The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1899-01-18

| Congress made with France a commercial
- treaty offensive and defensive pledging amity
and comfy and promising certain exclusive trade
rights and military alliance with the of ports
and prize courts for France in maritime warfare.
That treaty put flag alongside that of the Bour-
bons 1t brought to us the French allies, who re-
NAMED fighting by side down to the final
der at Yorktown -Four years thereafter organized
our government under the present constitution and
elected Washington President. We were not long in
discovering that trade did not follow the flag nor the
treaty. The people of England, from whom we had
just separated ourselves proved to be best
TONER'S and in violation OF solemn treaty
with France, trade OVERRIDE all diplomacy and re-
NAMED in its natural channel This continued in spite
OF our second war with Great Britain. 1t demon
strated that neither prejudice friendship affected
trade in the least 1t followed its natural cleavage
Gratitude made no impression upon it, and it awas
equally insusceptibe TO passion and revenge
SO it has continued to this day Abuse of Great
Britain has affected politics and been controlling
factor in electing more than President. The
surest sesame to the sympathy and applause of an
American audience has always been imprisoned
appeal against Great Britain Political campaigns
have turned the charge that British gold" at
tempted to influence them. Yet trade has gone on
with Great Britain entirely unnuenced by these fer
ments in politics and these appeals to national
hatred.
1t is somewhat strange that with this example con-
stantly before there should be heard the foolish
talk about trade following the flag!
We are asked to expend hundreds of millions Of
dollars in mailing the flag" to various parts of the
world that trade may follow it We are told that an
annual expenditure of hundred and fifty millions
an enlarged army and navy nail the flag and keep
it nailed certain tropical islands is necessary
nail trade where the flag is nailed.
Up to the close of the fiscal year ending June &c.
1898, had not nailed the flag anywhere, and had
not turned backs the humanitarian professions
made when declared against Spain. Great
Britain, the other hand had at that date been en-
gagged for two centuries in mailing her flag in nu-
crous islands, continents and archipelagoes all over
the world She had it that moment nailed to a
thousand battleships and countless feet of mer-
chantmen. If trade refuse to follow anything but
flag Great Britain should have had sevenenths of the
worlds commerce. But Mr. Richie president of the
British Board of Trade says that while the imports
of Great Britain had increased to $ooooo over her
exports the latter had declined. Since 1901 the ex
ports of France had increased 2a per cent, with her
flag nailed to very few places The exports of Ger
many, Holland and Belgium had grown I2H per cent,
with hag-nailing at all, and very few old jobs
of that kind The exports of the United States had at
the same time increased IS per cent, while those of
Great Britain had decreased per cent. In our ex-
port relations to Great Britain for that period had
therefore gained on her 20 per cent, had overtaken
and passed her, and had seen her countermarch and
increase the distance between All this done
without the sacrifice of life to the ambition to nail
the flag anywhere No fever-smitten man had closed
his eyes for the last time under vertical sun to ex
tend the trade of his country by lifting the flag in
strange regions No penny of extra taxation had been
1aho Ill
path, at its normal pace, blind to all flags and thrilled
by standard, saluting battle banner, asking
battleshps to convoy it and army to protect it,
had gone and left Great Britain far in the rear
that she will not overtake US unless we lose our
senses and go into flag mailing at the expense Of
our legitimate business
| There is about much connection between the flag
and trade as there is between chewing gum and the
! procession of the equinoxes