[Inclosure.]
Vice-Admiral Rowan to Mr. Fairchild.
[Extract.]
Treasury Department, Office Light-House
Board,
Washington, April 3,
1888.
Sir: The Board has the honor to acknowledge
the receipt of Department letter, dated April 2, 1888, transmitting
a letter from the State Department, dated March 30, 1888, with its
inclosure, a note from the British minister at this capital, asking
the views of this Government as to a proposal made by the Government
of Turkey as to the erection and maintenance of thirty lights in the
Red Sea, on the coast of Arabia, and in the Persian Gulf. This
Government is asked as to whether the Turkish proposals should, in
its opinion, be agreed to, and if not as to what lights its trade
requires, and what dues this Government is prepared to pay for
them.
In reply, the Board begs leave to say that our trade in those waters
is exceedingly small. It appears from the current report of the
Commissioner of Navigation (see page 207) that but three American
vessels used the Suez canal during the year 1885, and it is surmised
that a part of these were naval vessels.
From this it would appear that the trade of the United States, at
least at present, requires few, if any lights in those waters.
It has been the policy of this Government to exact no light dues for
vessels entering its ports. The stand was taken in the early days
that civilization required that America should, by her Light-House
Establishment, her harbor improvements, her Coast Survey, and her
Life-Saving Service, do what she could as a duty to humanity at
large to insure safety to those who sought her shores. No reason is
seen by the Board for changing the policy at this day.
Now the United States maintains 914 light-houses, 23 light-ships, 77
steam or hot-air fog-signals, 140 clock-work fog-signals, 361 day
beacons, 3,886 buoys of all kinds, on its 9,959 miles of its ocean,
gulf, and lake coast-line, besides its 1,107 stake lights on its
long line of rivers, at a cost, last year, of $2,597,400, without
mentioning the cost of their establishment.
This Government has been restive under the claim of other Governments
that its commerce should pay light dues. How much has been paid by
American ships for light dues it is hard to say. But it was stated
by Mr. Abbott Lawrence, our minister to England in 1851, in his
discussion with Lord Palmerston, that in the previous three years
the light dues collected by Great Britain amounted to between
£400,000 and £500,000, and that the United States had paid
one-fourteenth of all. This would make our payment, say, $160,000
for that year. As an instance it may be well to state that the
American Steamship Line of Philadelphia paid as light dues on its
four steamers during the years 1875, 1876, and 1877, $36,000, being
at the rate of $250 per voyage for each of the one hundred and
forty-six voyages made by them; but the amount paid directly as
light dues is only a small proportion of what has been paid
indirectly.
This Government has from time to time made efforts to extinguish the
light dues paid in foreign countries by its commerce. It has, from
time to time, represented to the British Government the impropriety
of these exactions, and it has always been listened to with
respectful consideration, but has been put off with promises that
the matter shall receive further and favorable attention in the
future. It has been more successful with other countries.
Under the treaty of Washington, of April 11, 1857, it was agreed that
$393,011 be paid to Denmark to extinguish what were known as sound
dues.
Under the treaty of Berlin, of 1861, it was agreed that about $36,000
should be paid to Hanover to extinguish what were known as the stade
dues theretofore levied on our trade on the Elbe River.
Under the treaty with the Belgians, made at Brussels July 20, 1863,
it was agreed that the United States should participate in the
benefits of the treaty made on April 19, 1839, between the King of
the Belgians and the King of the Netherlands, by which it was agreed
that $550,000 should be paid to the King of the Netherlands in
annual installments in return for the extinguishment of the Scheldt
dues. Of this sum the United States agreed to pay its proper share,
and doubtless the payment to Belgium of $61,584 mentioned in the
disbursement for 1872 for the extinguishment of the Scheldt dues
closes the account. While the dues thus extinguished were of various
kinds, light dues in each case entered into them as one of their
items, and the Governments to which the dues were paid bound
themselves by the treaties requiring their payment to keep the
lights and aids to navigation in good order thereafter.
In conclusion, the Board begs leave to say that it is of opinion that
it should be
[Page 798]
the policy of
this country to refrain from entering into any treaties by which it
should be required to pay any further light dues, and also that it
would be the part of wisdom for this country to take all proper
measures to have the light dues now exacted against its commerce by
any Government extinguished as soon as practicable.
I am, etc.,
S. C. Rowan,
Vice-Admiral, U. S. Navy,
Chairman.
