The Oskaloosa herald. (Oskaloosa, Mahaska County, Iowa) 1885-1919, 1901-07-18
SWALM'S LECTURE.
A Large Audience Hears a Spleen
did Talk.


of the Woman's Club of the city, up
on the subject "Our Southern Neigh
bors." The proceeds of the lecture
were for the benefit of the hospital
fund. ......
The audience was large one and
appreciative. The auditorium of the
church was completely filed and
many chairs in the gallery were &C.
cupied, The audience was thorough
ly representative. Mr.. swain was
presented by Mrs. Richard Burke.
He introduced his subject with few
remarks appropriate to the time and
the occasion and Immediately secured
the undivided attention of the audi
ence and was followed closely in all
that he.said, The lecture was large
ly descriptive of the land and the
people of the South American States.
The speaker told facts regarding the
trade of the United States with the
southlands and entered into numer-
Gus details of commercial relations
He then told of the countries, the
cities and the people of the South
American continent. His descriptions
were graphic pictures that will linger
long with all who had the pleasure of
hearing him. The talk was of deep
est interest from first to last as it was
instructive.
Mr.. Swain said in part:
THE imports from the South
American countries to the United
States in 1898 amounted to S1O2, OOO,-
900; reached SIP, 600, 900 in 1895, and
declined to only SS6, ZOO, 900 in 1899,
but rose again 10 S93, 000, 900 in 1900.
The changes, risings and coverings
were caused by the changes of tariffs
on hides and wool from free to duty.
The exports from the United
States to the South American count
rise in the last ten months have a.
will probably be S45 ,000,0 for this
lars year than they have ever been
before. In 1900 they amounted to
S38, 945, 900. During the period cover
ed by the last decade the exports
from this country to South America
amounted to ten per cent of the total
exports entering South America from
all over the world; but the imports
from the South American countries
to the United States reached almost
twenty per cent"
These figures give an idea of the
commercial Importance of the close
relationship between the United
States and South America. Speaking
on "Our South American Neighbours"
Al Swain said in part:
"Sharper than any contest waged
between rapid firing guns, belching
waged today for commercial supre-
macy in the world This struggle for
commerce may be base and material,
but it is the handspring of human
enterprise. More than once has COM
merce been the precursor of man; it
is the missionary of the missionaries,
the st. John in the wilderness. To
no nation comes this call to the COM
mercial contest more loudly than to
our own. Our dominancy in the
South American waters and ports is
of the utmost Importance.
81 beg to assure my hearers now
that the South Americans are people
decidedly we'll worth knowing-per-
sonally, socially, commercially; and,
in fact, in every way. l am conf
dent that if more people could know
them better they would be far more
anxious to establish closer relations
that would be at once profitable and
satisfactory.
"These far distant lands, all sun
kissed far beyond the ordinary com
prehension or appreciation should be
full of interest to us, but have here
tofore received common and general
neglect from our hands. Resting
under the protection of the Monroe
doctrine they were safe from the
worlds land grabbing. In 1910 when
they separated from Spain, as the
result OF bloody revolution, under
the leadership of men worthy to be
classed with our own Washington,
compatriots tired of the emptiness
and tawdriness of the empty forms Of
monarchy, weighted down by oppress-
ion and tyranny; these Washingtons
of their land, Bolivar and San Mar
tin, fought the battles which freed
their beloved countries, and when
they we're won returned, as did
Washington, to the peace of their
freed homes.
"From then on the way had been
hard, rugged, full of storm and inter
necine strife, but always a way of up
lift and of progress, until today the
South American capitals are as
luscious and as full of the comforts
as any of those of Europe, and the
most clearly models of sanitary
science to be found in all the world.
1--WE must rid ourselves of some
wrong notions in regard to these
South American people. Complacent-
~ resting under the INFESTED and
unc hallenged Monroe doctrine.
what have we, as a nation, ever
done for the South American
nations? They being borrowers, did
we ever loan money to them? No,
we lett that to brighter and wiser
minds of Europe, apparently quicker
to grasp the great opportunities than
ourselves. There being 0,000 miles
of railroad, did we ever build any of
it or bond it? No; again Europe step
ped in and took the prize. AS mat
ter of fact the railroad concessions
granted to Americans were allowed
to die or fell to men of greater wis
dom and courage who carried the
work on to fruition, not to ourselves.
Not a single American dollar has
gone into bank, gas or water works
or any other public and municipal
improvement in all that great expanse
of territory, all was left to the men
of Europe.
"Nor, even for short time, we're
there any steamship lines from these