Excerpt from Remarks on the Scarcity of American Seamen; And the Remedy: The Naval Apprenticeship System; A Home Squadron, &C., &C
Although this country has not yet become the first maritime and commercial country in the world, yet every reflecting person can see, that in a very short time it will stand first among the nations of the earth in this respect.
Very near the whole of the revenues in this great and rapidly increasing nation of ours is derived from our custom houses - from the duties laid on foreign goods brought by our packet ships and numerous merchant vessels from all parts of the earth. The total revenue of last year was $30,000,000; of this no less than $22,000,000 was derived from our custom houses 1 and this ratio will always remain so, as long as our extensive and glorious sea-board-its flourishing towns and cities - its enterprising sea captains and merchants - and its unrivalled merchant vessels, remain to us.
Under all these circumstances, of how much importance - of what immense interest it is to all in this glorious land that the above commercial and mari-time interests should be sustained, fostered, encouraged and increased by all proper and possible means in our power. For this purpose, it is true, we professedly support a gallant little navy - at an annual expense (with all its incidental costs) of just about 10,000,000! or about one half of the entire coat of working all the machinery of the complicated government of this great country. But that is not enough. There is something more to be done by Congress to carry out the supremacy of our maritime and commercial interests besides voting eight or ten millions every year to pay the expenses of our men-of war. Let it not be supposed for a moment, that we are complaining of the expense of the United States Navy - or that we mean to insinuate that the Navy does not fully and effectually protect our commercial marine. We do no such thing. That is not the object of the pamphlet, by any means. But still we repeat that there is something more to be done.
What then is it which remains to be done ? We have abundance of the finest timber in the world, growing on our own soil, to build our ships with. We raise as good material for the cordage and tackle of our ships as they do anywhere in the Old World. We have as good iron and copper for anchors, chain-cables, bolts, &c., as Europe can produce ! We have the best ship-wrights - the best modellers - draughtsmen - joiners - and ship-builders in the known world - we have the most enterprising merchants to charter and load ships that can be desired-and we have a race of captains and mates that never have been - never can be excelled on this side of the globe for skill, perseverance, courage, coolness, judgment, enterprise, daring, tact, talent, and above all, good breeding and unsurpassable politeness of manners! We have all these superior to what can be found indigenous in Europe. What then do we want to complete our excellence and superiority in all respects ? What do we want to make the chain complete and every rivet sound ? We want that greatest of all wants to a civil and military service - we want American Sailors!
This statement will doubtlsss astonish many persons - and none more so than many members of Congress. Very few persons have any idea of how few native born Americans (seamen) are to be found either on board our merchant vessels, or our men-of-war. On no occasion are there to be found more
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