The Cincinnati daily star. [volume] ([Cincinnati, Ohio]) 1875-1880, 1878-11-07
OUR FOREIGN TRADE,

III Is DuC Sixty Gays nence Wnen re-
sumption of specie payments by the
United States Government, as fixed by
law, is to occur. Practically we are at
resumption now. The paper currency
of the country is so near to par with
coin that in all ordinary transactions the
difference is inappreciable. Business
be in every sense sound, so far as our
domestic trade is concerned.
1t behooves US, nevertheless, to take
into consideration the state of our foreign
trade as an important factor in the con-
stitution of a sound commercial condi-
ton. Fortunately we find that, in this
particular, the statistics show an equally
favorable condition.
1t is true that lamentations have been
uttered in certain quarters over what the
mourners were pleased to call the "fall-
ing off in our foreign import trade" 1t
might well be questioned whether such
failing Off would be in any case
calamity. But the fact is that such
falling off does not to any material degree
exist. For sixteen years, from 1862 to
1877, both inclusive, the average amount
of our importations was $l1 40 per capita
of our population; and this included the
excessive years Immediately preceding
and including the year of the panic, 1873.
The importations of last year, 1877,
amounted to $40 80 per capita; only
81 10 less than the general average of the
whole sixteen years. The average per
capita for the sixteen years preceding
that period, from 1916 to 1861, inclusive,
was SO 62. So that the present import
trade, instead of falling off, is greater in
proportion to the population than the
average of the sixteen years preceding
the war. This may comfort those
mourners.
But our encouragement lies in the i'm
mense increase of our foreign export
trade. We hold it as truism, that
the country which sells abroad more than
it buys abroad must be getting gain.
That has been our condition for the past
four years, from 1874 to 1877 inclusive
During that period we have gotten gain
to the amount of $789, 1885,, 300, an aver
age gain of $197, All ,S25 annually. Dur
ing the four years previous to that, from
1870 to 1873 inclusive, we had loss of
$47, 1854 1873. Then the panic came, be-
cause it was inevitable under such los
ing trade.
1t is singular as well as suggestive to
note the increase in the volume of our
foreign imports during the twelve years
preceding the panic, from 1862 to 1873
inclusive. In 1862 our imports amount
ed to $205,771,729. In 1873 they had
swelled to the enormous sum of $685.
617,147, an increase of $457 ,S45, ,418 for
the last named year over the first, being
an annual average increase of $38, 1853, 1856
during the whole twelve years. That
this was out Of all proportion with the
increase of population will be seen when
it is stated that the imports of 1862
amounted to Sc % per capita; while the
amount of imports of 1873 had increased
to,$15 70 per capita Of our population;
ths highest ratio ever reached in the for
eign imports of this country. We could
stand such an increase no longer; and
then the panic came. Then commenced
the diminuendo movement. The very
next year, 1874, our imports fell off $67,-
755,9O0, and have been diminishing ever
since at the average annual rate Of
$46,734,S1S.
But, any given amount of foreign i'm
portations can not of itself be declared
excessive Extravaganza is comparative,
AID can only be predicated of income.
So imports become excessive only as re-