The record-union., 1898-08-25
BUSINESS RIVALRY.
A New Era Between United States
and Foreign Powers.

NEW YORK, Aug. PA Tribune"
Washington special says:
The new age just beginning, the age
of commercial rivalry between the
United States and the three or four
greatest nations of Europe, calls for
different kind Of activity and knowl-
edge from that which has characterized
the one gone out and its predecessor III
a remarkably able paper, out of the
ordinary nature of Consular reports,
submitted to the State Department.
Consul General Frank H Maron at
Frankfort Germany, writes of the
Quest for Export Markets and shows
the development of an exact, specialized
science of export. The individual ex-
porter and the association of exporters
are reinforced by expert government
commissions, elabOrately equipped and
maintained. The efforts of France and
Germany in this direction are held up
for the emulation of American manu-
facturers and exporters, and they are
warned that they cannot too soon direct
their attention to the methods of these
European countries.
The German Export Commission
which went out in February, 1896 to
study the Chinese, Corean and japanese
markets, returned after year, bringing
vast collection of the ordinary tex
tile and ether goods used by the people
in those countries. With prudence these
samples were shown only to those
specially interested, admitted by card,
and a like discretion characterized the
reports made by the commission. In
the same manner the French CONNER
cial Commission sent out by the Cham
bers of Commerce Of Marseilles, Rou-
blk, Lilli, Bordeaux and Lyons spent
nearly two years in investigating and
then presented its collections and re-
ports to the Chambers of Commerce di-
rectly interested. None of these tech
nical reports have been published and
only general conclusions are known.
Some Of these were given few months
ago, coming from the American Con-
suls in France.
Consul General Mason says that in
all the specialized work of these COM
missions there is broad recognition of
the fact that in American trade it is
the buyer and not the seller who de-
termines the kind of article wanted and
the manner of packing and labelling. He
makes one important statement which
American will do We'll to heed, namely,
that the Germans are perhaps the
ablest masters of this theory of export
trade and that the English have lost
much for want of it. Circulars and cat
with the French, German or English
merchant, who is there on the spot with
his goods. duty paid, and fluent sales
men to show and explain.
a ri
cialized courses of study in German
commercial schools, and, to some ex-
tent in those of England and Belgium,
with a view to imparting knowledge of
the export trade and he insists earnestly
at some length upon the need of the
period in this country of a class of
trained young men with good manners, |
practical command of the French Ger
man and Spanish languages, one or al, |
combined with intellectual knowledge |
Of a certain class OF manufactured |
goods and the commercial methods, !
currencies, weights, etc, of foreign |
countries. AS he says, it is not the |
machine, the gun alone, but the man |
behind it that wins the battles of to.
day on sea or land in the conflict of war
or the busy rivalries of peace. The |
merchant, he continues, with great |
force, with the present and coming gen.
Grafton must be, like the diplomatic |
the Consular or executive officer, a |
broader, more highly trained out and |
better educated man than his father |
or his grandfather had need to be.
He concludes that, as no people ara
gifted with quicker apprehension or
more ready and unerring grasp of op-
portunites than those of the United |
States. they will master the science OF |
international commerce as they have |
those of cheap transportation and eff
fective productions. He regards it as
certain that the closing years of the
century are opening for the republic a |
new and momentous period of activity |