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j il THT VOL. 51 NEW YORK MA A | JUNE, 1921 ey : LI CLEVELAND No. 6 Farrell Urges Use of U.S. Ships Business Leader Condemns Criticism of American Ships and Calls for Intelligent Use of Our Commercial Fleet NY American can study with profit the A analysis made by James A. Farrell before the National Foreign Trade council of the present merchant marine situation. Mr. Farrell won his pregent position as president of the United States Steel Corp. through his long experience in foreign trade. He has been a ship operator for a great many years and as president of the council his address was the most significant feature of the ig four-day Cleveland meeting. Mr. Farrell's analysis shows for one thing that the American business man is running the risk of endangering his own business by a faulty appreciation of the importance of controlling the means of. transport- ing his goods abroad. He shows also that Amert- cans although credited with egotism are on the con- trary inclined to disparage their own work as shown in the unjustified criticism of the ships built in our yards during the war. These war-built ships, stated Mr. Farrell from his personal knowledge of them as head of both a shipbuilding and ship owning company, are well constructed and "with a few exceptions com: pare favorably with the work of the best builders in any country. Our steel ships are fine examples of the skill of American mechanics." American Ships Criticized Without Cause Almost every discussion by Americans of the merchant marine drags in its wake the ancient red herring of poorly designed ships, faultily built, falling apart from their own weakness. For ex- ample, the mention of Hog Island has been sut- ficient to send almost any American into de- moniac gestures of criticism. The simple fact, how- ever, is that these ships have proved the value of their design and construction. The freedom from repair shown by the QuisTconcK, first ship built by the Hog Island yard and which logically Should have contained all of the inherent mus- takes associated with inexperienced organization and inexperienced workmen, sets a record in ves-. sel construction unmatched by any foreign ship- yard. It is time for Americans to oppose vigor- - ously the wholesale criticism of American ships. Just how much of this criticism is of American birth and how much is inspired by foreign com- petitors, is immaterial. The direction in. which criticism Should be pointed is toward the present and future policies of handling our merchant carriers. . Revision of the cumberSome and repressive navi- gation laws, generally drafted for another and earlier age of shipping and made more crippling by the addition of many of the costly sections of the seamen's act, is the essential which must precede the turning over to private owners of the government's fleet. Release of the ships be- fore a reasonable chance is given private oper- ators to run the ships successfully, would be fatal. Merchant Fleet as Aid to Every Business Mr. Farrell called upon American business men to 'support their own merchant fleet. This re- quest based on a sound business policy, would 'call for payment of a fair rate on imports and for the ~ export of goods on a c.if. basis which would give Americans control of the ocean transportation of American exports, rather than on an f.o.b. basis American shipping ports. American business men can not know their own foreign markets nor "the laid down parity of their competitors prices . unless they include in their sales price the cost of their goods, the insurance and ocean freight to ulti- mate destination." Solution of the marine problem will be along the line of "less government in business, more business in government." To translate that phrase into action requires intelligent consideration by all | American business men to this question of making this large American merchant fleet a business build- ing agency for general American industry. 249