78 PANAMA CANAL AND AMERICAN COMMERCE. 
United States in behalf of its war fleet and of the manifold forms of domestic 
production to be benefited by the Canal, then it is reasonably certain that prepara- 
tions by American shipbuilders will be tardy and insufficient to meet any consider- 
able demand for coastwise transportation through the Canal. The expectations 
of the people are set high, and if ample transportation facilities are not ready from 
the outset, a demand will be inevitable for the repeal of the coastwise laws and the 
admission of foreign-built ships into trade between our Atlantic and Pacific ports. 
Mr. Nrxon:—Mr. Chamberlain attacks the few ideas that I have advanced, 
the attack being made on the very lines on which they are usually attacked. He 
has gone to great length to establish the fact that there are treaties in the way of 
preferring our own ships and saying to the world that through the Panama Canal 
our ships will go free just as they would through any other highway of the United 
States. Hemakes the contention there, as I discovered by reading his article some- 
what hurriedly, that we can treat all nations with equality, and that is twisted to 
the extent that we must treat all other nations as ourselves. 
My interpretation of that, and a fair mercantile interpretation, is that we 
should not treat any other nation using that Canal with any particular favor, 
compared with other competing nations, or other nations having canals of their own. 
Mr. WaLtER M. McFarwanp, Vice-President:—I had the pleasure of read- 
ing Mr. Nixon’s paper, as a member of the Publication Committee, and was 
very much pleased with it, indeed. As I said here last year (or possibly the year 
before), he has made such a careful study of this whole subject of advancing the 
interests of the Merchant Marine that I feel anything he says on the subject is 
worthy of the most careful consideration. 
Generally speaking, I should say that I am in agreement with him as to the 
method that he follows. It might be that some question of detail would come up 
on which we would not agree, but in general I think his plan is right, and I believe 
that this is a tremendously live subject for our Society. I have said that before 
and I say it again. There is no other organization in the country that has the 
same vital interest in an increased merchant marine that we have. I feel that 
everything we can do to push it along ought to be done, and that the interest 
Mr. Nixon shows by giving us his paper is worthy of a great deal of praise. 
Mr. JoHN REID, Member:—I think, gentlemen, that every story has two 
sides to it, and I don’t want you to imagine for a moment that I am going to say 
anything that will run counter to any ideas or theories Mr. Nixon has about the 
improvement of the merchant marine of the United States. The United States 
must have a merchant marine and have it very quick, if it is to take the position 
in the world that its size and influence entitles it to, and everything that would 
help that will be for the advantage of the United States and the world in general, 
but when you come to talk about abrogating treaties and giving free passage to 
