The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1898-12-30
A GREAT FIELD OPEN.

A GREAT FIELD OPEN.
Americans will Find Many Good
Opportunities In One Of Our
.s- New Colonies.
| The Philadelphia Commercial museum
has just issued pamphlet on American
trade with Porto Rico, in which the pres
| ent business conditions of the island and
the methods of conducting commercial
transactions are fully described. The in
formation which the pamphlet contains
was secured by special representative
OF the museum, who recently returned
from tour of the island, and through
| correspondence with native merchants md
importers of the best standing, The
pamphlet has been sent to the subscribers
OF the institution and to commercial Or
ganizations which are connected with the
museum in the capacity of members of its
| advisory board.
The cities of San Juan, Ponce, Areci-
DO. Guayama and Fajardo demand the
| immediate establishment of steam laun-
dries. up-tO-date tanneries in the depart
ment OF Mayaguez, where the most cat
tle are raised, will also prove good pay
| ing investment.
The pamphlet says that candles are
used only by half of the inhabitants, the
poorer classes, especially in the country
districts, being too poor to spend cents
TOR candle when cents will buy for
tnem one quart OF cocoanut oil, which will
afford sufficient light for one whole week.
Inc candles used on the island at present
are imported from Spain and Belgium. so
candle factory would have a large de-
mand for its product
!ce-making plants are needed. The
prlce OF Ice at present is from $40 to $40
per ton. and from to 10 cents pound
at retail No planning machinery Of any
KIND is in operation in the island, except
IN one city, and until the recent establish
ment OF a circular saw at Ponce this could
be also said of that class of machinery.
At the present time only a few native
brick factories exist, and the means for
turning out bricks is of the worst kind
Splendid brick clay is to be found in every
part Of the island.
In speaking of the native woods of Por-
to Rico the pamphlet says that their quail
ty is fine, but that little has been done
toward developing that industry. The
woods include mahogany, cedar, ebony
ana others suitable for fine interior and
cabinet work.
Most of the minerals have been found
in Porto Rico. There is as fine iron as
IS produced in Cuba. Gold has been
found in some quantities, also copper.
zinc. rock crystals and coal. There are
plaster quarries and milestone pits in
Ponce and Juan Diaz, grindstone in an
other section Of the island, and marble
and granite in some other.
Discussing the customs which prevail
Tor conducting business, the Museums
latest publication says
me imports Of American manufactured
vii rnIp, >kox9)x
ere long. The custom of receiving goods on
consignment by the merchants there ia the
gene III rule and has been largely
three months time, occasionally being ex-
tended to four. six or even nine months. In
some instances they buy for cash and take
wholesale dealers do retail business as
Well. All firms designated as commission
c Gonses are houses which import lines on
known in Porto Rican trade, means the sell.
ing of goods for commission on consignment.
commission houses are entirely wholesale,
su a11 the ne trade in the large Cities
IN the interior towns buy almost entirely
from the merchants in San Juan, Ponce,
Mayaguez' ;Arecibo, Aguadilla, Guayama and
terror towns and markets by the importer,
but the local dealer makes his own arrange
ments for transportation to his place Of
business. There are no regularly established
1t should be borne in mind by the Ameri-
can business world that there are no spe-
cialties-in other words, that there are no
houses carrying one or even two lines of
goods exclusively The lines of trade, there
fore, are not distinct. Wholesale hardware
larger ones of the principal cities carry a
full line Of crockery'' is meant a line as full
as is carried by any house in the island The
dealer II no Sl11i nf
modify, importing and handling it If he
proht, no matter how inconsistent or at
variance it may seem to his principal line
Manufacturers and exporters endeavoring to
obtain market in the island for their goods
should take this into consideration when
sending out circulars or letters to commits
CARELESS OF the fact that some may seem to
hands line or lines of goods different from
those desired to be introduced.
Two pages are devoted to the agricul-
tural interests Of the island. 1t would
not be an eXaggeration, the report says,
wonderfully rich. Fertilizers are quite
unknown because they are unnecessary,
the soil seemingly having recuperative
power within itself. Pineapples and Or
anges grow almost wild, the oranges be-
ing more delicious and tender than even
those from Florida. Sugar-cane is
grown on the plains and level ground
.t1oAis, 'AC SOeoI: anu tllc Otuei PORTIONS OF
the island are devoted to coffee and to-
bacco raising. These three comprise the
principal industries of the island, every
portion of which is settled and much un-
der cultivation. Modern care and skill
are not practiced in the line of agricul-
ture, and are almost unknown. With a
little care the quality of the natural prod
ucts would undoubtedly be better, but
every thing is left too much to nature.
Farm laborers receive from 1871 to 81
cents a day, and work from ) o'clock in
the morning until 4 o'clock ut night.
Rarely more than Is cents Il day is paid
to laborers, and many only work for a
living. being supplied with the poorest
food of the country, and only occasionally
receiving little money. Coffee-pickers
receive about IL cents Il day, and labor
ers III the cities 81 cents a day.
The prices of land in the plantations
are much unsettled. There is a deep and
bitter spirit of vengeance among the Por-
to Ricans against the Spaniards, and
there are many cases where the Spanish
planters have been killed and their
houses burned and others warned away.
Almost all the plantations are run by
Spaniards, and some are anxious to leave,
and American gold is persuasive. One
plantation which yielded profit of A.
900 pesos annually ($1O,5OO) and was
valued at sos, 900, was sold by Span
lard, in order to get away, for 100000,
transportation enterprises, and in the
buying and selling of merchandise of cv-
cry kind.
Marry a Straight-Haire Girl.
Someone of the oracles whose mission
is to advise young women how to select