The herald., 1895-02-23
THE WORLD LEVELING UP
The Law Of Supply and Demand as Applied to
Different Countries

The Philadelphia Press says editorially
that the news that Germany is import
ing more wheat from Argentina than the
United States comes to this country with
the same shock as the discovery came to
England three years ago that the United
States was making more iron, raising
more coal and turning out coke cheaper
and in larger quantities than England.
Fifteen to 20 years ago this country was
the granary and feed depot OF Europe
and in cotton and oil we had no apprecia-
bic competition, while England was the
unrivaled workshop of the world. Neither
any longer has his advantage. India and
Argentina are dividing the wheat supply
OF Europe with us. Australia and New
Zealand match us in meat and are gong
to beat us in price and product. The Cas-
plan oil fields divide the worlds supply
with us. From nine -tenths OF the world )
supply OF cotton 35 years ago we have
dropped to two-thirds. Our wool supply
is shrinking under competition and needs
duty to preserve it.
England has gone through the same
loss in its shops and factories. From max
ing half the worlds iron it has sunk to
making less than a third. From giving
over half the world coal supply it has fal-
len to one-third. Where it once spun
three-quarters of the world S cotton goods
output it turns out now less than hall.
1t has lost silk manufacture altogether.
The jute trade is going to India. The
steel rail trade of the world is going to
Belgium and here. All English exports
of cotton yarns are going to be cut off by
India, Japan and our Southern states.
England still does shipbuilding for the
world but not for long. Its works in cop
per. lead and tin are slowly shrinking,
relative to the worlds manufacture in
these metals, because work in each can be
done cheaper nearer the center OF the
mining product.
"Our loss of the food supply of Europe
has cut down the price OF our farm pro
ducts, and this has reduced the price of
farm land. Fortunately the development
of our manufactures under protection has
so increased the product and decreased
the price of articles of daily use that
bushel of wheat pound of meat or a
quart OF milk buys more than each did
20 years ago. AS for our national wealth,
our growth in manufactures has made up
for our loss in farm lands.
England has no such compensation.
The rental of farm lands in the United
Kingdom has dropped one-third in the
last 20 years, and the profits Of the manu-
featuring plant of the kingdom has suf-
fered fully as heavily under competition.
As Lord Harrington said in his last
speech, the English land question is not
one whit more acute than the English
manufacturing or trade que stlon. Hav-
ing lost heavily in land in the past 20
years, England is going to lose as heavily
in manufactures in the next 20 years.
Her vast income from foreign invest
ments, which the Statist puts at 500, ,0Oo,-
600 annually, will last for while, but it
will diminish as her mortgage on the
world is paid off, as we are paying of
ours-partly by absorbing English sales
of American securities and partly by re-
ceiverships.
For both England and the United
States the world is leveling up to their
product in food and factory, and neither
of these English-speaking countries is go
ing to find competition as easily met in
the next 20 as in the last 20 years.