New-York tribune., 1919-02-13
Congested Port
Called Barrier
TO New Trade
Coordination Necessary to
Commercial Expansion,
Says J. Spencer Smith
Immediate Relief Urged
Governors and Lawmakers
of New York and Jersey
to Meet Here To-Morrow

Between the visions of foreign trade
expansion now occupying the American
business man and the translation of
those visions into concrete fact there
lies to-day one huge, ungainly, disor-
ganized, sprawling, chaotic obstacle
That obstacle is the Port of New York"
At the end of five years intensive
study of port problems, that was the
summary of the present shipping sit
uation in this city as expressed to
The Tribune yesterday by ]. Spencer
ment's Board of Appraisers here, chair
man of the New Jersey State Board
of Commerce and Navigation, and vice
chairman Of the New York New Jersey
Port Development Harbor Commission.
"The trouble is," said Mr. Smith, 1--WE
have been content for years to rest
upon the fact that we have here the
finest natural port, from physical
standpoint, on the Atlantic seaboard. On
that account, this has been the logical
place for business to come. We have
accepted the business, looked compla-
Gently at the growing export and i'm
port figures they give out each year
from Washington, and let it 60 at that.
The root of the present trouble, Mr..
Smith and his expert investigators
have found, is waste. The figures of
the joint commissions statisticians
show that if this harbor is to rank
in completeness and efficiency of
equipment with Montreal, Liverpool
and similar first class ports, an ex-
penditure of approximately a quarter
of billion dollars will be necessary
within the next ten years.
BEST Port" on Coast
"Personally," said Mr.. Smith. cal
though the matter is one to which
business men here have not begun to
give enough attention, | do not think
that we have great deal to fear from
this domestic competition. Early in
the days Of the European war, before
we went in, Great Britain sent a COM
mission over here TO inspect ports and
decide which one was the most advan-
purposes. After giving due weight to
the superior mechanical facilities Of
some other ports, the grain elevators
Of Montreal and baltimore, for in
stance, that commission decided that
the natural advantages of New York,
and its rail facilities, made it the
best port on the Atlantic coast.
''This is the logical place for the
exporter to come with his product.
But what if, after he comes here. we
fail to do our share? That is a ques-
ton that is fundamental to the whole
success of our prospective export eX-
panslon.
Coordination Lacking
Mr.. Smith said that throughout the
port, including both the Jersey and
New York wings, there are only three
points where direct connections exist
between docks, railways and ware
houses. One Of these is at Bush Ter
minal in Brooklyn. Another is at the
New York Docks along the Atlantic
Campbell Stores in Hoboken.
An aeroplane trip over the city, he
said, would show a number of railroad
spurs emptying helter-skelter into
Brooklyn, Manhattan, Jersey, their ter
minals placed without any slight pre-
tence at coordination. The trip would
show a number of docks and piers
stranded forlornly, far from these vari-
Gus terminals.
Without apparent relation to either
docks or terminals, there would be re-
vealed warehouses scattered about,
remote, inaccessible. In between would
be seen long lines of laden motor
trucks, blocking the rest of the street
traffic. At the docks would be seen
other lines of trucks, stretching out in
long, twisted coils, waiting.
Lack of Correlation Shown
People on such trip, the vice chair
man Of the joint port commission said,
might get some insight into the pure
ly domestic side Of this problem. hey
might understand why it is that, al
though you can haul one ton of goods
from Philadelphia to New York for 27
cents, it costs $3.65 to handle it at thA
terminals of this city"
There is. in Mr.. Smiths view, just
one remedy - immediate systematic
handling of the port as whole, without
relation to state lines.
There are people who will tell you"
said he, that New York cannot be g.
really efficient port until we install
vast quantities of up to date mechani-
cal appliances, grain elevators and the
like. Undoubtedly mechanical improve
ments would help. But think we
can get along for a while without
them.
Would Cut STATE Lines
"But generally speaking the diff
Guilty here is not so much with equip
ment as with the planning of the gen
eral scheme-or rather the lack of
planning State lines must be disre-
garded Operating from the very be-
ginning they have been the excuse
for the railroad tumble that has grown
to such frightful proportions. They
must not" he said, "be allowed to
retard us any more. The port. which
is physical unit from Newark Bay
down beyond Staten Island, must be
administered as a unit"
To see that such unified administra-
ton is secured is the task which the
joint commission of which Mr.. Smith
is vice chairman has set itself.
For two years these commissioners
have been working out details of an
administrative scheme. Now they have
completed the draft of treaty where