became her cap
ain.
The case of the George has been
'lted as an example of the beneficial
fleet Of continued prosperity on ma
Ions merchant marine. J
Not less than 1000 men signed artl-
les In the counting room of Joseph !
'eabody to man his fleet, the various
raft which made 3S voyages to Cal |
utta, II to Canton, 30 to Sumatra, Al
o st. Petersburg and 80 to other Eu-
opean ports.
In the later period Of the so-called
Upper ship era Of the merchant ma
Inc, great profits were made by Amer
can ships at n time when the vessels
# other nations were grubblng for
hnrters. This was due to the superior
peed of the American vessels.
The Rainbow, the first distinctly
Upper ship built anywhere, cleared
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