The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1899-08-20
BY GEORGE ARTHUR SMITH,
EDITOR AMERICAN SOLDIER II
MANILA

ED1IOR AMERICAN SOLD1ER In
MANILA.
The financial returns of the Manila
custom house covering the period from
Aug. %, the date of the American
occupation of the custom house, to
Dec. 81, 1895. tells a story OF an i'm
portation race almost as exciting in
the telling as rush for claims on a
newly opened reservation.
The total revenue, in excess of ex-
penses and refunds, amounted to 81
SS6,55S.76. These figures are of Mexi-
can currency or of pesos instead of dol
lars, and can so be considered through
out the report. The duties collected on
imports were 1,553, 473.04, and on ex-
ports 1895, S74.20. OF these amounts
$765.S0 were collected in fines. In other
words, it cost the bewildered Spaniard
that amount to catch the drift of
Uncle Sans way of doing business.
The Spaniards considered our meth
DDS frightfully complicated at the start
but they now admit them simple, once
one gets accustomed to them Four
hundred and fourteen dollars and fifty
cents were collected as translation
fees. 1t costs the unlucky skipper
who has so far neglected his education
as to slight the learning of English
document that comes TO the custom
house yelled in the mysteries of Castel-
lanO. Thus will the language of the
conquerers prevail in time.
There were seventy-seven foreign and
260 coast vessels entered Manila during
this period. Eighty foreign and 25l
coast vessels cleared for ports various
in and beyond the Philippines. These
figures represent a total tonnage of &c.
nd ole
England heads the list OF foreign trad
ers with 6T,907.S9 tons registered, and
Norway second with ships registering
a total of 10, 1892 tons. American ships
come next, followed by Spain, Ger
many, France. Italy and Denmark in
their order. In the coasting trade the
American flag floats proudly above old
Spain herself, which is very good eX-
ample of the fickleness of SPANS sons.
in thus taking up so quickly with the
new love. May it be said, however, of
a few Spanish captains. and with the
honor of Spain staring us in the
face, that they preferred to sell or
leave their ships for others to Hom-
mand, rather than face the odium of
Old Glory at the masthead. The ton
mage of vessels in coast trade flying
the American flag was 54,OS2-91, while
that of poor but once proud Spain
summed up at a paltry 1929 tons,
hardly the size of Gloucester fisher
man. So
Well sail the seas with our added tons,
"a part OF the white Mans Burden.D
With a knife in our teeth for the Moros
(suil more of the white Mans Bur-
den.D
Now let us take look at the i'm
portation figures. They rise and fall
fl-n har
better method for Judging of the en-
terprise of the different countries of
the world than to look at the importa-
ton barometer at Manila for the first
few months after her occupation by
Americans. All my figures are for
the period from Aug. % to Dec 81, 1898.
Scooped On Cigarette Paper.
In a country that probably smokes
as many cigarettes as a good part of
the rest of the world put together, Gig
arctic paper is an item of Importance
as well as of import. There are no pa
per mills in the Philippines. They have
depended upon Spain almost exclusive
~ for their cigarette and print paper.
Wrapping paper is evidently too ex-
pensiye for it is very seldom used. In
August there were 1865 Kilograms "a
kilogram, or kilo, is equal to 2.2046
pounds) arrived from Spain China
was quick to forsee a paper famine
and landed 1895 kilos in this month, but
its owner evidently did not meet with
the success hoped for, as China does
not again add fuel for the flames until
December. when she brought in 262
kilos, probably for Chinese consump-
ton only. In September it seemed as
if the world had seen a fortune in
cigarette paper, for England jumped in
with Ssh kilOs, Germany with 1872
kilos. France with 10, COG kilos and Aus
tria with S,432 kilcs. Where was Uncle
Sam all this time? Well, in this case
at least he was "scooped," for he did
not offer to Manila a particle of cigar
cite paper during the year 1898. and
thus missed the greatest opportunity of
his life in not sending his cigarette
fiends on a chase to his new posses
sions for the necessary plating for the
odorful "coffin-nail." Spain, however,
was not out of it for good. In Novem-
Der she dropped in with 6,415 kilos, and
followed it up with 24,762 kilos in De-
cember She may make a few more
spurts for favor in the paper market,
but it is safe to say that Uncle Sam
will likely look into this question him
self a bit in future.