The New York herald., 1922-02-12
RATE CUTTING CITED
IN PLEA FOR SUBSIDY
Government Help Would Mean
Prosperity All Around, Says
T.. C. Plummer.
SHIPS WOULD GAIN VALUE
Foreign Low Wages, BOunties
and Tenacity Must Be Fought,
Asserts Marvin.

American shipowners must be put in
position to retaiate against the tactics
of foreign competitors. who have been
steadily cutting freight rates and thus
attracting business to their vessels, said
Commissioner Edward c. Plumner of
the Shipping Board at a luncheon at the
National Republican Club yesterday
Rate cutting was assigned as the reason
why American ships were carrying only
30 per cent. of the country's foreign
trade in September, 1921, instead of 81
per cent, as in the same month of the
preceding year
Besides Mr.. PluIimer. others who took
part in the luncheon discussion of "Ship
Subsidies and Discriminating Customs
Duties" were Winthrop l.. Marvin. vice
president of the American Steamship
owners Association, and William w.
Hoppin, Assistant Attorney-General in
charge of customs. Mr.. Plummer said;
''As the foreigner has taken from us
the bulk of our ocean carrying business
by reducing his rates below ours, the
only way in which we can regain that
which we have lost during the last year
is by enabling our ships to make rates
lower than the foreign ships can meet.
Every time the ocean rate on cargoes is
reduced it means a lower cost to our
people on all goods imported. and it also
enables the exported goods of Americans
to be delivered in foreign markets at u
cheaper price than would be otherwise
possible, thus increasing our markets
there and giving increased employment
to the workmen of this country"
"FIeet Would Rise In Value"
If Government aid is extended to
shipping, said Mr. Plummer, and per-
manent employment assured for Ameri-
can vessels the value OF the Shipping
Board fleet, for which at present there
is no real market. viii rise to normal
figures and the ships can be sold to
American operators at a price far
greater than that at which they can be
disposed of to-day. He continued:
1T is plain business proposition--we
have the ships, the investment is there.
We have the power at comparatively
moderate cost to make those ships a
valuable asset. If the millions of dol
lars which the public operation of these
ships even now is causing to be spent,
much of il in caring for tied up ships
which are steadily decreasing in value,
could be diverted to the direct assistance
of these same ships, the net result would
be no real increase in the public cost.
but the creation and maintenance of a
privately owned merchant marine which
would be of inestimable value in sup
porting permanently the prosperity of
this country"
Mr.. Plummer said suitable Govern
ment assistance might be found in the
form of a subsidy as proposed by the
commission OF 1905, by preferences as
proposed in the Jones act, or By some
:orm of tariff assistance. Any of these
policies, he said. would be subject to
insidious foreign propaganda. and he
warned his hearers TO examine care
fully the sources of comment unfavor-
able to aid of the sort proposed.
Mr.. Marvin. taking viewpoint that
conceded closely with Mr.. Plummer's.
said the war had demonstrated conclu-
sively the need of a merchant marine
and had obliged the Democratic party.
after long opposing subsidies. to spend
three and one-half billion dollars in
building ships. This investment, he de-
clared, is in danger of becoming a total
loss in consequence of the fact that "the
United States, the most stalwart protec-
tionist nation in the world, has uncon-
scionably chosen its overseas shipping.
the most intensely competitive business
in the world, for its one free trade ex-
pertinent"