employ American labor, and the foreign owners of which collected their tolls from American merchants. In the absence of some additional legislation this condition was likely to become worse rather than better, because the American either as shipbuilder or operator could not compete on equal terms with foreigners, and particularly with Englishmen and Germans. Unless the government gave to him the same kind of assistance that it gave to the other branches of American industry, the American merchant marine would continue to stagnate.

As early as 1888 the problem of re-creating an American merchant marine had been considered by the Republican leaders. The subsequent platforms of the party had declared in favor of some effective means of restoring the American flag to the high seas. But throughout the whole of this period legislation in regard to the matter was not seriously pressed, because other issues had forced themselves to the front. Now, however, that the Republicans were in full control, and were free to deal with domestic economic problems, it was inevitable that the matter should come up for insistent consideration. They could not have avoided the attempt to pass some kind of a bill, even if Mr. Hanna had not been on hand to urge them on; and Mr. Hanna's personal influence made the attempt the more unavoidable and the more energetic.

Ever since Mr. Hanna had entered public life he had been interested in the revival of the American merchant marine as he had been in no other economic policy. His own business career had been continuously connected with the building and operation of ships, so that he brought to the subject a prolonged and instructive personal experience. When he entered the Senate he was appointed to the Committee on Commerce, partly because he wanted to have a hand in the work of framing the legislation the passage of which had already been approved by the party leaders. The one important measure which he personally introduced was the original Hanna-Frye Subsidy Bill of 1898. It could not be pressed at that time, but he frequently discussed the necessity of such legislation in his speeches on the stump. He was doing his best to create a more vigorous public opinion in its favor throughout the Middle West. That part of the country had never been much interested in the restora

tion of the American flag to the high seas, and it was not easy to make its audiences listen to arguments in favor of the desired legislation. But the fact that he was risking his popularity in keeping the subject before his constituents did not deter him. His private secretary, Mr. Elmer Dover, states that ship subsidies were the one subject which he persisted in preaching, even when he was boring his audiences and knew that he was boring them.

His lively and insistent interest in ship-subsidy legislation was not, however, due merely to his own personal participation in the upbuilding of American fresh-water shipping. The subject made a strong appeal to him as a matter of national policy. Mr. Hanna had a sound and comprehensive understanding of the principles underlying American economic legislation. He saw that every branch of American industry, agriculture and domestic commerce rested more or less on encouragement by the government, and that such encouragement was granted on the assumption that the public economic interest was most effectually promoted by the stimulation of private enterprise. On this basis a national economic system had been created, the several parts of which were closely connected, and which with one exception included every essential economic activity. The one exception was that of American shipping engaged in foreign trade. He never could understand either why this exception had been allowed to occur or why it was not immediately remedied. It was to him incomprehensible that such an opportunity of employing American capital and labor should be neglected, and that the builders and possible operators of ocean-going ships should not be granted the same encouragement as that which every other essential American economic activity had obtained in one form or another.

In the winter of 1900 and 1901 certain recent developments in the character of American exports gave peculiar pertinence to legislation in aid of American shipping. It was just at this moment that American manufacturers, particularly of metal products, had begun a very successful invasion of the foreign markets. The exports of manufactured articles had increased suddenly and enormously. The prevailing opinion was that certain of them had outgrown the home market, that their pro

ductive capacity was far in excess of domestic consumption and that better arrangements must be made to introduce American products abroad. The grouping of many manufacturing plants under one ownership and management was explained and defended as a necessary step in the development of American export trade. It was claimed that the government could contribute substantially to the better organization of the export trade by subsidizing American marine carriers. From this point of view, ship-subsidy legislation became an essential part of a really efficient national economic organization. A government which had encouraged American manufacturers, when they were occupied in selling almost exclusively to the home market, should be all the more ready to supply them with an economic agency which would help them to make their profits out of foreigners.

The decision was reached, consequently, to tackle seriously the question of subsidy legislation during the short session which began on Dec. 1, 1900, and this decision was attributed chiefly to Mr. Hanna. For the first time his leadership became a conspicuous fact in the conduct of the Senate's business. He was not in actual charge of the measure on the floor of the Senate. That duty devolved upon Senator Frye, who was Chairman of the Committee on Commerce. But he was none the less more responsible for the legislative career of the bill than was its floor manager. In Senator's Frye absence he assumed charge of the measure. He frequently intervened in the debate, which occupied a large part of the Senate's time from Dec. 4, 1900, to Feb. 18, 1901. On December 13 he made on behalf of the bill the first long speech of his career as Senator-a speech which was generally acknowledged to be a credit to its author and a very able presentation of his side of the case. At the same time he was actively canvassing among his colleagues, in order to find out how they would vote; and he was using his influence all over the country to create a more widespread public opinion in favor of the proposed legislation.

Notwithstanding the apparently vigorous attempt made to pass a subsidy bill during the short session, it is improbable that its advocates really intended to do more than concentrate public attention on their legislative enterprise. Even if they