70 PANAMA CANAL AND AMERICAN COMMERCE. 
Mr. Cramp. This with no disparagement of the splendid work done by 
John Roach, Taylor Gause and others, but Charles H. Cramp made the fight 
and won. 
He could not have done so had it not been for the coasting trade law, 
for his great abilities would have been forced into other channels. 
We still have this law left after the betrayal of the obligations of Con- 
gress to regulate commerce in American interest by the repeal of the earlier 
laws that did so. 
Can we use this last prop ei any extension of it to our advantage and 
to still further stimulate shipowning and shipbuilding? 
Happily we can. Mexico, Central America, the West Indies, and the 
northern shores of South America are at the door of the Panama Canal. 
As trade and transportation focus to the Isthmus and the Governments 
surrounding it become stable and safe fields for investment so that their 
vast potential resources may contribute to the world’s commerce, I look to 
see in a few years the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico girdled by 
prosperous cities with trade rivaling in activity and prosperity the cities 
of the Great Lake basin. By treaties with these countries we should extend 
our coasting laws to them with the understanding that all vessels owned and 
operating under the flags of either party to the treaty, say on January 1, 
1912, shall enjoy reciprocal liberty of commerce in the ports of either party, 
after that date vessels constructed in either country to have the same 
privilege. 
Such an agreement with Mexico and Cuba alone would fill to over- 
flowing every shipyard now in the United States. 
The splendid work of the State Department under Secretary Knox in 
providing stability and credit in countries whose staggering debts have 
kept such nations in revolution and under fear of intervention has prepared 
the way for such a policy. 
Is there any objection? Of course! Treaty experts have cunningly 
foreseen such possibilities and have got us to bind ourselves not to give 
ourselves anything, even of our own, unless they too are favored. 
Are such treaties absolutely essential to doing business? 
Of course not, our commerce was most flourishing before the greater 
part of our commercial agreements were made. 
What is the hindrance to legislation in our own interest? 
American public opinion manufactured in Europe. 
I cannot end this paper without saying that my earnest conviction is 
that we must return to our early policy of discriminating duties and tonnage 
taxes if we are to revive our merchant marine in the foreign trade, and that 
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