The times., 1901-04-01
EXPORT FIGURES LACKING.
Neither Porto, Rico Nor Hawaii In
cIuffed I'm the Lists.

The record of expectation of manufac-
lures from the United States in the fiscal
year which ends ninety days hence is not
likely to equal that of the preceding fiscal
year for three quite apparent reasons:
First-The exporters engaged in COM
merce with the Hawaiian Islands are now
refusing 10 furnish To the Bureau of Sta
tistics the statements OF their exports.
as in former years, holding that their
exports are no longer foreign com
merce. and that therefore. the bureau
has no authority to require the usual
statements which the law authorizes with
reference to commerce between the United
States and foreign countries.
Second-The exports TO Porto Rico are
now separately classified and no longer
included In the general statement of for
eign commerce.
Third-The exports to China have tenn
pOrarily fallen off oue-half by reason of
the unsettled conditions in that country
The total exports to the Hawaiian ISL
ands in the fiscal year 1900 were $I3 800 O10
and to Porto Rico more than 81, 100000, a
total of more than SIS. 600 600. The ship
ments TO Porto Rico IN the present fiscal
year show large increase over last year,
and presumably those to Hawaii have
also increased; but as neither of these is
included in the export figures OF our for
eign commerce. it is apparent that more
the S20,000O00 of actual shipments from
our ports in the fiscal year 1901 will not
be included in the general statement Of
exports To foreign countries.
When to this is added the further fact
that the exports to China, which In the
last fiscal year were more than SIS. eco, 900
in value. have been temporarily cut down
one-half. 1t is apparent that the year 5
figures of exports to foreign countries
VIII not furnish fair or just basis for
comparison or for measurement of the
general growth of our export trade.
The total exports for the eight months
ending with February, 1901. show an in
crease of more than So. 100000 over last
year, but those of manufactures alone
show only slight increase. and there
is reason to believe that the recorded
total of manufactures for the full fiscal
year will. for the above stated reasons,
fall somewhat below that of the preced-
ing year.
This is due to the fact that a large
proportion OF our exports 10 Hawaii.
Porto Rico. and China are manufactures,
and that the apparent reduction. for the
reasons above explained. in the Hawaiian
and Porto Rican figures and the real re-
duction in the exports to China by rea-
son of temporary conditions, relate al
most exclusively to the class OF exports
| designated as manufactures.
Another condition which has ten
dency TO reduce the total value of ex-
ports of manufactures is found in the
fact that prices of manufactured articles
in many cases have fallen because of
the reduction in the cost of the raw ma
terial from which they were produced,
and that the expectation of an equal or
even greater quantity supplies a smaller
figure in the statement OF values by
which the export movement is neces-
sa rilY measured.
1t is quite probable. in view of the
facts above outlined, that the record of
exports of domestic manufactures in the
fiscal year 1901 may show an apparent
reduction, though the fact that more
than so, 0,000, 800 worth of actual shipments
from our ports which were formerly
counted as foreign commerce, no longer
appear in these statements will account
for the reduction, which viii thus be
more apparent than real