New-York tribune., 1902-08-16
FEATURE OF FOREIGN COMMERCE.
URERS' MATERIALS ABOVE OTHER
PRODUCTS.

Washington. Aug. 10 (specia)-The most remark
able feature of the foreign commerce OF the United
States for the fiscal Just ended is the growth
in the importation OF manufacturers materials
and the increasing share which such materials form
in total imports. Twenty years ago they barely
made up one-third of our imports. but they nave
steadily advanced until they constitute very
nearly one-haIf OF the total. At the same time
other imports show practically no increase A
table showing the importations by great classes
in each year from 1880 TO 1852, is printed III the
annual report of the chief of the Treasury Bureau
OF Statistics and affords opportunity 10 study
the growth in imports Of manufacturers materials
and the growing share they form in the tota! i'm
ports. In this table the imports are distributed IN
five great groups. namely, articles oi 1000 ma
animals articles in crude condition when enter
into various processes OF domestic industry
articles wholly partly manufactured Tor use as
materials in the manufactures and mechanic arts
articles manufactured ready for consumption ana
articles OF voluntary use. IuNuries, etc
Combining the TWO classes OF articles for use Il
neutrality-suspicious. in q crude condition and
those wholly or partly manufactured for use as
materials in the manufactures and mechanic arts
it found that the total value OF importatlos Tor
in manufacturing. which amounted IL leHl TO
S2I7571.55l, We're in 1872 SilSI766sl or pFactlcaly
double those u They formed, IN 1851. @oi1 per
Of the total imports. and in 1872 4e56 per cent
Of the total imports. This phenomenal growth De
comes more striking when II Is compared win
the growth Importation OF all otheF aFtcIeS
ha1 manufacturing i ne lst'ie
in the report OF chief Of the Bureau OF Statls-
tics which sets forth the imports by years OF the
great groups above referred TO, shows tndi the
total value of imports other than manufacturers
materials amounted in 1881 TO S43S,o4144S' and IN
1902 TO S4S455O 390 and formed in 1851 o6O6 per cent
Of the total imports and n 1872 but 55oi per cent
OF the total imports. Thus. while importatlons Of
manufacturers materials have practically doubled
from 1881 to 1907. importations OF articles other
than manufacturers materials have increased but
about z per cent
Comparing conditions in 1902 with those OF 1882,
there is an increase OF about % per cent IN manu-
facrureres' materials and actual decrease OF
about 10 per IN other imports In 1882 the
ir1portations OF manufacturers materials were
S27S sIg 9e6 against s4ls7.66SI 1902 and the i'm
rorrs OF articles other than manufacturer ma
terials were IN 1892 %525 237s and in 1902 $4S4oIO-
ssD These figures especially interesting. IN
view Of the that the total imports OF is@ were
larger than any year in the history OF our Ior
eign commerce
Even these figures however. DO not indicate in
ali cases at least the actual growth in nanufact-
urers aterials because of the fact that tAey az
b 6 f1i qat me vane figures OF ls2 wher
compared with those of earlier periods 40 hg tuils
port Of the Chief Of the Bureau Of Statistics gives
in conjunction with the taDe ntneT5o ipe,na
articles imported II shows. for eXaInPle ina i
| three and one-haIf times much in 1850. thf
quantity than five times as nucni en-; Inc 90 GO
tai lamentations OF uumanuIactured SIX IN Lss' L
mounted to 562 246 pounds valued at fl2024 6ss
hSi .bet ~ 1872 was Il ga S26 pounds valued a
has increased from less than Il e1Co pounds 5. M II
in 1850 to 3o572 tons in 1902 un from 81 go %
POUNDS ,op 10 51 SS pounds TO us 900 900 pounds.
| Tba ,ahIe which follows shows the importation
Of peTtods from ISL to date
! the percentage which these two groups formed q
| the total imports;
AND IMPORTS OTHER THAN NAM MANCkA.o,TOH- o n