The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1903-11-06
CITY NEWS.
A NOTABLE DINNER.
The Northwestern Miller Entertains
in Honor Of Kingsland Smiths
Return.
James J. Hill Talks Inspiringly Of
the Possibilities in Oriental
Trade.

Milling men and others in the grain
and flour trade from far and near, to-
gether with many of those prominent
ly interested in allied lines of COM
mercial endeavor. gathered at the
Minneapolis club as guests of the
Northwestern Miller last night and
during the course of the Miller's an
nual banquet listened to James J.
Hill. Kingsland Smith and other
speakers.
Mr.. Smith was especially the guest
of the evening because he has just
completed a trip around the world as
the correspondent of the Northwest
ern Miller and is about to return to
London, where he acts as that jour
nails representative. To Mr.. Smith
was given the honor of the first after
dinner speech, in which he paid high
tribute to the work being done in the
orient by James J. Hill in develop
ing trade Aetween the United States
and Asia. The speaker had person.
ally seen this trade being developed
and believed that Mr.. Hill was de-
serving of the greatest praise for the
things he was accomplishing.
James j. Hill Speaks.
Our Trade with Asia" was natural
ly the topic on which James J. Hill
was requested to speak. The address
of the great master Of transportation
showed how infinitely he had studied
all the factors in the situation. When
he had need Of them to Illustrate a
point, the most elaborate statistics
were quoted in impromptu fashion,
and the speakers grasp of the worlds
problem of transportation was shown
to a remarkable degree.
He, prefaced his remarks on oriental
trade by going back to the conditions
which prevailed in 1898 when the
Great Northern first began running
thru trains to the coast over it's own
rails. About the only trade on the
Puget sound at that time was in town
lots, but the lumber industry soon be-
gan to develop It was the necessity
for getting a haul both ways that i'm
PEELED Mr.. Hill to look carefully into
the possibilities of oriental trade. He
personally talked with well-informed
Chinese merchants in this country and
sent trained statisticians into the ORR
ent to make careful observations. AS
result he was convinced that the
Chinaman was probably the best COM
mercial business man in the world and
that there existed in the orient mar
ket for the necessities of life. The
Chinese were a nation who did bust
ness on remarkably small margins and
who had reduced living on very small
wages to a science. At the same time,
the Chinaman spent a larger proper
ton of his wakes for food than was
lne case with the average wage Garner
of other nationalities.
These were tn erasons which
prompted him to order his two %, 900
ton freighters, the first Of which will
go into commission for the Pacific
trade next February. Other nations
were already in the orient market and
were Jealous Of the encroachments of
others. They were USING ships of
from 5000 to $4,000 tonnage. lie de-
|term1ned to introduce America gas !a a
factor in this trade by staggering COM
petition with the magnitude of his
equipment. His new Pacific freighters
would carry five cargoes for what it
would ordinarily cost the average
freighter to carry two: This was Off
| set in measure by the most unfriend-
| ~ and discouraging laws of the United
States governing shipping, and he did
not think that economy of operation
could wholly offset the handicap i'm
posed by these laws, altho he was dis
posed to make trial.