The sun., 1900-11-19
WORLD TRADE TO BE OURS'
BRTTISH SUPREMACY CONE AND GER
NAVY OUR ONLY RIVAL.
Thi, Great Prise Put within the Nation . Reaon
BY the vindication at the Polls OF sound
Business Prin cipies A word Of warning
Address,d to American Manufacturer

Address,d To American Manufacturer.
LONDON Nov iO--I doubt II one American
I'm q thousand has any conception OF the Vaiue
of the chief prize put within { nations reacn
a. the result Of tho vind!cauon OF SOUND bus-
ness principle. at the poll- last Tuesday nor
have tho American people any idea how ci1u-
cal ia the Industrial and commercial history
OF the country the first four or hve years OF the
new century are 10 be revolution IN the
foreign trade of the world is ALREADY wei uhoer
vay and ita crisis IL Gloss at hand The aues-
ton is not whether America can wrest II from
Great Britain The conditions are such In
thu, country that England can no longer re-
tain IL. sh. cannot. indeed. much longer hold
her own against foreign competition In her
tnsrkets at home The real struggle now
impending l. between the nited states ana
Germany for the worlds markets, which are
about TO change hands
The reasons why Great Britain Is losing
and must continue TO lose her foreign trade
are absolutely conclusive II Il not neoes-
sary TO enter into thom in detail, for they have
frequently been explained and emphaAzsd
10 this correspondence during the past hve
years Briefly summarized. they are these
Because the British workman Ls unpro-
gressive. unskiful and indoent. and because
labor Is much more expensive In Great Britain
than In any other country The British EN-
ployer and the individual British workman
are alike powerless TO change these condi-
tions | presume the Impression stll eI-
lists widely in America that labor Is more poorly
paid In England than In the United States
That falllcy has deprived American manu-
facturers Of large share Of the worlds trade
for more than twenty years The Inference
that because days wages In England are
10 70 so per cent. less than in the United states
therefore labor costs more IN the latter country.
is defective In logic AZ well as false in IacI
There IL no more deceptive standard by which
70 calculate the cost Of labor than the days
wage r. needs no argument TO make IL clear
that tie workman employed at button making
atsla dav who turns out 200 buttons Is twice
AZ expensive as the man receiving u day
whose outpu, is 80 buttons
The truth Is that the American workman
and the German workman work for their wages
and tho British workman does not. Do not
let IL be inferred that Great Britain is a nation
Of loafcrs BY instinct and choice II Is true that
class distinctions and restrictions. which do
not cys' In America. kill ambition In this coun-
try hut tho root OF the evil Ia a far worse tyran-
ny than that. The policy ~ the workmans ow n
organizations. which restricts output to that
corresponding 10 the capacity OF the most
incompetent and lazy Of their number. is re-
Is almost incredible to what lengths this policy
is cnrred In the case Of automatic machines.
for instance, a British trades union sometimes
requires the assignment of ono man per ma
chine hilc IN America The custom will he one
man 70 ten machines.
Tic folly Of such policy and the inevitable
ruin which It invites would seern 10 be sufi-
cientlv obvious, hut II Is still stouty defended
by trades union r.nnagers who are the real
autocrats ~ tho situation. They argue that
work = thus provided for men who would
otherwise he idle and they are Indifferent 10
the fact tha, idlcrc~s for all concerned will
ha their fate when foreign competition has
had time to make itself felt II is more than
probable that English trade union'sm will
persist I'm it- suicidal restrictions until it Is too
late u save more than II r.'urant Of the coun-
try's foreigu trnde
Such then - the situation whoh Offers tho
most tempting opportunity TO rival peoples
which history has recorded since the American
civil War Then England gathered into her
hands the sources of her present wealth. To-
day. "a the prc" Of Englands folly America
may tax" her own again and more. Germany
also ia straining every nerve for the snne prize
and II IL with her that America must really
reckon
Just here should he spoken strong word Of
warning American manufacturers who want
70 secure English markets should send TO this
country only the best they can produce II
would be worse than folly M this critical Juno
tur" to send 10 England cheap or shoddy goods
English standards ara high. and even n YOU
dec"Iv" q buyer once with an article Of poor
quality u viii 10 impossible To do It again
Fv"-ythipg American suffered IN the English
markets tire" or four years ago because un-
u.uI,u- im.ricuD manufacturers san, bera
an inlr'rs" quantity Of almost worthless bicy-
oI"- 1hnv wrr" sold NJ low prices but they
were dear a. any price There Is no more
rrowi-.ug fold for American com petition than
~" h"'' and -hu" market, llt here again pref
udi"" must /" overcome for thousands ~ so
'al'd Nr"r,'nn boots and shoes have been
seat N"r" VIII h no one IN tho United states
wo1l! 1' ~ Hrv priC" Afpw months ago, aiso
SON" Nn"r'tu uarufaCturor thought II would
he 70 Cl"v,r '.ny" go Irioad ON the English
tls N'.rN of lno'h-ii'A pointed boots and
shu'- v' o.. '.' .lpnlo ~. .ivle Rad eft or liS
h0rd, ou"' 'h.r-. a. Il"-o iriure .ri,an
trade ASA .n.., u,g. turs ,ar he calculated
Tue" D.. o .p. '.i.t g i.ppr'gui'y lor bulldlny
up an e. 'r'r 20, ''."rIs4r trade In Ercland IN
Am"'i'ar r"p6~ ul 'I' %" quality A. reasonable
prl'c- 4 h' 'h.'i. iG tact o." nulv obstacle Is
the British pride. vhrh ha, ar,adv tcc-
aroused II H. ir'"r-'lv ealing especially
IT, a p"oIi" Of HIr' rr'crednr's "a ,hos" ~ TINS
country. 10 nrd that they can bc underso DID in
thrr own markets \, far Is heir purses VIII
allow ih"'u garN m" ir,'iucd To buy only
InGlI-h good, "v"n a. higher prices know
81 a publisher doing an immense business who
delihorgt"i' tci..-"d G." Spv' s?ouOoo 4 wear hv
huvInc his paper from America There are
MANY similar instance, ou smaller scale md
IN" h"y"o'',rE cr foreign goods may attain M.
Proportions Of n "a'IonR! patriotic movement
II il, does. n HuI 10" lut Temporary Tie irey-
or1il" 1.- 90 lar''r AZ! frauc cannot ba sct
ASIDE '"" long, ami prlc'- vii tell ~ tho end
Let A'a"~. .. lr and wiz .,r 'ors"i 'ha ErHrd-
ss' pr'HI'.E.' il~ worlt rg- ",." known
n l. {