Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1899-11-10
NEW FIELDS FOR TRADE.
Queensland Extends an Invita-.
ton to the United States.
sUREsT WAY TO EXTEND TRADE.
Openings In Australia For Mercan-
tile Relations One Large Ameri-
can COntrsct-State Loans to Farm
ers and Woman Suffrage Discussed
at the Commercial Congress-.


at the Commercial Congress.
Director W. 2. Wilson opened the
other days session of the international
commercial congress at Philadelphia
The first speaker was Sir Horace To-
ger. general agent for Queensland in
London. says the New York Sun. He
said that although Queensland has not
vet entered on its fortieth year of sep
arate existence and has a population
Of only 100000 its trade already
reaches $4,000 a year. The whole
of this trade is with England.
But Queensland" he said, has al
Ways shown a practicable apprecia-
zion of American worth and methods
aud would always have gladly welcom-
ed closer trade relations with the Unit
ed States.
- sent a special envoy to the Unit
ed States with view 10 the expansion
CT trade, and only this year contracts
have been placed by myself with an
American dredging engineer for dredg
ing to cost a quarter of million ster-
ling. l have also placed on my list of
London traders for government sup
plies the names of several American
firms which expressed a desire to sup
ply machinery and iron works to the
Queensland government, and before
leave l hope to remove the difficulties
concerning local objections which
have been the principal barrier to sue
cessful business negotiations. But l
regret to say that from n country
which is almost exclusively a producer
of raw products often purchased by
the States from other nations, the
share Queensland received of these
purcha SEES was last year just $3.50.
II have the opinion that the surest
way for the United States to extend
it's foreign trade with Queensland is
to secure an entrance on the ground
floor of her industries by expanding
part of the surplus wealth and scien-
tific energy of its people in the de-
velopment of Queensland's many re-
sources, and in this direction judicious
enterprise is likely to meet with 4 rich
reward"
A paper on the mining interests of
Queensland was read by William
Grant Clark He said there We're 1 300
miles of territory taken up with tin
and gold mines. Nearly all the labor
in the mines is done by white men. al
though the temperature in many places
is 100 degrees in the shade.
DR.. J. \. Cockburn, delegate from
South Australia. said that South Aus
tralia had territory of 100000 square
miles and n population of 364,0OO. He
said: The government of South Aus
tralia, through the agricultural depart
ment. has a system of forwarding
small conSignments of the farmers to
the markets of the world and of max
ing advances of GO per cent upon the
value of such shipments to the pro-
Queer. This paternal system was at
first objected to as an interference
with private enterprise. but the success
of the scheme has closed the mouths of
the critics. and the state has advanced
in another direction in the assistance
of the farmer by the establishment of
n state bank. which makes loans of
money TO small farmers and thus pre-
vents much Of the evils of usury.
The system of government is such
that the people vote directly upon all
public questions, and women also have
the franchise. 1t has been extended
To them in it's fullest extent. and no
one in South Australia would suggest
n return to the old system.
The husband and wife get along |
very well together with it. They usual |
" vote together, and men are some |
times persuaded, lightly and gently, of |
course, but none the less persuaded, by |
the women TO vote properly"