New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1900-02-05
TRADE WITH PACIFIC COUNTRIES.
A GREATER GAIN LAST YEAR THAN ANY
WHERE ELsE-oPENING FOR FUR
THEIR INCREASE

Washington. Feb (SpeciaD.-American COM
merce with the islands and countries of the Pacific
shows a greater gain in the year 1899 imam That
with any other part, of the world. The total ex-
ports increased $40 OoooOO and exports to Asia and
Oceania alone increased Sl9.00O000. Total i'm
ports Increased 1854 100000 and s4S0Oe00 of this in
crease from Asia and Oceania. Exports to
Asia and Oceania increased 27 per cent while i'm
ports from that part of the world increased 40 per
cent.
OF this increase Of 500 100000 in exports to Asia
and Oceania, ss.0oo.00o went to British Aus
tralasa, 100000 TO the Hawaiian Islands, $ooo,0o
TO China and the remainder distributed TO the
various countries and islands of that part Of the
Western Pacific, while of the imports from Asia
and Oceania s12.0oo000 were from the Dutch East
Indies s11 100000 from japan, $9eo00OO from the
British East Indies s7,oo00O0 from China and $780,
COO from Hawaii.
OF the increase in exports, the large proportion
was in cotton, cotton goods. machinery and other
manufactures of iron and steel. The increase in
American exports to China was largely In manu-
features of cotton, and that to the Hawaiian ISL
ands and Australia, manufactures of all kinds the
large proportion. however being machinery and
general manufactures of iron and steel OF the
increase of s46 900 in imports from the countries
of the Pacific, silk, tin, fbres and sugar were
the important items. From Japan the i'm
portations of silk increased sSOOOoO and there
also a considerable increase in mating; from
the great tin mines Of the Straits Settlements there
an increase of s5,0000 900 worth of pig tin for
in manufacturing tin plates and from British
East Indies there increase in jute and Jute
bagging and other productions of this character;
from China there was an increase of over So.0OO,oO
in raw silk for in manufacturing; from the
Philippines an increase IN hemp and other articles
and from the Hawaiian Islands a small increase
in sugar while the most important and suggestive
increase from the Pacific countries is that of sugar
from the East Indies chiefly the Dutch East Indies
which amounted in the year just ended to Lass AGO.
so pounds against $685. ,794 pounds in 1898 and
53 pounds in 1897, the value of the sugar I'M
ported from the East Indies in 1899 being $50 6S6 469
against SIG O39 642 in 1898 and &c. 999 1874 in 1897
This rapid increase of imports from the Dutch
East Indies suggests field for expectations
10 the present time. The French Consul at Ba-
tavia, Java, in report which has just reached the
Treasury Bureau of Statistics, suggests mat the
Dutch East Indies offer an especially IertlIe held
for those desiring to make sales OF agricultural
machinery and implements, which at present, he
says, are of an extremely primitive character IN
small farming come from Germany and England
and are many particulars unsatisfactory; the
the blade while agricultural machinery, properly
so called including machinery for planting, reap
ing binding and threshing, is practically I'M
known Even sugar plantations have as yet
made little progress in the adoption OF modern ma
The difficulties which have been encountered IN
First the cheapness Of manual labor; second, the
climatic conditions, under which the articles OF IRON
time if exposed the open air and third, the fact
that the white ant destroys nearly all KINDS OF
wood except teak. which is therefore necessarily
used in the construction of machinery for use IN IN
the island The fact, however, that there are IN
Java and Sumatra $50 sugar factories, which supply
one-third Of the sugar imported into the Gtllte9
States and that the total imports Of the Dutch
East indies average s6S 100000. and American eX-
ports to them less than 100000 annually, while
pests valuable and important trade possibilities in
that direction, If properly cultivated.