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To: FLT-bird
Even the owners of fishing smacks sought and obtained bounties for pursuing their own business (which yet continue), and $500,000 is now paid them annually out of the Treasury. The navigating interests begged for protection against foreign shipbuilders and against competition in the coasting trade. Congress granted both requests,

Hummm? Only helped the North? In time of war, do you think we need a Navy? What’s a Navy need? Sailors and ships? So if the federal government made sure we had both by spending a relatively small sum assuring we had experienced sailors and shipyards with skilled craftsmen to build ships, I’d say the entire nation benefited.

BTW. Nothing kept fishermen and woodbe boat builders in the South from taking part in that… nothing other that the fact that the wealth of the south was heavily invested in plantations and slaves. Why bet your money on ships and sailors that could easily be lost in a storm when you could make more money by driving slaves rather than sailing the seas.

51 posted on 04/12/2025 9:45:43 AM PDT by Ditto
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To: Ditto
Hummm? Only helped the North?

No, just helped the North overwhelmingly more than the South despite the fact that the South was paying a grossly disproportional share of the tariff.

In time of war, do you think we need a Navy? What’s a Navy need? Sailors and ships? So if the federal government made sure we had both by spending a relatively small sum assuring we had experienced sailors and shipyards with skilled craftsmen to build ships, I’d say the entire nation benefited.

Southerners noticed after a little while all these supposed "national" benefits always benefitted the North directly and overwhelmingly.

BTW. Nothing kept fishermen and woodbe boat builders in the South from taking part in that…

By and large the better fishing grounds (seas) were up North while the better climate for producing lucrative cash crops was in the South.

nothing other that the fact that the wealth of the south was heavily invested in plantations and slaves. Why bet your money on ships and sailors that could easily be lost in a storm when you could make more money by driving slaves rather than sailing the seas.

Capital generally flows to the investment that yields the highest return. This phenomenon has been noted repeatedly in numerous countries. Quick! Name a company from the Middle East that makes something. You can't. Their investment overwhelmingly goes into oil production because that yields the highest return. Same deal for Russia. There isn't a single big Russian brand. Energy production yields the highest returns so it gets most of the investment.

52 posted on 04/12/2025 10:35:20 AM PDT by FLT-bird
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