The Logan Republican. [volume] (Logan, Utah) 1902-1924, 1919-08-07
AMERICAS SHIPPING


is touring the country in the interest o.
reconstruction problems, has message
which should have the earnest cors,dera
ton of ever citizen interested II the fu
ture welfare of the United States. He vi
vidIy 20, rays the mistakes and failure:
of pas. policies as they affected foreign
trade and points the way to future Of
forts which will promote the prosperity
of the nation and eliminate the danger:
that have beset us in the past.
Mr.. Ferguson brings to Salt Lake ex
pert testimony on the relation of th'
United States to world shipping, show
ing how the world war showed us into :
foreign trade which must be continued
in the future. We cannot turn away
from this new business without placing
obstacles in our own path of progress
The futuer program, however, demands
that we prepare ourselves for the new
role and this means that we must give at
tention to the construction and launch
ing of American shipping.
Mr.. Ferguson says:
"We have become creditor ma
ton and must continue to expand
and extend those credits which
were of necessity extended by the
government during the war. Our
present prosperity, which is like
ly to continue as long as the for
eign demands can be satisfied, is
due to these demands for the nc
cessities of life. Therefore every
farmer and business man is today
vitality interested in foreign
trade Prior to the war we hardly
carried 10 per cent of our exports
in our own vessels. When the war
came on we found ourselves with
out ships to either carry our troops
over in sufficient quantities end
our trade with neutral countries
suffered most severely.
The fleet of merchant vessels
aggregating about 100000 tors
which we started at the beginning
Of the war will be completed with
in the next year, and although this
fleet is an Unbalanced one, consist
ing in large part of freight vessels
ofspecific types, still it will be use.
full and under present conditions
of high prices and high ocean rates
can be operated profitably.
1t will have cost us considerably
over $4,000, 100000, a consider
able amount of which should he
charged against the war as war
cost. The entire merchant marine
of the world before the war cost
$2,009,000,000 and Great Britain's
cost about $1,000,000,000.
The United States will own
about one third of the available
tonnage of the war when the ships
are completed. The price we paid
for not having marine of some
Importance and ship building facil-
tiles of considerable capacity has
been enormous and the price will
have to be paid by the taxpayers
of this and the next generation.
1t has been cOnclusively dera
strated to our people that mer-
chant marine is not only vitality lie
cessary when this country may be
engaged in war, but is also vital
when other countries who may be
doing our carrying for us shaH be
engaged in war"
Japan has already inaugurated he
program and it is one which COMMAND
attention. Her encroachment on the Pa
cific is thing to be considered Unde
existing laws American shippers wer
forced to sell their ships to Japanese in
terests because they could not compel
with cheap oriental labor. AS a resul
Japan is in control of Pacific shipbin!
and increasing her power every day. Trt
American foresight and effort viii rem
edy this situation and put American shiE
ping on respectable basis.