The Syracuse Journal, Volume 3, Number 50, Syracuse, Kosciusko County, 13 April 1911 — Page 2

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ELLO, Henry, I am going to you today. I’ve sold my carcass again." This remark by a big sailor to a friend on the San Francisco water-front caused a landsman to turn around and regard the pair curiously. It was the tenth time that he had heard that remark In the course of an hour . as he loitered about the wharves watching the whalers preparing for their season in northern seas. He had seen big, hard-

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fisted men boarding the vessels or sitting about on boxes on the docks chatting with friends until they should be summoned on board for the cruise. And always, as the sailors would greet a new companion, came that remark, “I’ve sold my carcass." It puzzled the landsman. He did not understand, but figured out that it was some' rough pleasantry. He did not know that every man who sails out of an American port In a deep-sea vessel under the stars and stripes must literally sell his body and soul into a servitude as abject and as debasing as that of the black man on the southern plantation before the Emancipation Proclamation was issued. For the American who sails the high seas under the stars and stripes is a slave. He is a slave under the law. True, he cannot be put upon the auction block by his master and sold to the highest bidder. But he must surrender his American birthright—freedom of contract; he must ‘ sign away his right to his pay when It falls due. And he cannot be a sailor without signing them away. And he cannot run away from his bargain and his master. If he tries It, he is arrested and taken back, no matter in what quarter of the globe his vessel Is anchored. For, by the operation of treaties with all the maritime powers of the world, the United States agrees to arrest and return foreign sailor-slaves, ’ln return for which the foreign countries have agreed to arrest and return to American ships America’s chattel slaves. No man is ever a slave under the law unless conditions are such that it Is necessary for his masters to hold him legally In servitude in order to retain his services. Every land is Tull of Industrial slaves who cannot desert their masters if they would, because there is nothing else for them to-do but to submit or starve. But the occupation of a sailor carries him to foreign lands where the lure of untried conditions is forever beckoning, and it would be comparatively easy for him to desert his master. But here the law steps In, and

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the fear of the foreign dungeon and the certain return to his ship in irons holds him to his contract And even with the fear of certain re-en-slavement staring him In the face, the sailor under the stars and stripes is far too often a deserter. It is idle to argue that It is In the nature of the sailor to wander, to desert -one master for another, and that therefore laws are necessary to prevent the disorganization of the merchant marine. Every occupation has Its devotees to whom It calls in an Insistent voice, and there are thousands of men who follow the sea from choice. The answer to the question, why is the sailor legally a slave, must be found In an Inquiry Into the conditions from which he seeks to run away. If he likes to follow the sea there Is no reason why he should forever try to leave It or to leave his master and his flag except that the conditions under which he is forced to work are intolerable. And here lies the answer. The earliest known facts about the condition of the laborer at sea take us back to the ancient laws of the Norseman and to the code that governed the sailors of the ancient cities on the shores of the Medlterranlean. In the north the laborer on land and at sea was a free man. The sailor had the same status aboard his vessel that bls brother had in the Norse towns. He had the same freedom of contract and the same voice in the laws regulating the conduct of his companions and himself. The laborer of the south was a chattel slave on land and on sea. He was usually a prisoner of war and his body and soul belonged to his master. He was chained to his seat In the galley and lashed to his task. Manual labor of all kinds was considered to be debasing and performed only by slaves. The Island of Rhodes gave to the Mediterranean Its maritime law, and the Roman code was patterned after that of Rhodes. When Rome conquered the countries of the north, she gave them her laws for the regulation of labor on the sea as well as on land. The all-pervading Idea of Roman civilization was that labor is debasing, and the laborer on land was a serf and on the sea he was a slave. The maritime power of medieval Europe, which was expressed through the laws of Barcelona and later through the all-powerful Hanseatic League of cities, was maintained through Roman maritime law. It gradually overpowered and obliterated the law of the north, and the free sailor ceased to exist Since that day the sailor has been a chattel slave. When sailing vessels replaced the galley, it became necessary that the sailor’s status as a slave be maintained by rigid laws against desertion. Freedom of action was necessary for the operation of a sailing vessel, but it was still necessary to keep the sailor bound to the ship because injury might come to the vessel through his desertion. And so his status as a slave was maintained by law on the “principle of common hazard." All the laws of the Hanseatic League stipulate that if any harm come to a vessel while any sailor is absent from shipboard, the absent sailor shall pay the damage. The safety of the vessel and her cargo was In the hands of every man on board while the vessel was at sea or in foreign ports. The progress of civilization has Relieved the ship-ownej and the master of the hazard of the sea. Maritime Insurance has been devised to pay for losses through acts of.God, If a ship sinks, at

