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508 chance to produce, and yet we were building trans-Pacific liners long before they were building any ocean-going ships. How are we to account for this but by acknowledging that their gov- ernment has been wise in regard to its shipping and ours has been foolish. No fixed Enlightened Policy. A careful study of the early history of the foreign trade shipping of this country shows that the United States has never had any fixed, enlightened policy of fostering any growth and permanent stability of her foreign ship- ping but has always adopted a tempor- izing policy to meet the evil that was pressing most heavily at the time. Such a study will also show that the foreign shipping trade of this country never prospered, even in the days of wooden ships, without substantial protection, and this is due to the fact that every na- tion which aspires to maritime power has been willing to pay for it. As early as 1784 the effect of the foreign policy of Britain, which aimed to prevent the loss of the colonial shipping with the loss of the colonies themselves, began to be felt in the new republic and excited universal at- tention and disquietude; this was so to such an extent that Congress made an application to the several states for a grant of. power for a limited time to regulate foreign commerce; but en at that time, as now, the states did not at all think alike about it and the effort failed. endeavored to effect their purpose by independent regulations, as they had done in colonial times, but a new order of things had come and this method would not work. This is not without its value, however, for out of this ex- perience grew the measures which re- sulted in the establishment of a gov- ernment apparently competent to regu- late the commercial interests and vin- dicate the commercial rights of the re- public. Need of Shipping Encouragement. It is interesting to note that the needs for shipping encouragement requiring united action was what finally led to the establishment of the Federal gov- ernment, and the measures then adopted (1789) when the regulation of commerce was vested in the general government, consisting of discriminating duties in favor of American ships, and tonnage dues charged on foreign ships comprised the "Navigation Laws": of the United States, as enacted by the first congress. From 1789 to the war of 1812 a wonder- ful recovery of fortune resulted from the discrimination against. goods car- The several states next. "THE MaRINE REVIEW ried in foreign vessels, industries took root in the land and enterprise fully employed labor. The early 'shipping policy of this country originated with the colonies themselves and differed somewhat in principle from that of the British under which only British vessels could carry cargo into British ports from Asia, Africa or America, or trade between the colonies, while in Europe the different nations might trade direct with Britain from their own ports on payment of discriminating duties. -- Giving American Ships Preference. The American system was permissive, giving their own ships a preference in their own trade through their ton- nage and tariff duties which were dis- criminating. The British shipping law had eight distinct prohibitions, while the - American had none prior to 1817, when two acts of congress were passed, one confining foreign vessels to direct trade, the other excluding them from _ do- mestic traffic. There is no doubt that these laws had a~ wonderful effect in stimulating American shipping, not- against withstanding the hard fight that Great Britain made against them. In 1789, when protection began, the foreign trade shipping of the United States amounted to only 123,893 tons, includ- ing both exports and imports carried in American bottoms and forming but 17% per cent of the imports and. 30 per cent of the exports. In ten years the shipping of the United States en- gaged in foreign trade had increased to 657,142 tons, forming 90 per cent of the imports and 87 per cent of the exports. percentage of the foreign trade car- ried by American ships fell to 71 per cent of the imports and 51 per cent of the exports. Under the original navigation laws in 1825 the United States carried in her own ships 95.2 per cent of her imports and 89.6 per cent of her exports, and this is the highest point reached by American shipping in the foreign trade. Effective Navigation Laws. The navigation laws were so effective at the beginning of the history of the United States that a good many of the friends of American shipping think that the restoration of these laws would again give to the United States her fair share in the foreign transporta- tion of the country. A bill was intro- duced before congress on 'March 19, 1908, for this purpose. It was entitled "A Bill to Equalize the Footing of Ships in Foreign Trade by Constitu- During the war: of 1812 the: { -and discriminating duties December, 1909 tional Regulations." This bill emanated from W. W. Bates, naval architect, formerly United States commissioner of navigation, a member of this society, and president of the Shipping Society of America, whose headquarters, curiously enough, are in Denver. Mr. Bates has done a great service to American shipping by showing very conclusively that the foreign carrying trade has never been possible to Amer- ican ships except when adequately pro- tected. While there can be no doubt as to the effect of a return to the old "Navi- gation Laws," in force between 1789 and 1828 on the shipping of this country, there is grave doubt as to the possibility of maintaining, under such laws, pleasant relations with other nations who are doing business on the oceans; when these 'laws were enacted they were retaliatory measures effective the conditions then existent similar measures in use by other nations. 'under 'Not Possible to' Apply Now. While the protection afforded by ton- nage duties levied on foreign vessels, on cargoes entering in foreign vessels, might, if they had continued, have kept the for- eign trade largely in the hands of our own ship owners, yet these old meas- ures, effective though they were, could not again be effectively applied. The world has changed since 1828 and na- tions bear different relations to each other than they did 100 years ago. At that time when a nation wanted any- thing it usually set about devising some way whereby some other nation was forced to pay the cost of getting it. Now, when a nation wants anything that is mecessary to its prosperity, it finds: out: what it...will, cost. and,. 1% -1t ean: Safford it, pays. the. bill, . That ~ is what we will have to do if we want a omerchant marine in the foreign trade. Tt-54s net > necessary to waste. any time describing existing conditions as farcas 'the' merchant: «marine "in: the foreign trade is concerned, for it is a matter of universal knowledge and I think of universal regret that our for- eign shipping trade is driven from the ocean. At the present time about 93 per cent of our foreign commerce is being carried foreign under foreign flags. in ships Wise National Laws Needed. To enable us to participate in ocean commerce to the extent that our imports and exports entitle us to there must