The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1895-01-05
OUR NEAR NEIGHBOR.
AN INTERVIEW WITH SENIOR ROMERO,
The MEXICAN MINISTER.
He Gives Reasons Why England Leads Us
In Trade and Shows How q Silver Basis
Is an Advantage to That Country-In-
crease In ATexico's Foreign Trade.
[special Correspondenee.l

ranging over wide field, from his per-
sonal acquaintance with General Grant
and their joint labors in behalf of the
Mexican Central railroad down to the
question of silver coinage and interna-
tictal trade. Senior Romero may justly
claim to be in the highest sense a citizen
of both republics, for he came to Wash
ington in December, 1859, and remained
till 1868, came again in 1882 and has
represented his country here continuous
" for 3 years, making good use of his
opportunities. Next to him in continu-
Gus service is Minister G. de Weckher-
lin of the Netherlands, who was official
" received June 10, 1884. It is a curl
Gus fact that of the 81 representatives
here of foreign countries 16 were re-
ceived in 1898 and 4 in 1894, while
besides those above named only the min
listers from Turkey and Colombia date
as far back as 1887. Senior Romero is a
gentleman Of medium size, with dark
eyes and brunette complexion, and speaks
English fluently, but little too correct
ly, as is common with those who first
learn it from books. On this subject he
said:
cit is pity the English is not writ
ten language of sound signs, for think
it moderate to say that one born to the
Spanish must take nearly twice as long
to learn it as does one born to English
to learn Spanish. I learned it theoret-
icalIy as young student and could read
it, but it was all to be learned again
when I came to speak it. The English
and all the Europeans in Mexico master
our language thoroughly and take much
more pains to get well in with the ways
of the people than the Americans do
The old firms send out their young men
to live long in Mexico, and thus they &C.
quire their great advantage in trade over
your countrymen.' That our trade with
you is the largest is by pure force of Cir
cumstances and in spite of tariffs, which
are too high on both sides. -
but is it not rather the cheaper Ia
Dor of Europe that comes TO your
A Matter of Business.
ST do not think so. They study the
market and fit all their wares to it. They
put them in original packages for trans
port by mules or burros over the noun
tains, while Americans pack them in
great bales. which have to be opened
and the goods repacked, and that insures
much trouble, with some damage and
loss Well, the fact is Americans have
not felt necessity to look for the trade
in Spanish America. The United States
has been it's own sufficient market for
most of the things which Mexico i'm
ports. The English houses in Mexico
also give credits Of six months or a year
until the small dealer has sold the goods
and got the money for them, and Amer
leans Go not like that. You must always
remember, too, the great difference in
the topography. Mexico lies across great
mountain chains, and from them smaller
ridges put out, and so the country is cut
! up into many districts, and there are no
/ great navigable rivers, SO transportation
is very expensive. This is one reason
/ why the use of silver has worked so much
| to our advantage. The progressives
saw the difficulty long ago. and that is
! why we made such sacrifices to get the
railroads, and it does look strange that,
after building the Mexican Central to
connect with the United States at Ell
Paso, there should be tariff put up on
both sides high enough to keep people
from trading by that road. =
''When I was in chihuahua, 1 was
struck with the great excellence and
/
there. A common 2 cent cigar seemed to
me to have as fine a flavor as the aver
age Havana has here, and should think
your export of such tobacco would be
very large. -
sit is nothing, a mere nothing. It is
almost the smallest of our exports. as
you will see by the latest report, which
Twill send for. Coffee is still the largest,
| ,,ovt 70 fbat 1onior7o %0baooo
you see (handing me the official report
for the second half of the fiscal year
1899, is small and decreasing. You may
say, dividing the f1bers, that sisal holds
the third place in our exports. And
sugar is almost nothing. This ought not
to be, for we have prime sugar lands
sufficient to supply the whole United
States market, but for long time the
planters had such monopoly that they
could charge their own price, and sugar
was 25 cents pound in Mexico when it
was only 10 in this country. We have
much improved that matter. and the ex-
port of sugar is just now increasing.
Advantages of silver.
''You speak of the silver basis in Mex
leo. Is it not great disadvantage
''Oh, not at all. On the contrary, it
has worked to our advantage in very
many ways, and especially to the great
increase of exports Prices have not risen
in silver, and coined or uncoined it will
buy just about the same as it always
did, except the usual variations in bust
ness. mean this of things produced and
used in Mexico, but the price of things
fixed in Europe in gold has gone away
up 1t would be doubled by silver alone,
and then there are tariffs and commits
sions on which percentages of profits
must be calculated. This has cut off the
imports of such things as our people can
do without and has greatly increased the
exports. Take the article of beans, which
| were long worth 8 cents in silver hnt