The daily morning journal and courier., 1897-07-19
OUR TRADE WITH HAWAIT.
Statistics Which Show Its Marvellous Growth Within a Few Years.

Growth Within Few Years.
 Washington, July 1S.-Hawaiian commerce during the last ten years is the subject of a circular just issued by the department of agriculture. The paper was prepared by F. H. Hitch cock, chief of the division of foreign markets, under the direction of Sec
 retary Wilson. The facts set forth
 bear directly upon the current discus sion of the annexation of the Hawaiian Islands to the United States and are as follows:
 The comparison of statistics show that the United States controls 90 per cent of the entire trade of the islands Tn total value of exports and imports
 of Hawaii for 1896 was $21, ,57S, ,SS2, of which about two-third, S15,515, ,2S0, was average of exports of the ten years, 1SS7-1896. was $l1 ,O52,141, and of im-
 ports $5,422, ,459, leaving an average
 balance of $5,628,6S1 in favor of ex- ports.
 "On this traffic 91.20 per cent. was
 with the United States during the first
 five years of the decade and in the
 second five years this lead of this country over other countries was in-
 cerased to 91.92 per cent. Another im-
 pression of the situation may be gain ed from the statement that our trade with the island in 1896, according to Hawaiian statistics, reached s20,924,- 306, the largest amount ever recorded,
 while the highest figures previously fnY- xtrha tnta nf 631.S0 was reported.
 "The United States, however, does
 not yet hold so high position in fur nishing goods for Hawaii as in talk ing the products of the islands. Of the average. of exports for the ten years, nearly eleven million dollars a year, the United States has bought
 practically all. Only one-half of one
 per cent. has been sold to other coun- tries. Of the goods purchased by Ha- waii on the other hand, the United States furnishes only about three I fourths
 However, it is chiefly in our sales to l the islands that the trade is growing The annual average of these sales for the five years, 1SS7-1S91 was $4,376312,
 but for 1S91-1S96, s4,496275; while the exports to Hawaii for last year | amounted to s5,464,20S, nearly million | dollars more than for any previous year.
 "The goods coming from Hawaii to the United States are mainly agricul- tural products, while the shipments in the other directions, except breadstuffs, are chiefly manufactures, Our imports of sugar make the largest within the trade, while our imports of rice come | next. Next in order are our exports of breadstuffs, cotton goods fertilizers, | machinery, lumber, tobacco, wire and chemicals. It is noticeable that ship ments of American live stock, meats, apples and corn amount to very little Prior to 1876, when the first reciproc- | ity treaty was made between the Uni | ted States and Hawaii their total com- | merce averaged only s1,950, ,496. Since that date a comparatively steady growth has brought the total to more | than five times that amount.
 Figures are furnished for the first ten months of the fiscal year 1897 as compared with the same period in 1896. | They show large increases in the im- portant items of trade The other countries whose trade with Hawaii ap- 1 pears to be growing are China and Ja- 1 pan, taken together and Canada"