The West Virginian. [volume] (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1914-1974, 1922-11-21

losnes aggregatlng many hundreds
OF millions in worn out, sacrificed
or scrapped shipping. Then thu
supreme humiliation, tho admis
sion that the United States, OF,
America. once eminent among thu
maritime nations OF the world-iI
incapable; Of asserting itself in thu
peace triuInphs on the seas OF thu
world. 1t would seem to me dou
bly, humiliating when We own tn,
ships and fall in the genius and Cd
pacity to turn their prows TOWARD
the markets of the world.
"This problem cannot longer b
ignored; its attempted solution
cannot longer BIO postponed. TIL
failure of Congress to act decisive
ly will be no less disastrous thai
adverse action.
Three courses of action are pos
slble and the choice among them i,
no longer to be avoided.
THE flrst. is constructive-enac
J the pending bill, under which
firmly believe an American mer
chant marine privately owned ant
privately operated, but serving al
the people and always available |.
the government in any emergency
may be established and maintained
"The second is obstructive-cor
/ tinue. government operations ant
/ attending government losses ant
discourage privatd enterprise b,
government competition, unhel
which losses are met by the pub
lie treasury and witness the cor
tinued losses and deterIority unit
the colossal failure ends in shccI
exhaustion.
THE third is destructive-in.
yolving the sacrifice of our snij
abroad or tho scrappIng of then
at home. The surrender OF ouI
aspirations and the confession o
our impotence to the |orld IL
general and our humiliation be-
fore the competing world In par
ticular.
Appeal to Save Treasury
81 have come to urge the con
structive alternative to assert nj
American we will. have coin,
to ask you to relieve the admin
istrat.Id branch Of the govern
ment from a program upon whIcl
failure is hopelessness and stag
gering losses are written 70
every page, and let us turn to {
program OF assured shipping tt
serve US in war and to give u
guaranty to our commercial indie
pendence in peace. -" '"t
II challenge every insinuatIor
OF favored interest and the en-
r.chment Of the special few a
the expense of the public treas
ury. l am, first OF all. appealing
to save the treasury. Perhaps tn
unlimited betsowal of govern
ment aid might justify the appre
hension OF special favoring, bu
the pending bill, the first eve
prorotIdd which carries such q
provision, automatically guard!
against enrichment or perpetual
ed bestowal. 1t provides thai
shipping lines receiving govern.
ment aid must have their aetna
investment and their Operating
Expenses audited by the govern
ment that government aid will
only be paid until the shipping
I enterprise earns 10 per cent OF
'rGtual aIpitaI employed anC
Immediately that when more thai
10 per cent earning Is reached
half OF the excess earnings mus
be applied to the repayment o
the government aid, which ha
been previously advanced. Thus
the possible earnings are Unite,
to a very reasonable amount 4
capital Is to DO rlsked and man
agement Is to be attracted. |
success attends. as we hope /
will, the government outlay Is re
turned. the inspiration Of oppor
tun.ty to earn remains. and Amer
lean transportation by sea Il
established.
Commercial emlnence on Thu
seas. ample agencies for the pro
motion and carry ing of our fore
ign commerce. are of no less i'm
portance to the people OF Miss
issippi and the Missouri valleys
the great Northwest and tn
Rocky Mountain states, than Il
the seaboarI states and indus
trial communities building milan,
a thousand miles or more. It ~
common cause, with its benefiti
commonly shared. When people
fan in the national viewpoint an