Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-01-23
PORTO RICANS CALL
A Delegation Waits Upon the Presi
dent Today.
STATEMENT OF FACTS PRESENTED
Free Trade Necessary to Overcome
the Depression.
a LOAN is ASKED FOR

| George l. Finlay. Manuel Fernandez Jun
| COS and Henry Luce, the delegates to this
| country from the chamber of commerce
| of Porto Rico, called on President Mckin-
| ley this morning They were accompanied
| by DR.. J. j. Henna. a prominent Porto
| Rican. who lives in New York The three
delegates representing the agricultural in
| terests of the island-Lucas Amadeo. En-
rique Gonzales and NJ. Solomon-called on
| the President few days ago.
| Both delegations working to the same
end, relief for the commercial and agri-
cultural interests of the island The cham
ber of commerce delegation repeated to the
President this morning the same facts sub
mftted to the Senate committee on Porto
Rico yesterday Mr.. FinIay, the head of
the committee, is a British subject who
has lived in Porto Rico for years. He is
"a banker and planter.
Presentation of Facts.
The committee made the following pre-
sentation of facts to the Senate committee
and to the President:
1T will soon be two Years since Porto
Rico lost its markets with Spain and Cuba.
with which it had free trade relations and
which consumed and purchased coffee,
sugar and tobacco to the amount of $10,-
oo,0O0 annually: that is s5,500.0OO for
Spain and So 3J0O,000 for Cuba. This enor-
nous loss has not yet been compensated,
and has brought about a tremendous crisis
in all the producing centers Of the island.
Merchants have heretofore been COM
PEELED to limit their operations; banks have
suspended making advances; agricultural
properties heavily mortgased; and in
many ways the work has been suspcnded;
lahorers are out of employment. whole
ia miles re in misery, and hunger threat
ems everywhere; the poor farm laborers be
ing in such state of destitution as they
have never been before in the history of
the island
THE United States government with a
zeal and interest worthy of all praise is
sending rations and supplies to relieve the
poor; but this IS insufficient. a more heroic
remedy becomes imperative. and this can
only be found III justly applying, and with
all urgency, free trade with the United
States, thus giving the country the benefits
OF the interchange of commerce with the
North American republic of which Porto
Rico is an integral part This reform,
Which We are glad to see that the admins
hation favors aid considers just and neces-
sary, and which should be granted as a
constitutional right cannot and must not
be delayed unlesss the United States wish
to shoulder the responsibility of the serious
grave and disastrous consequences which
shall arise therefrom.
Free Trade Wanted.
The sugar crop is now commencing and
will be shortly followed by that of tobacco;
and these crops Will be very profitable to
the island if a free market be opened for
them at once The time for renewing our
dry goods stock is close at hand, and 1t
must be taken into consideration that if
the progressive improvements in American
manufactures are unknown in Porto Rico
it is only due to the fact of its prohibitive
tariff Now iS
that cheap and substantial food from the
United States should enter in abundance in
the island.
There is not the least doubt that free
trade would bring an increase in the value
OF agricultural properties, and therefore
simplify the present strained and obnoxious
question Of mort cages, and thus invite the
hlluN OF capital for profitable investment.
Inc chamber of commerce of Porto Rico
suggests that the PRONUNCIATION of free
trade be followed by the unilication of the
circulating monetary system, in such con-
dlton as not to injure the national treas
ury. use the Obligations contracted on basis
OF the present standard, more so as the is
land has already sustained losses at differ
ent times, when a new monetary system
was nt!oduced, to the extent of an aggre-
gate reduction of about 40 per cent on its
previous capital.
4 Loan Should BE Authorized
I'VE also consider of the utmost import
fortunes that have befalen Porto Rico and
pending the benefits expected from the free
commercial relations solicited the island
should be authorized to contract a loan
The amount of this loan would be applied
toward relieving the almost helpless agri-
culturists who were the most severely pun
ished by the disastrous hurricane, and to-
ward repairing the destroyed roads, con-
structlng new ones and placing the island
in generally satisfactory and sanitary
condition.
The benefits which by the removal of
duties will be obtained by the sugar cane
and tobacco growers have already been
pointed out, but so far as our coffee plant
ers are concerned they will not draw any
advantage while the goodness of our coffee
remains unknown to the American people,
and we would therefore beg the govern
ment and Congress not only to maintain
the present reduced tariff in the Island of
Cuba on Porto Rico coffee imported there,
but TO allow the Porto Rico production to
enjoy the benefits which in the future
might come through the commercial treat
les between this country and other ma
tons.'