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ti4 TRADE WITH PANAMA AND THE PHILIPPINES. On January 27 Hon. E. A. Hayes introduced in the house of representa- tives a joint resolution to the following effect : "That hereafter the transportation by sea of (a) materials, stores and equip- ment for the use of the army or navy of the United States; (b) of the forces of the United States; (c) materials, stores and equipment from the United States for use in the construction of the Panama canal; and (d) of all ma- terial and equipment for use on con- struction or maintenance of fortifica- tions, harbors, navy yards, naval sta- tions, or other -works for account of the United States, shall be restricted to vessels of the United States and no others; and such transportation, when time will permit, shall be furnished by ' contract, after proper advertisement, by the lowest bidder complying with the requirements of the United States." The wording of that resolution is compact, concise and unequivocal. There intent ; all. Under its provisions no more navy coal is no getting away from _ its there is no loop-hole in it at could be carried to the Pacific coast in foreign ships; no supplies intended for use in the construction of the Panama canal could be carried in foreign ships; no government supplies intended for the army and navy could be carried to Porto Rico or the Philippines in foreign ships. It is a resolution that deserves to pass precisely as it stands. The government has no right to expect its citizens to pay more for transporta- tion than it is willing to pay itself. Senator Frye has introduced in the senate a resolution of a somewhat sim- ilar nature, but so worded as to present numerous loop-holes. His resolution reads: ie "That Section 1 of the act approved Feb. 17, 1898, entitled 'An Act: to Amend the Laws Relating to Naviga- tion' hereafter shall extend to merchan- dise transported for the government of the United States and property owned by the government of the United States. sSeccc2, "That in any contract here- after made transportation by sea of ma- terial and equipment from the United States for use in the construction of the Panama canal shall be restricted _ government's The Marine Review to vessels owned by the United States or by the Panama Railroad Co., or to vessels of the United States chartered by the United States or by the Panama Railroad Co., or to vessels of the Unit- ed States tended by the lowest respon- sible bidder, if any be tendered, unless the President shall in any case deem such bids or tenders to be extortionate or unreasonable." It will be seen that this resolution eliminates the possibility of further ship- ments of navy. coal to the Pacific' in foreign ships, but it leaves the matter of shipments of government supplies of all descriptions to the: Philippines and Porto Rico open. Now what' sound reason is there why government supplies should not be carried to the Philippines and Porto Rico in American bottoms? The extension of the coastwise laws to the Philippines was suspended at the the that there were not sufficient ships of- request on ground fering; but surely there are sufficient ships to provide for the government's own requirements and if this trade is reserved for them, does it not clearly make a beginning for commercial rela- tions in our own ships with our de- pendencies? Section > should be amended to end: with the words "responsible bidder" or add to. it "as compared with charges to private parties for similar service." else The government can have no complaint whatever if it is asked to pay the same sum that its own citizens are In equity it should not expect to pay less. The sensible thing to do would be to pass the Hayes resolution as originally drawn and then there can be no doubt as to what was intended. asked to pay. BRITAIN'S GREATEST DOCK YARD. Portsmouth, which was visited by. a large party of members of Parlia- ment is England's greatest naval port, and with its arsenal and dockyards, forms the largest royal naval estab- lishment. The seaport comprises the town and harbor of Portsmouth, to- gether. with the adjoining towns of Portsea, Landport, Southsea and Gos- port, the last being on the other side of the harbor. A battleship will find sufficient depth of water to enter at any state of the tide. The entrance is nar- March, 1919 row, but the harbor expands into 4 basin four miles long, with goog an- chorage and depth in almost every part. The Victory--Nelson's flagship at Trafalgar--tlies at anchor side by side with the latest floating fortresses 'of steel, and within hail of such repre. sentatives of modern naval develop. ments as the torpedo school ship Ver. non and the depot ship for yp. marines. Portsmouth has by no means unim. portant commercial shipping interests for which ample provision is made by the civil port authorities. Its as. sociations with memorable events and famous deeds in English history dur- ing the last eight centuries form an unsurpassed record. From its harbor, Nelson and other great commanders sailed to win many a famous victory. Nor should it be forgotten that here Charles Dickens was born, his father having 'been an official in the Naval Department. eee Royal Naval Dockyard was estab- lished in 1509, though the first dock was not constructed until 1698. It now comprises about 300 acres of ba- sin, docks, slips, factories, workshops | and storehouses, while the extension works completed within the last few years and occupying ground reclaimed from the harbor contain three large basins respectively for repairing, rigg- ing and fitting. The area of these docks is 53 acres, and the depth suf- fices for any ship now in existence. 'Ehere. are also. 'a final basin of ten acres, 15 first-class docks, and several slips, in one of which the largest vessels can be constructed. Two other docks were completed in 1897 at a cost of £370,000. These have each a length of 580 feet, with a width of 120 feet at the coping level and 75 feet on the floor. The Naval Barracks near at hand will accommodate 4,000 men. Admiralty House is the residence of the admiral- commanding-in-chief, while the Royal Naval College, established in 1750, is now occupied by the torpedo and gunnery students drafted from the navy. The gun wharf is the main depot for ordnance and stores both for land and for sea service. Whale Island in the harbor is a considerable plat- eau formed 'by depositing materials from dock excavations. It is the site of the largest gunnery school in the world. Fortifications, strong and_ elaborate, proclaim the vital importance of Ports mouth to England's security. Numet- ous detached forts form a _ complete circle round the town at an average distance of four miles from the center