The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1922-06-15

reasons, among them a belief that the
country still retained its pre-war pre-
Judice against subsidies. To thwart the
president s wish means on the other
hand number of political compiled
tions of an entirely different sort Mr..
Harding is midway in his administra-
tion-a failure on the part of Republican
congress to support him would weaken
his power during the remainder of his
term. Some of Mr.. Harding friends
think he was unwise to make a test on
the ship subsidy and that he might have
welded his club of leadership on some
thing more likely of success.
But Mr.. Harding feels that the politi-
cal consequences of an abandoned mer-
chant fleet are colossal and that more Of
a political issue viii be made against
the Republican party if it permits the
war fleet to disintegrate and the ex-
penses of operation to mount then would
be the case if the old arguments against
ship subsidy plan! Mr.. Harding would
a subsidy We're revived.
For what is the alternative to the
pass the whole matter to the shoulders
of congress. An investment of three
billion dollars in ships would dwindle to
relatively nothing and America would
be compelled to sell her ships to foreign
buyers at a tremendous loss To oper-
ate the ships, on the other hand means
an expense many times greater than
the amount of subsidy asked In Mr.
Harding s view there is no alternative
and that IS why he is forcing action now
| so as to save further expense of gov
eminent operation while the subject
| drags along on the congressional calen-
dar from year to year.
| The president has had a hard time
| convincing Republican leaders that he is
! in earnest about the shin subsidy bill
| The letter he wrote to Chairman Camp
| bell on May % threatening to call an
I 800 IL.
| not given out at the time because MANY
! leaders didn t think the carrying out
| of the threat would be necessary. OPP
! position to the ship subsidy bill has
| been growing, however, and many mem
| bers have felt that it would be wiser to
i let action be postponed until after the
autumn elections Mr.. Harding. would
have none of it. The house leaders, who
/ by the way. have improved the original
! bill a great deal. have decided to report
the measure within a fortnight or three
/ weeks.
Many of the leaders in congress. in
| fact most of them, do not like Mr.,
Harding assertion of leadership But
| as usual congress with its multifarious
interests finds itself grudgingly inclined
| TO follow the will of the president and
/ Mr.. Harding is being told that success
| on so difficult a legislative proposition
| as ship subsidy will enhance his pres
| tlge and make possible adoption of other
! party measures.
Few things have taken more of Mr..
| Hardlng's time since he became presi-
| dent than the shipping muddle. He is
convinced that Chairman A. ID. Lasker
! has brought order out of chaos and has
| placed the shipping board on a system
! atlc basis. Evidence of this is the fact
| that on July l every debt of the board
! Will have been liquidated with the ex-
| ceptlon OF the suits now in the courts
/ sfqv faL- 4 1
! This leaves the problem of the shipping
| board wholly one of operation of ships.
/ Government operation, Mr. Harding Is
! absolutely convinced, is uneconomic and
| Improbable to all concerned To run
/ the ships the government would have to
/ spend much more annually than is asked
| Tor in the subsidy and the public would
| hardly sanction the building of ships to
| replace those which are wearing out or
/ construction of need types of vessels
were not included in the war fleet but
! which are essential to a balanced mer-
! chant marine.
If nothing is done. the expense of up-
| keep alone to say nothing of dcprecia-
| ton of the ships themselves, will
! amount to fifty million dollars a wear
| with the possible loss. too. of an Ameri-
can merchant marine because of the alb
| sence of private initiative and stimulus.
/ The subsidy will cost much less than
| fifty million and the private concerns
! which are ready to be formed the mo-
| ment the bin is passed would be limited
as to their profits and be subject to gov
| eminent regulation very much as are
] American railroads. Profits would not
be guaranteed but their amounts limited.
No alternative plan has found favor.
! 1t s ship subsidy or chaos and the loss
! of billions invested by American tax
4 PAYERS unless some action is taken soon
| and a policy determined That is why
| the president believes he must force a
4 1apisioy1 ~, ono or I ho NJ bo,. of ouoo