Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1882-06-21
The United States.

If people suppose the United States are
going behind IN the great race of the world
they are mistaken-totally mistaken. The
official figuSes place the United States
ahead OF al ether nations. not only In the
aggregate annual product of its industry,
but aIso ahead of any other nation IN the
annual product Of lis manufacturers Qn-
cludlng -four, sndsalsosin aiAs carrying
trade. In the carrying trase. the
Umledktates are set down as earning
$500, 600, 900. against SS05, ,OO0, 900 by
Crest Bnialn. tSio,0ea0O0 by France
and $345, 600, 900 by Germany. We as
sunc otfthe face of these figures that the
terms carrying trade" as here used cover
Carrying byland and riSer as well as by
lake and sea, and domestic as well as
foreign. Buff so, the statement of the
commerce" of the United States In the
same table should be limited TO the 'for- =
. eig1f commerce only, as only under thai
limitation, would the ''commerce" OF the
United States stand at 81. 505, 600, 600,
against s.. 400, 900, 900 for Great Britain,
81, $50, 600, 600 for France and 1890
600, 900 for Germany. In fact, the do
nestle commerce of tine United States is
about twenty times as great as its foreign
commerce. Itis the Intensity of the de-
msnd for the investment of capital In our
domestic transportation and commerce
which .has caused American capitalists SO
largely to transfer their capital from
foreign to domestic trade, because the
profits were far higher and more certain.
4 notable instance of this is the transfer
of Vanderbit's entire capital about the
year 1860 from Panama and other steam.
ship and foreign transit companies, where
the losses were prodigious and the dIvl-
dends fluctuating, to interior railway lines,
wherein his profits, by various means,
were prodIgious. even as compared with
his dividends, and his losses nothing.
Durarit, Field and many others made
similar transfers of capital, thus showing
that the subsldence of our ocean carryin g
trade. instead of being an index of decline
in our national prosperity, was due to the
enormous Increase in the activities OF our
internal carrying trade, and so yas due TO
the almost abnormal rapidIty of our ma
tIonsl advancement.
Another striking indication OF the Changing
condition of the country is that the annual
product of our manufactures not onlyex-
ceeds the annual product of our agriculture,
but exceeds 1t by the broad margin OF 5U
per cent. Our manufacturing product /:
81, 40. 900, 900 year, while that OF ouI
agriculture is only 1000, 900, 900 year.
This is largely due to the greater use that
can be made of machinery and especially
of steampower, in manufactures than il
agriculture. And il is doubtless out oi
this increased use of other than manual
power that manufacturing nations grow
in wealth so much more rapidly than
agricultural
Our mining industries produce $500
600, 900 a year, as against 1925, 900, 600 IL
Great Britain, while our earnings in bank
ing are $500, 900. 600, against $40, 900.
p 600 IN Great Britain, sl7O,OOO.OOO II
France, $40, 600, 900 in Germany, anC
$4,000, 600 IN Russia The. total anhIia'
product of our industries of all kinds il
SO, 395, 900, 600, as against ) 10, $50, 000,-
900 for Great Britain, Sc, 625, 900, 600 for
France, So. 345, ,O00, 900 for Germsny, 81.
500. 600. Oc0 for Russia, and IS, ,2S5, 600,
900 cor Austria. lu-the light of these
figures lSSQ may be set down as the cen
sus year IN which the United States clearly
and Enthusiastically assumed the position oi
the first industrial power among nations.
In one or two respects We have still few
laps to gain in our race with our cOmpetl
tors. Great Britain still leads us in capital,
in banking, and in navigation. But, tax
ing our general race in industry as 6
whole, we are now clearly at the hesd o.
all nations. -