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Show Washington favored fa-vored MERCHANT1 j MARINE 'Governmental encouragement of a merchant marine, like the encqu--ngement ot American manufacturing 'was one of the earliest principle! adopted by the United States. Tha veVy first act passed by congress under un-der the American constitution was a layr to' Impose Import duties upon ' J foreign commodities brought to this . country and In the preamble to that iis l( was specifically stated that purpose was not merely to raise enue but to protect American Ii:-try; Ii:-try; Moreover, there was Includ-In Includ-In 'the law a provision for a lit-tlon lit-tlon of 10, per cent from the y If ihe good's were Imported in a ship 'built and' owned by American t citizens. ' 'i ' ' The reasqns fori the development of an American merchant marine a expressed bx PMge yn,Mtton. ,! one of tola messages to congress were substantial Jy, he sanje a .exist. (tp-day (tp-day Our f,lrst president pointed oi tha by .the, development rof. hlp but ding .the, JUnjtd States, would j'f- crei seethe ..number of men trained i. .ti i ' ,', 'in that occupation and would estab-lish estab-lish a reserve of ship bulldeis anj practical seamen who could be called upon In a war emergency to servo the country In an absolutely ncce-sary ncce-sary military service. .Many year later, alter congress had enacted, In 1845, a mall subsidy law to aid lithe li-the establishment of certain desired ocean routes, President James K. Polk commended that measure by remarking re-marking that the enlightened policy by which a rapid communication with the various distant parts of tl: world; was estallshed by means of American built steamers will find nn ample reword In the Increase of our commerce and In making our country coun-try and' Its resources more favorabiv known abroad." Ho added, however, howev-er, that the national advantage !i still greater In having our naval officers of-ficers made familiar with steam navigation, nav-igation, and of having the privilege of taking the ships already equipped for Immediate service at a moment's notice when the need .shall arise. The American mall susldy act was made necessary by previous subsidy acts enacted by Great Britain for th,s express purpose of ttabllshlng.ireg-tilar, ttabllshlng.ireg-tilar, . ocean transportation service (Hat would secure to that nation, con-,trol con-,trol of the principal markets ot the world. , i . - British Jealousy of the American mercjitnt marine was evident frorn Ihe beginning. " British' orders th council, having the effect of law, made practically Impossible the sblp-,"mnt! sblp-,"mnt! b'f!,ABjericanoods to' British port!' In AmerlcaH ships. On tha floor of the House of T.ords there was expiesBed the beilef that the Dar .bary pirates would bo such a menace men-ace to the American merchant marine mar-ine that the United Strftes would' be unable to conduct commerce with Mediterranean ports. It was o'nly by paying tribute that America ships secured Immunity at first which tributes were discontinued only on-ly when' President Jefferson sent AnJ erlcan battleships to the Mediterranean Mediterran-ean to wage war upon the Barbary states If necessary, , 1 The policy 'Of federal encourage- I ment to shipping' was continued un- 1 til 185S when, under the Influen.M of squthern - statesmen, the last of the favoring laws was repealed. During Dur-ing the Civil war the privateers destroyed de-stroyed a large proportion of the American Am-erican ocean commerce. Subsequent efforts to enact subsidy or other encouraging en-couraging laws wcio defeated and thn American merchant marine continued contin-ued to decline until the European war gave the country an advantage which resulted in thn construction of , fleet now eeond, among the i nations 'Of the earth. In view pf .our past experienced) It. may be efcfely asserted as-serted that' the piesent congress,. Ip dealing with the problem -of rebuilding rebuild-ing (he merchant' marine, will .have the support ot the American people In any reasonable measures for )!' attainment of that' end. '. i- ' : t |