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sea, no one loses but the sailor and his widow and children. The property Is paid for by the community, by you and by me; for Insurance shifts the burden of loss from the shoulders of the individual to the shoulders of the community. Perfect policing of the sea has removed the dangers from piracy, and losses from state or local disturbances are paid for by the states and localities > responsible. And so the old principle of common hazard has been abandoned so far as the ship-owner Is concerned through the operation of maritime insurance and modern laws. But how is It with the sailor and with you and me? It Is easy to see how this has worked to increase the hazard borne by the crew. Formerly the ship-owner would not load his vessel to the danger point; he would not risk employing unskilled men or too few sailors, because he did not want to rlsk his property. Now* he does nt care; Insurance will take care of the risks, and the Idea Is to make all the money possible. Let us look a little more closely Into the condition of the sailor’s occupation that has been evolved out of this hodge-podge of laws, ancient and modern. And then we can see very clearly how this condition affects not only the sailor but "you and me and every other American citizen. A brief comparison of the conditions on shipboard under the American flag with those under the flags of other nations will explain why the American boy does not go to sea, and why It Is necessary to keep the American sailor a chattel slave by law of congress. To begin with, the American sailor who would ship over the high seas Is compelled to seek his employment through a “crimp.” The crimp Is the runner for the notorious sailor’s “boarding-houses" which furnish crews for all deep-sea-going vessels. He is the absolute master of the sailor’s employment. All deep-sea captains ship their crews through the crimp. The crimp Is paid out of the unearned wages of the sailor. It is called “advance money” which the law permits the sailor to sign away and which the system compels him to sign 'away. The sailors call It “blood money." The money is paid by the captain directly to the crimp. In fact all the negotiations are carried on directly between the captain and the crimp. The sailor is not consulted at all. More often than not, he is taken on board after having been liberally treated to “third rail" or “doctor," a drink that robs him of all consciousness. The practice smacks very much of the old practice of “shanghalng." The act of December 21, 1898, prevents the payment of this bloodmoney, called “allotment to original creditor" In the domestic, trade (coastwise shipping and the trade to nearby foreign countries). But It Is permitted in the deep-sea trade, and no sailor ever obtains employment on a deep-sea-going vessel without having visited the crimp. The crimp exists because the law permits him to exist, by permitting the assignment of “advance money." One state, Oregon, actually recognized the system ■by a statute limiting the amount of blood-money to thirty dollars. The crimp ceased to exist in the domestic trade when congress abolished the “allotment to original creditor” In 1898. When the sailor gets aboard he is compelled to live in a space 6 feet long by 6 feet high and 2 feet wide. This is the legal forecastle space (72 cubic feet) except in sailing vessels built or rebuilt after June 30, 1898. The sailors call it the “dog hole,” to distinguish it from the “fire hole" Lflremen’s quarters!, and the “glory hole” (stew-

ard’s quarters). Here the men must live, eat, sleep and keep their clothing. It has been described as “too large for a coffin and too small for a grave.” It is unsanitary,, dark, and dirty. The American sailor is compelled to sign away in the foreign trade his right to part of the wages due him at ports of call. Consular agents have declared this to be the most cause of desertions from American ships. of December 21, 1898, gives the sailor a wa S eS that may be due him at any call, but add “unless the contrary be expressly stipulated in the contract” The ship-owners see to it that this stipulation is always made. The sailor must compete with the unskilled and destitute of all nations and races, because the law as to citizenship was repealed in 1864, and the operation of maritime insurance has reduced the standard of skill In seamen. No standard of efficiency has been supplied by law. The ship-owners may hire whom they please and as few men as the inspectors will let them. There Is no standard to guide the inspectors. And so the sailor must do the unskilled