The Cincinnati daily star. [volume] ([Cincinnati, Ohio]) 1875-1880, 1879-03-03

Dotn sources the growth OF our lo"eiSH
export trade has recently been such.as to
almost astonish ourselves. ..- ..-
Only scventy-fVe years ago thcrenyere
only four cotton mills on the American
Continent. The fourth one was built in
| 1904, and the whelc ran only thirty -one
thousand spindles. Now our cotton
mills are numbered by hundreds, and
more than ten million of spndles are
running therein. In 1884, only ninety
itive years ago, America sent to Engl, nd
eight bags of cotton, about fifty poueds'
and these were seized and contiscated by
the Custom-house authorities at Liver
pool as fraudulent, for the reason, as al
legged by those sapient guardians'of Brat
isl, commerce, that cotton was not "a
product OF the United States of Amce-
icaw Only seycnty-&ve years after that
America sent EDglaad more than two
thousand millions of pounds of cotton.
They had become convinced that cotton
was product of the United States of
America.
We are now, besides cotton, sending
England over 100000 900 worth of
wheat annually. We also send
them every year more than $2l,-
| 100000 worth of butter and
cheese. TIE amount of eEr pork and
beef exports nearly equals the amount of
our grain exports. So that onr agricul-
tural exports are simply enornsous
All this w2s very acceptable to the
European markets. But now Gur manu-
factured goods are following the same
road that our agricultural products had
taken; but they have to contend against
a spirit of rivalry far more intolerant
than our farm products ever encountered.
In spite of this, they are nevertheless
making their way abroad, and are size
cessfulIy competing with European COM
modities in their own markets.
The heavy machinery of various kinds
turned out from our american work
shops has proved itself so excellent
as to compel admiration even from un-
willing witnesses in Europe. The Lon
don Times has lately acknowledged its
superiority, by admitting that our Amer
lean machinery Of that class is cheaper
than British, and is also more economical
in working as it requires less power for
equal production" This testimony is
the more significant for the reason that
it is in the production of that class of
manufactures that England has particu-
larly prided herself.
But it is not only in heavy work that
our American manufactures are com
manding admiration and a market
abroad. Our finer goods, requiring more
artistic effort, are equally attracting, the
attention of European amateurs. 1t will
doubtless be remembered that the an
nouncement was recently made that, in
making purchases for himself at the Paris
Exposition, the Prince Of Wales chose
the American silverware, giving it the
preference over all on exhibition there
for beauty of workmanshipand elegance
of design And when shown to one of
the most distinguished goldsmiths of
London, he frankly admitted, though
doubtless unwillingly, that 'it is very
artistic plate, and would most likely be
far more salable thar u, y,lv production OF
this country" (England).
1t is well known that our American
railway palace cars have been success
fully introduced to British acquaintance
and excite wonder at the superiority ovel
the British passenger coaches, So excel
lent is our American work in this line
that, as we now learn, a New York firm
of car builders has received the contrac
for making all the cars required to equll
one of the London street-railway routes
We also read recently of shipment o
horse cars from New York to New Zea
land to supply street railways just con
structed in that far-off land. The supe
:. riority of our American agricultural i'm
plements is so great and becoming s
we'll known abroad that even the Britis
I farmers prefer the products OF our fat
G tories to those made at their own shops
:, and in Australia the American field in
- plements have distanced all rivalry an
i are in universal demand in preference t
n the English.
o 1t is not many years since an Amer
,s can-made watch was unknown. No
,s American watches are even sent to tt
d markets of Geneva, the watch-inakir
ye focus of Europe, and successfully cor
pete with the watch trade there. Indee
at the Swiss matchmaking interest not lor
al ago called meeting to consider as
IL what could be done to save their tra'
al from the overwhelming rivalry OF o.
ia American-made watches in the marke
ng of the world.
IL In view of her past prestige, it wou
ng seem that as to two very importa
sc manufactures England could certain
re maintain her supremacy, that is of fl
d cutlery and cotton goods. But it has
! a come most significant fact that Ame
by csn cutlery Of equal quality, and in so
my respects superior, is-actuaily underseli
un- British cutlery even in their own m
the Ects of Sheffield ;and is everywhere soul
uld for on The continent of Europe, In A