Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-12-29
.SEC'Y LONGS SPEECH
Guest of Honor at Boston Commercial
Club Dinner.
TALKS OF THE PRESENT PROSPERITY
incidentally Makes Some Modest
Remarks About the Navy.
TRIBUTE TO EX-GOV. WOLCOTT

John D. Long. Secretary of the Navy,
was the guest Of honor at dinner given
by the Boston Commercial Club last night.
Senator Hoar was expected. but was not
able to leave his duties in this city. Sec
rotary Longs speech was received with
enthusiasm. He said:
Il very much appreciate the courtesy of
the Commercial Club. 1 certainly have &C.
served nothing at its hands. am junior
member, and most of the time of my mem
bership have been unable, on account of
my duties at Washington. to attend it's
meetings. l do not forget, however, the
men who compose 1t, and who represent the
business enterprise, growth and CONNER
ciai inspiration of Boston, and so Of the
universe, of which Boston is the hub. Nor
Is 1t any limited part Of the worlds progress
Which You represent. Commerce is only
another name for civilization. This Is the
season of the year when we celebrate the
landing of the Pilgrims. whom we always
associate with the idea of religious exo-
Gus, whereas, in fact, their venture was
largely commercial one with a view to
oeVel0plng the resources of the new world
and of profting by an exchange of It's
pr oducts with those of the Old. 1t was a
merchant who furnished the funds for the
undertaking and but for whom it is doubt
ful if 1t would have had the start it had.
Ihat the Pilgrims were good business men
Is shown by the fact that in few years
they bought out their promoters and car
ried the enterprise to success their own
footing. They were expansonists reaching
well out from their own borders, and for
century or two later no man crossed ,-.e
ocean oftener than Winslow, their min
lister plentpotentiary who looked after their
interests abroad. 1t is an interesting fact
that nearly 300 years later we, their &c
scendants. not in the little Mayfower. but
in the great ocean steamers of today, are
returning across the sea to plant on the
shores of the oriental isles the institutions
which they planted here. 1t is by the
growth and expansion of commerce that
Japan, that now magnificent empire opened
to the world by the American navy, has
suddenly sprung into the circle of the
worlds great poWers-a marvellous and I'M
limited hive of industry, activity and ma
tiCnal force. The recent unhappy tumut in
China is only the effervescent accompani-
ment of the bursting of the seclusion of
that uncounted people; and its commercial
relation with the world at large, so recent
ly enlarged to us by the admirable admin
istraton of Secretary Hay, will in the
coming century bear fruit in an inter
change of agricultural and manufactured
products such even the imagination can
not now picture 1t Is enough, however
to recognize what the commercial spirit
has done in our own country. 1t has en-
allied the farmer to put not fields but terri
tories under cultivation. and supplied him
with the means to gather his crops and take
them to market. 1t has distributed the
pr oducts of the farm and mine and manu-
factory and brought to all classes that
common use and enjoyment of the fruits OF
labor which is the true wealth Of ma
ton.
Interesting Comparison.
1t is interesting in this closing hour Of
the century to compare the commerce of
the world in 1900, which was something
like $500, 900 90, with its commerce in 1900,
which is something like s2O,OOOO0O,0OO.
In 1900 the commerce of the United States
was $162O0O,OOO: during the last year.
s., 2OO,OO0O0O The commerce Of Boston
alone is far more today than the whole
commerce of the United States in 1909.
Great Britain alone exceeds the United
States in the extent Of its commerce, and
we are rapidly overhauling her The eX-
port of Germany is S3OO,0OOGO less than
ours. and France nearly $5o0.O00,OO0 less.
During the period in which the export
trade Of Great Britain in manufactured
articles has doubled. that Of the United
States has grown e1evenfold.
Free Trade Theory Demolished.
1t has been assumed that our tariff policy.
building up home manufactures and ex-
Guiding foreign competition, would be a
barrier to our own competition for the
worlds purchase of manufactured goods:
but this assumption has not been con-
firmed At first our shipments abroad were
few and experimental, and largely in spe-
cialties, like sewing machines. Later 1t
has been found that even in European
countries American goods find easy compe-
tition with foreign of the same sort The
American shoe has literally stepped into
England and Germany and found there
purchaser who has awakened to It's supe-
riorty and prefers it. Instead Of now look
ing to Mountaineering countries for our
customers we find them in the Older indus
trial nations of Europe. l learn from the
bureau of foreign commerce in the State
npn o~tY ant
labor-SaVing implements, furniture, boots
and shoes. railroad. bridge and other
building supplies hardware and great va
riety of other classes of iron and steel the
American is In the lead, and that one can
hardly pick up foreign newspaper with
out finding in it some reference to new
encroachment by American ingenuity ana
enterprise upon the more conservative &C
Invites Of the old world. With the table
of the German supplied from America, Win
the pretty woman of France dressed IN
American silk. with the British cutler OF
Sheffield buying an American knife and
the British ironworker using American ma
chnery we may next expect that we snail
soon be actually carrying American coal to
Newcastle.
Secretary Hay Praised.
It is not for me to speak for other de-
partments than my own, but cannot for
bear suggesting at this time how much we
are Indebted to the work of State De-
partment, the present head of which, Mr..
Hay, has, 1 believe, earned for himself
place in the gratitude he has already
place in the honor, Of the American people.
Usually the individual leads and the gov
eminent follows. In this case. however,
while our manufactures have been absorbed
in production, the consular officers Of the
State Department stationed abroad have by
their activity in reporting trade conditions
aided largely in turning our surplus pro-
ducts into foreign channels In this con-
nection it Is fair to say, good word for our
consular service. 1t has it's defects, and it
is the fashion. not unwarranted, to urge
their reform. And yet its officials. without
special previous training or experience. and
chosen from the general body of the public
have been marvelously quick and efficient
in pointing out not only the opportunities
but the hindrances to an increased COM
merce and a ding in the establishment of
trade, furnishing not only general ipforma-
ton but minute details, and accomplishing
so much that foreign nations, especially
Great Britain and Germany, awaking to our
outstripping them, have recently taken
steps to give a more practical character to
their consular reports and to insure their
speedier publication. At the very outset of
oi,<rn he