The Leavenworth echo. [volume] (Leavenworth, Wash.) 1904-current, 1919-01-03
SENATOR LAFOLLETT'S SHIP
PING LAW

Senator LaFollett some years ago
secured the passage of a law which
purported to help seamen. 1t proved
to have just the opposite effect. 1t
put American seamen out of job and
drove American vessels from the sea.
We can make any kind of fool law for
the people of the United States and
the people have to stand for it. We
can fix the wages of coal miners at
Sc per day for eight hours work and
as we must have coal to keep from
freezing the public pays form ten to
fifteen dollars per ton for coal. In
other words the coal dealer simply
passes the increased cost up to the
consumer. But when we make laws
to regulate things outside of the
United States, such as ocean shipping,
we come in competition with the whole
world. We can not fix the wages of
English, Italian, Japanese and other
sailors, or regulate their shipping
rules and laws. The foreign ships are
built and operated cheaper than the
American ships and carry freight
cheaper, and the shipper follows the
universal rule of having his shipping
done at the least cost There were
only two or three American ship lines
before the war began and the Pacific
Mail ship line, the last one, went out
of business in 1914, the year when
the war began, as the result of the
workings of the LaFollette law. The
war came on and caused condition
under which American ships could
again be operated under the LaFol-
lette law. Hundreds of American
ships have been built, but once we get
back on peace basis, under the La
Toilette law, our ships will be trans
ferred to foreign register, unless the
law is changed or foreign nations
agree to fix higher wage scale. The
following indicates that an effort is
being made along this line:
chairman Hurley of the shipping
board has gone to Europe to procure
an agreement of other nations to
adopt the shipping laws of our. coun-
try and adopt the American scale of
wages.
In 1914 figures were compiled by
our government showing the cost of
operating three ships of about the
same horse power and tonnage, to as
certain the relative expense at sea.
The American vessel under our laws
was compelled to carry AZ men with a
payroll of 1920 per month, the Eng
lish ship carried So men and paid
81 1903 month, the Japanese ship 36
men and paid $777 month.
The requirements of the LaFollette
seaman's act reduced American ton
mage on the Pacific ocean to less than
one per cent in 1914, and increased
the tonnage of Japan from 26 to over
80 per cent.
Before that law went into effect we
had the same tonnage on the Pacific as
Japan, but the LaFollette bill reduced
ships carrying our flag to a cipher
and increased Japan one hundred per
cent.
The LaFollette law provides the
men shall have half their pay on
reaching any port, and the effect has
been to increase desertion and drunk
enness, and to leave American ships
n foreign ports unnamed.
Another provision of the law is that
rs per cent of the crew must be able
to speak the language of the officers,
and this works to favor foreigners for
officers, as Americans will not work
in the engine rooms or the stewards
department, especially in the tropics.
Under the operations of this law the
United States will not be able to man
or operate its great fleet of vessels
built during the war nor the other
fleet of informed vessels taken from
the Central Powers
The law requires that SO per cent
of the crew must be certified able sea-
men and belong to the Seaman's I'M
ion, and to enforce that provision
would leave three fourths of our ship
ping idle as painted ship on a
painted ocean, to qoute the Ancient
Mariner.
The LaFollette act, instead of being
called measure to protect American
seamen, should be termed an act to
encourage shipping under foreign
flags"