Evening star., 1927-10-23
The Significance of Navy Day

of the La Toilette seamen's law. intended and
Justly So to benefit seamen on American flag
vessels the Congress made 1t difficult for
American vessels to compete on equal terms
with the vessels of other nations in the over
seas CARRYING trade. But while this law solved
problems for the seamen, it merely adds to the
problems of the American ship owner. The
late President Harding, impressed with the
vital need of upbuilding permanent overseas
American merchant marine, undertook to put
through Congress the so-called subsidy bill,
giving Government aid to private American
shipping Immediately there howl
against subsidizing special interests" 1t was
in vain that supporters of the Government aid
bill pointed out that other maritime powers, in-
cluding Great Britain, France and Germany,
give such aid to their ship owners and opera
tors The cry of subsidy killed the Harding
bill dead as doornail.
Under the direction Of the United States
Shipping Board and through the Fleet Cor.
poration. American flag ships owned by the
Government have been kept in the overseas
trade. Some of the aforementioned ships
have been sold to private American ship men
and shipping companies. The capital invest
ment for these ships has been low enough for
their private owners to maintain them in OPP
Grafton with noNinconsiderable degree of sue
cess in certain instances. Others have been
hard put to it, owing to the intensified COM
petition Immediately leveled at them by for.
eign shipping concerns, as soon as the back
ing of the Government of the United States
was withdrawn.
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The greatest difficulty which faces the Amer
lean merchant marine today, or will soon face
it, is the matter of replacement Ships wear
out. They have a certain life of usefulness,
like automobiles, locomotives and railroad cars,
and that life eventually expires. Private own.
ers do not find themselves in position to in.
vest heavily in ships at costs far in ex
of the prices paid the Government for
their purchased ships. The Governments own
ships are growing old. Some of them are
threatened with obsolescence already.
1t is time, high time that the Government,
through Congress and the Chief Executive
determine upon a permanent and constructive
merchant marine policy, policy which will
look to the operation of American flag ships
in the carrying trade on the seven seas, a
policy which will permit of and provide for
replacement of merchant vessels now in the
service and the augmentation of the merchant
fleet. This is a major problem for the next
Congress to tackle.
There has been criticism both here and
abroad Of the principle advanced that the
United States requires should undertake to
possess Navy equal in strength to that of
Great Britain. There was no criticism of that
idea, however, in 1922, during the Washing.
ton conference. 1t was accepted then by
Britain's foremost representatives At that
time the United States was building the great.
est Navy the world had seen. The United
States was financially in position to go ahead
with this naval construction on a scale which
would have placed terrible strain on Britain,
Japan or any other foreign nation.
* X X t...
glance at the facts should convince any
American that the needs Of the United States