A Congressional leader reports on the merchant marine today
National Honor Tarnished, National Property Squandered By Representative John M. Murphy, NY Chairman, House Committee on Merchant Marine & Fisheries
This report is adapted from an address made by Congressman Murphy on receiving the 10th Annual James Monroe A ward, presented to him by the National Maritime Historical Society at the Seamens Church Institute in New York on November 2, 1979. The James Monroe A ward, named for the first of the fast-sailing, regularly scheduled Black Ball packets that captured the cream of the Nor th A tlan tic carrying trade for the young American Republic and the rising seaport of New York from 1818 onward, is given for President Monroe said in his First Inaugural Address in 1817 : "National honor is national property of the highest value." Reporting on the state of the merchant marine to the fellowship of the National Maritime Historical Society, which cherishes our seafaring heritage with such extraordinary care, I cannot help but feel a sense of loss, a sense of national honor tarnished, national property sq uandered . Like the ships lying in the muddy flats which your Society has been so gallantly engaged in salvaging, our merchant marine is in a shallow grave, waiting to be resurrected. The merchant mariners who sailed the perilous waters of the Atlantic in World War II know that such service could be needed again, perhaps sooner than any of us would like to think. The number of qualified hands is dwindling. And, should they be needed, the ships are not there to be manned. How have we come to this state of affairs? When World War II came, even though our merchant fleet was in far better repair than it is today, we were unprepared for the demands on our sea transportation capability. Only the fact that we had a sizeable domestic fleet to draw upon initially and the subsequent miraculous production of the Liberty Ship enabled us to resupply the European and Pacific theaters. There are many today who say that the nature of warfare has changed, that the protracted land war is an anachronism, that we shall never again need .t he services of a large US flag fleet. Dare we believe this? The Russians do not. Between 1965 and the end of 1977 , the Soviet merchant fleet grew from 990 to I, 710 vessels. And by concentrating on SEA HISTORY, WINTER 1980
distinguished service to maritime history. With the United States now carrying less than a twentieth of its own seaborne commerce, we asked Congressman Murphy to discuss the principles of the Omnibus Maritime Bill introduced last summer, in terms the lay public could understand. We urge interested citizens to be in touch with Mr. Murphy or the National Maritime Council, at 1742 N Street NW, Washington DC 20036, with their views on the "rebalancing of worldwide maritime capability" which this report proposes.
expensive roll on-roll off ships, the Soviets have gained a military advantage, si nce RO/ ROs are better suited to moving military cargo than are conventional ships . There are others who argue that the "flag of convenience" ships, US owned but under foreign registry, are really just American ships built cheaper abroad and with lower crew costs. I say that whatever money is saved on these rust buckets, it can never repay the loss of ski lled shipyard workers and the trained hands of citizen crews. There is no question that we are.in a very difficult situation. An obvious solution would be to carry out immediately the intent of the 1936 act which provides that at least 50 percent of our foreign trade will be carried on US built and manned ships . The problem with such drastic and unilateral action is that our main competitors in shipbuilding, liner and bulk service are also our closest allies. The Germans, Greeks, South Koreans, English, a nd Japanese all would suffer if we were to take such action. This, however, cannot sway us from what must become a national priority-The rebuilding of our maritime industry. Our allies must realize that the days when the United States could afford to sit back and watch the destruction of our maritime industry are over. The answer lies in bilateral agreements that would progressively shift the carriage of trade to an equitable split between the United States and its trading partners. The UN CTAD code, the closed conferences in other countries, and the myriad of other ways our competitors are dividing up the trades of the world make it clear that to protect the rights of US carriers, our maritime laws must be changed to make it
possible for US carriers to stay in step with their competitors . Therefore, in order to reverse the decline of the American merchant marine, to create a legal environment that will induce the runaway flags back to the United States, and to allow our existing tonnage to operate in a manner free from government interference and in keeping with the prevailing laws and practices of the world, I along with my colleagues, Congressman Snyder and McCloskey, introduced the Omnibus Maritime Bill of 1979. This bill calls for a "fair share" of commerce to and from our shores to be carried in US ships-a share defined as not less than 40 percent of the foreign commerce of the United States. The "fair share" principle requires that the regulation of international ocean shipping, the promotional tax, and maritime policy-making functions of the government all strive to reach this 40 percent goal. The omnibus maritime bill provides for bilateral agreement. Though the President does not agree with this approach, the National Maritime Council and successful US flag operators like Sea-Land have endorsed the concept and I am confident that the Administration will eventually come to see the wisdom of using bilateral agreements to solve the many problems associated with a rebalancing of worldwide maritime capability. I am also confident that the omnibus maritime bill will provide the new direction needed to see that the United States merchant marine is restored to its former position of preeminence in the world of shipping. While in the midst of this difficult process, it is good to know that the kind of support and interest exemplified by the National Maritime Historical Society exists. w 23