The morning call., 1890-10-15
AN EXIKA SESSION.

It appears to be generally believed at
washington that the President will convene
Congress to meet in extra session about No
yember 18th. The plan has been favored by
leading members of both parties for many
years, on the ground that the short session
did not give Congress time to pass any
measures but the regular appropriation bills.
Meeting in the first week of December. the
committees have been unable to frame their
bills for presentation to the full House be-
fore the holidays interrupted their work,
and thus the middle of January has been
upon them before any measure has been
ready for action. BY meeting on November
18th they will gain nearly four weeks, which
ought to enable the Appropriation Commit
tee to get good share of its business out
Of the way before the Christmas adjourn
ment
One measure which was left over as I'M
finished business OF the last session was the
Steamship Subsidy Bill 1t would probably
have become law if it had not been for the
tariff. 1t could now be pushed through
both houses without delay. People are
practically unanimous in its favor The
opposition which made itself heard few
months ago has been sllenced. 1t is felt
that it is in line with the Mckinley tariff
and that it Will prove even stronger than
that measure, because it will command
votes from both parties. The only party
that is likely TO oppose its passage IS the
school of doctrinaires who oppose all sub
sides on grounds of principle; and this
party will now lose the votes of those prac-
teal members who acQuiesce in a policy
when it has acquired the force of law.
To California the passage of the bill will
prove one of the most fortunate events
which have occurred for long time. What
this city and this State now chiefly need is
an extension of our foreign trade. The
State is growing in every direction, but the
export movement from san Francisco is not
increasing IN proportion We snip wheat
and flour 10 Great Britain, we have small
export trade 10 Japan and China, and we
supply the Hawaiian group with most of
their imports; but we send very little stuff
to Mexico and Central America. virtually
none to South America, and far less mer
chandise than we should TO Australasia and
Polynesia. We have surplus of goods
which these countries want we do not ship
them because we have no vessels TO carry
them. The few steamers which ply be-
tween San Fr ncisco and these outlying
countries charge rates of freight which are
almost IT JhiUilory; they say that they can
not afford to reduce tn in. With a subsidy
act, of which c ;ery 5hi0-o vner will be fires
to avail himself, lines will be established
where now there are none, and where there
is one which charges excessive rates of
freight, there will be Others which will give
the public the benefit of competition.
Il is difficult 10 set a limit to the possible
foreign trade which ten years of subsidies
ss,l.+ I,,1f E. ~ =
want of all those products of ingenious in
duStry which the United States produce; it
is able TO pay for them in the nitratas which
are rapidly becoming a necessary factor in
agriculture. a regular semi-m jnthly line
of steamers to Valparaiso would cause
steady flow of manufactured goods from
the industrial cent4rs of the East to that
port by way of San Francisco; and the
new arrangement would probably make this
port the distributing market for nitrates.
san Francisco now occupies subordinate
place among the coffee markets OF the world !;
if we had two lines of steamers to Central
America and Mexico instead of one, nearly
all the coffee of those sections would come
here instead OF going to Germany, and San
Francisco might compete with Hamburg,
Havre and New York as a coffee center.
Persons who take superficial view of
the workings Of commerce are often inclined
to underrate foreign trade. 1t is il reality
the key to domestic activity. Ii was by
drawing TO itself The trade of foreign eoun-
tries that London became the richest city in
the world. \ like destiny is surely and
cert :inly in store for San Francisco if we
can make this port the mart for the products
of the nations bordering on the Pacific, and
can educate their people into looking to US
and not to Europe for the commodities they
require.