man’s work at sea because the work has to be donfe and there Is no one else to do It. Often he must risk his life because the vessel Is undermanned and unskilfully manned. Because of this competition with the foreigner, his wages are as small as the wages of the cheapest port of call of his vessel, and hq cannot get enough to marry and live a normal life. As vessels grow larger, his chances to earn a decent livelihood grow smaller. Big Business conceives ships to be for the purpose of making money, not for the purpose of carrying goods from place to place; for the purpose of piling up dividends no matter at whose expense the dividends are piled up, no matter at what cost to the sailor or to yo.u and me. It would take away cargo space to provide decent living quarters for sailors on shipboard, and less cargo means less dividends. To load a vessel so as to minimize the danger from shifting cargo means less cargo also. Better food, more men and skilled men all cost more money, and therefore Big Business, which Is not compelled to take risks because its property Is Insured, refuses these things. In fine, It is much cheaper to run vessels with slaves; therefore Big Business employs slaves. Not only Is American commerce being conducted by vessels flying foreign flags, but American over-sea commerce in American ships is being handled by foreign seamen. The astounding fact Is true that not only has Ainerlca fewer sailors than any other nation on the face of the globe, but the great majority of the men in the American merchant marine are men of other nations. And the majority of American seamen are sailing, by choice, under the flags of other nations than their own. So when we trust our lives and our goods on the high seas, we entrust them to foreign seamen, slaves on under-manned vessels, living under conditions that have driven Americans from the sea. That Is what concerns us. And it concerns us vitally. Statistics published by the United States commissioner of navigation show that out of every hundred American seagoing steamers of over one hundred tons for the past seven years, an average of 2,24 have been lost each year, and that out of every hundred foreign seagoing steamers of over one hundred tons for the same period, an average of only 1.98 have been lost Out of every hundred American seagoing vessels of over fifty tons for the past seven years an average of 4.13 have been lost each year, and out of the same number of foreign seagoing sail vessels of over fifty tons, the loss has been only 2.97 a year. On Pacific ocean the situation Is almost intolerable. The United States commissioner of navigation In his report for 1898-99, page 20, declared: “The crews of our own steamships plying to China and Japan are almost wholly Chinese and Japanese shipped before American consuls at foreign ports where the vessels enter and clear." And this condition has grown worse instead of better since that time.

FIGURES ON!« Interesting Statistics by Department of Commerce and Labor. Publishes Valuable Information on Decennial of Exports and Imports— Work of the Late Session of Congress. Washington.—" Calendar Year Statements,” showing the Imports and exports of the United States from 1900 to 1910, is a publication Issued by the bureau of statistics of the department of commerce and labor. Among the curious things shown is, for example, ( that fruits and nuts imported into this | great agricultural country have dou | bled since 1900, having grown from $19,000,000 in value in the year 1900 to $39,500,000 in 1910. Fruit imports alone increased from a little less than $16,000,000 to pracically $26,000,000. Bananas form the largest item in the group, being valued at a little less than $6,000,000 in 1.900 and over $12,000,000 in 1910. Hides and skins also form a marked increase, having grown from 307,000,000 pounds in 1900 to 573,000,000 In 1909, the figures of 1910 being considerably less, 461,000,000 pounds. The value of hides and skins Imported was in 1900 $51,500,000 and in 1910 $86,000,000. poatsklns form an important factor in this, having been in 1900 $19,000,000 in value and in 1910 $27,000,000. Sugar, of which the United States Is a large producer, but not yet sufficiently large to meet the requirements of her population, shows Importations In 1900 of 3,750,000 pounds, valued at $91,750,000, and in 1910 4,250,000,000 pounds, valued at $114,000,000, these figures being exclusive of the sugar brought from Hawaii and Porto Rico, which amounted In 1910 to over 1,000,000,000 pounds from Hawaii, valued at $39,500,000, and 626,000,000 pounds from Porto Rico, valued at $26,260,000. ' Importation of Cotton. Cotton, although the United States produces practically three-fourths of the world’s supply, shows importations .i in 1900 of 60,000,000 pounds, valued at $8,000,000, and in 1910 85,000,000 valued at $17,500,000. Live animals of all classes show a ' value of 1900 of $1,375,000, the largest single item being the group cattle, and in 1910 a total of $7,750,000, cattle i still forming the largest single item — nearly one-half of the total of the ! group. Breadstuffs imported in 1900, includI ing under this term wheat, corn, barley, oats, rye, rice, flour, etc., amounted to $4,000,000 in value, and in 1910 $13,250,000, the largest item in the 1910 figures being macaroni, nearly $5,000,000; rice and rice flour and meal, $4,250,000,- wheat and flour, nearly $1,000,000. Tobacco importations, which in 1900 amounted to $15,000,000 in value, were In 1910 practically $25,000,000, these figures being exclusive of manufactures of tobacco, which amounted in 1900 to $2,500,000 in value and in 1910 a little over $6,000,000. Meat and dairy products imported, which amounted in 1900 to $3,250,000, were in 1910 $11,750,000, the largest item in this group being cheese, $7,500,000, and sausage casing, $2,500,000. Decrease In Exports of Breadstti'ffs. On the export side the figures show , a decline in the outward movement of breadstuffs, but large increases in the I exports of manufactures. The value of I breadstuffs exported in 1900 was $251,000,000, and in 1910 but $109,000,000— under this term being included wheat, corn, oats, barley, rye, rice flour, etc. , Cattle exports in 1900 amounted to $34,000,000 and in 1910 to but $9,500,J 000, and of live animals of all kinds the exportation in 1900 was $49,000,000 in value and in 1910 but $15,250,000. In meats a reduction in the exports is also apparent, the value of meat and dairy products exported in 1 1900 having been $186,500,000 and in 1910 but $129,500,000. Cotton, however, shows a large increase, and so do manufactures, the value of cotton exported in 1900 being 1 $314,000,000 and in 1910 $531,000,000. Manufactures as a whole exported in 1900 amounted to $332,000,000 in form ■ ready for consumption, and $164,000,i 000 in form for further use in manufacturing, making a total of $496,000,000, while in 1910 the figures were: Manufactures exported ready for con- ; sumption, $541,000,0000 and in form •er further use in manufacturing, 886,000,000, making a total value of [ 127,000,000. CIVIL SERVICE PAY. With a view of enlisting the inter- ■ sst and co-operation of federal civil service employees throughout the country and of gaining through them the support X)f the voters of all parties for legislation providing for the i Increase of their salaries, a largely at- • tended mass meeting was held in Convention hall in Washington, and ad- ; dressed, by several speakers. The principal address was made by Fulton R. Gordon. "He asserted that : the remuneration of the civil service employees, of whom he said there were now 185,000 throughout the country, with about 28,000 in Washington, was substantially what it was in 1852, "even though living expenses have advanced in the last ten years by at least 60 per cent” He said that the average pay of the ahdl service employee was $728 a year, and that the smallest pay represented.

in this average was insufficient fol even the bare necessaries of life. The speaker asserted that during the past eight years 91,000 government employees had’ resigned because they could not live on their present salaries and were offered better pay outside. NO HAIR FROM DEAD. American women who resort to | “rats, switches and puffs" of hair to reenforce nature need not think that they are wearing hair taken from the dead, according to Consul General George E. Anderson of Hangkong, China. Mr. Anderson also contradicted the stories that have been circulated to the effect that much of the hair which goes to make up these “reenforcements’’ comes from cues that have been cut off. To substantiate this, he says that although thousands of I cues have been cut off in Hongkong during the last few months, the hair has not been sold. The hair shipped from the Chinese empire is the combings from well-to-do people, mostly women, says the consul general. Combings that formerly were thrown away, he sdds, now are saved and sold to barbers by Chinese maids. Barbers also obtain considerable hair while plying their trade, selling it to hair exporters. Much Os the Chinese product, Mr. Anderson declares, is sent to Paris and is exported from there to the United States as French hair. WORK OF CONGRESS. The accomplishments of the third session of the Sixty-third congress which are of any public Interest may be enumerated as follows: Resolution for an amendment to the constitution providing for the direct , election of senators, defeated. Resolution declaring that William Lorimer was not entitled to his seat as a senator from Illinois, defeated. The judicial section of the revision of the laws of the United States adopted. This revision provides that after January 1, 1912, the United States district courts shall be the only federal courts of first instance. United States circuit judges will, after that’ date, serve as members of the United States courts of appeals. Legislation provided for the fortification of the Panama) canal enacted, and an Initial appropriation of $3,000,000 made for the purpose. The policy of the United States owning embassy homes, in foreign countries enacted into law. Provision made for the erection of many postoffice buildings in different parts bf the country. These buildings were authorized at the last session, but it remained for this session to appropriate the money. An Appalachian forest reserve created that calls for an expenditure of $11,000,000. Legislation under which the federal government from this time on will bond its employes. Provision made for the government inspection of the boilers of ‘railroad locomotives used in Interstate commerce. A rivers and