The herald and mail. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1873-188?, 1877-04-06
The Foreign Trade Returns for Jan
Uary and What They
Indicate.

A summary of the returns to the bu-
reau Of statistics of the foreign trade of
the United States for the month of jan
uary is just published. The returns
show that the imports continue to fall
away and the exports to advance, as they
have done now for more than year.
The imports of merchandise were $37,-
O56, 900, against $42,O99,0OO for the
month of January, 1876. Specie was
brought in to the amount of 81, 139, ,307
against $759, ,293 year ago, and the to-
tai decrease of imports was $3,064 ,401.
The exports for January, mixed values,
were $68, ,302, ,756, against $57, ,912, ,424 for
for 1876; exports of specie were 81, ,932,-
629, against 50, ,352, ,624 and the total in
crease for the month was $11 900, ,237.
What is generally called the balance of
trade was, therefore, increased in our
favor to the extent of $14, ,063, ,63S. We
have not as yet compared the items of
export and import, in which noticeable
changes have taken place. Previous to
doing so we invite our readers attention
to some facts in connection with the
trade of1S76, which will not be without
value.
During the last calendar year, the i'm
ports of merchandise into the United
States fell off 76,376,0 900. Of this de-
cline the largest single item was in woods
and manufactures of wool, of which we
took less $15 $1,000 thai the previous
year. The next largest item, being al
most the same in amount, was coffee, of
which we took less by $15,012,000 than
in 1875. In silks the falling off was $9,
5000. l fax and its manufactures it
was $1,755,00 In earthen and china
ware it was 1892 900. In cotton,
bleached and unbleached. and in prints
and Jeans, etc., it was SO, ,254,0 900. In
steel rails it was 81, 100000. In tin it
was$2, ,682 900. In fax-seed, 50, l62, 900,
In precious stones, $4,000. These arti-
cles include those in which the decrease
was the most considerable, and in these it
amounted to $50 669, 900. or about three
fourths of the whole. The significance
of the decline AS above described is only
too plain. 1t shows not lessened abill-
ty to indulge in luxuries only,
as in the case of silks and
precious stones; but an inability to COM
mand some articles which, like coffee,
are comforts approximating to necessl-
ties, and some which are nearly al
WAYS necessities, as wOelen goods and
earthenware and crockery. In the case
OF WOODEN ROOQS, Jn0 IOIc1Ru dIJlClo WAS
partially replaced by home manufactures,
and this was true of cotton goods as well,
but in the items of steel rails, fax seed,
foreign woods and tin, which are raw ma
terials of American manufacture, the de-
crease was due to stagnation of Ameri-
can industry.
If, now, we turn to cur exports, we
find that the total increase over the pre-
vious year was $40, 100000. The most
important items OF increase were as fol
lows: In Indian corn, $17 ,283, 900; in
mineral oils, S1s,423, 900; in bacon and
hams, SO, 7O3, 900, and in lard, $4.365,
600; in leaf tobocco, 13, ,636, 900; in cop
per. s1,sI7 900; in uncolored cottons,
s., 4IO, COO; in clover seed, etc, S1,760,-
0Oo; in beef, 81 ,304 600; III butter, ST.
7O4 900; in hops, 81 ,027, 900, and in
metal cartridges, S1,1e7 900. These
items account for an increase of $780,
sos, 900, which was Offset by falling of
in wheat, 50, 1884, 900; in cotton, $6, 4s1 !.