harbors bill providing for the continuation of works under existing contracts, providing for an increase in the engineer corps of the army and providing that the waterways commission shall Investigate as to the practicability and the feasibility of a ship canal connecting Lakes Michigan and Erie byway of northern Indiana, passed. San Francisco designated- as the place for an exposition to commemorate the opening of the Panama canal. An appropriation of $1,000,000 for extending the postal -savings bank system. Ratification by the senate of a new commercial treaty with Japan. Legislation suggested by the secretary of the treasury, under which SSO, 000,000 of Panama canal bonds without circulation privilege may be issued, permitting the issue of gold certificates based on gold bullion, permitting the payment of customs duties and internal revenue taxes by certified check on national banks or trust companies at the discretion of the secretary. Provision made for the erection of a Lincoln memorial here in Washington the cost not to exceed $2,000,000. Left Over Legislation. The following is a summary of the more important left over legislation: The bill making effective the reciprocity agreement between the United States and Canada. Subsidies for steamship lines carrying the United States malls to South America and Central America. Provision for an experimental parcels post of rural routes. What is known as the age pension bill providing for an expenditure of about $45,000,000 additional annually for pensions for veterans of the Civil war. The proposed creation of a national bureau of health. All the conservation legislation recommended by the president. A nonpartisan permanent tariff board of five members. Admission of New Mexico as a state. Senator Cummins’ resolution for a change In the rules of the senate so as to expedite piecemeal revision of the tariff. The legislation demanded by the National Anti-Saloon league making interstate shipments of liquor subject to state regulations. Legislation fixing the tolls that are to be charged on the Panama canal. Revision of the banking and currency laws. A retirement law for government employees. Legislation bringing the consular service within the classified service.

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A POLITICAL TALK. “We’ve scoured the town for votes." “And now I suppose you expect a clean electton.’’ Has Cardinal Gibbons’ Approval. Cardinal Gibbons, the-highest authority of the Roman Catholic church in America, has expressed his approval of Tuberculosis day, which is to be observed by the churches of the United States on or about April 30, and of the general organized antltuberculosis campaign, according to a report of an interview made public by the National Association for the Study and Prevention of Tuberculosis. The interview was granted by his eminence to H. Wirt Steele, executive secretary of the Maryland Association for the Prevention and Relief of Tuberculosis, and Dr. Charles O’Donovan. one of the leading physicians of Baltimore. The cardinal expressed his entire sympathy with the plan of the Tuberculosis day movement and Indorsed the program both of the Maryland association and of the national association. Tuberculosis rn Japan. Japan is not lagging behind in the fight against tuberculosis. The Japan Health association has oyer 200,000 local members, and carries on a campaign of lectures in the cities and towns of the country. Tuberculosis is increasing in Japan, due chiefly, Prof. S. Kitasato of Tokyo days, to the rapid development of the factory system of Industry, the introduction of modern methods and manners of civilization and the increasing acuteness of the struggle for existence. COFFEE HEART Very Plain In Some People. A great many people go on suffering from annoying ailments for a long time before they can get their own oonsent to give up the Indulgence from which their trouble arises. A gentleman in Brooklyn describes his experience, as follows: "I became • satisfied some months ago that I owed the palpitation of the heart from which I suffered almost dally, to the use of coffee, (I had been a coffee drinker for 80 years) but I found it very hard to give up the beverage. i “One day I ran across a very sensible and straightforward presentation of the claims of Postum, and was so impressed thereby that I concluded to give it a trial. “My experience with it was unsatisfactory till I learned how it ought to be prepared—by thorough boiling for not less than 15 or 20 minutes. After I learned that lesson there was no trouble. “Postum proved to be a most palatable and satisfactory hot beverage and I have used it ever since. “The effect on my health has been most salutary. The heart palpitation from which I used to suffer so much, particularly after breakfast, has disappeared and I never have a return of it except when I dine or lunch away from home and drink the old kind of coffee because Postum is not served. I find that Postum cheers and invigorates while it produces no harmful stimulation.” Name given by Postum Co., Battle Creek, Mich. Ten days’ trial proves an eye opener to many. Read the little book, “The Road to WeUville,” in pkgs. “There’s a Reason." Kver read the aheye letter f A aew eae a**«ara from time to time They Ee (peaulae, true, and fall of taimafe tercet.