The river press., 1904-10-12
WEST AND ORIENTAL TRADE
How Irrigation Will Develop the One and Ger
tainIy Secure the Other.
RoOSEvELT'S INSPIRING AMER|CAN|SM
While Creating New Agricultural and Hort-
cultural World at Home, He Would
Establish Commercial Pres
tige in the Orient.
) INSPIRING AMERICANISM

eastern manufacturer got such market
as is not to be found anywhere else out
side Of the Mississippi Valley, and the
prosperity of the eastern manufacturer
has in turn brought prosperity to the
eastern farmer. Uncle Sam has a great
deal Of land and a great deal of water
in the West. That land is arid. and
the water, which would make it pro-
dnctivc, is running to waste. The prop
osition is to irrigate these great noun
tain valleys and plains and build more
homes and make more markets.
The eastern manufacturer will sell
in the West. but the western farmer will
not sell i'll the East, except fruits and
things like that which will not compete
with the eastern farmer. This great
work will take time. 1t will require
many years to wet all that dry land,
but we will begin now and go along
carefully each year until the task is
done. Not many dams or new neighbor-
hoods will be started before the business
men of the East will have their travel
ing men in the West to sell goods. Think
of this great homo market; the whole
world wants to get into the United
States to sell things. but our home mar
ket is for ourselves first, to develop it
to the fullest extent.
Will Equalize Population.
Tllc reclamation of arid America will
to IL great extent balance our onc-sided
development Tho eastern half Of the
United States to-day has Il population
Of over 7O.0OO.OOO. while the western
half contains somewhere in the neigh
borhood Of G.0OO,OOO or less than 10
per cent. Of the whole. The new irriga
ton law is working satisfactorily. The
country was fortunate in finding a bur-
eau OF the government already equipped
to take up the question Of surveys and
construction Immediately. This is one Of
the greatest pieces OF work which has
ever come before this government The
dams, bitches and weirs to be construct
ed will he the greatest in the world.
They will stand not for generations, but
for centuries and contribute to the we'll
being of hundreds Of millions of people.
Arid America will contain by far the
greatest irrigated area or any country
F., jn the world
Vast Oriental Commerce.
On the other hand no person at all con-
ycrsant with current affairs can doubt
the great future Of the Orient The
lands that border upon the Pacific Ocean
contain nearly onc-half the total popu-
lation Of the globe. Because of made
quatc transportation facilities upon the
land, the people arc more dependent than
western nations upon maritime com
mcrce. The Orient! What magic in the
name. The fabulous storchousc Of mys-
terry, wealth, art, religion. When Amer
| ica was undiscovered, England the home
| OF rude savayes, Greece and Rome un-
heard of in the dim, dark ages of mys-
ticisnl, before the DAMN OF history, lived
and tourshed the wonderful Orient the
far East. the islands beyond the sea.
China dclies the world in age, popula-
ton and industry. II all the inhabitants
Of the world were stood up IN one line,
every fourth man would be a Chinaman.
The Pacific Ocean, which has for CEN
tnrics been washing the shores Of our
western boundaries, has said to us:
''ncre lies the East; this is the way to
India But it has spoken into dumb
ears. We heard but we needed not
Others have taken warning that the
great commercial development of the
future lies upon the broad Pacific. and
have inauguratcd new lines Of lranSpor-
tation and enlarged the capacity Of those
already formed Last year Japan,
China, Korea, Hong Kong anu the Rus
sian possessions fronting the Pacific
Ocean did Il business with the outside
world amounting to S6OOOOo. 900; fully
two-thirds of this was imports. During
the year this country bought from them
S7.,otN,OOU worth OF goods. and only
sold 10 them 4 little over $4,000 600.
Peaceful Conquest of China.
The Empire Of China will soon be
opened in all parts 10 the commerce Of
the world, ana it becomes a question of
the share this country may secure in
the face OF existing competition. The
purpose Of establishing Oriental trade is
primarily to secure 4 market for the
manufactured commodities Of the east
crn States and the agricultural products
of the Mississippi Valley, but these alone
will not make ca:soes for the Pacific
steamers.
1t is essential, in order to support
steamship lines. that Il practically uu-
limited supply of bulky freight be avail
able for transportation. Cotton, wheat
and flour in this instance must be relied
upon. The cotton will he furnished by
tho southern States, and will bear the
freight charges to ports of shipment
. but the less valuable brea,lstuffs must b,
! grown tn the slopes of the conticnta
divide and the Pacific in order to com
pete in prir" will, other yrain-growins
countries. The fertile mountain valleys
will produce grain in any desired uuan
,ity if the ground is irrigated \ stua
: ZION is thus presented which makes the
: success OF an Oriental trade. Of any con
: siderable volume. dependent almost sole
I | ~ upon the reclamation of the ari,
= lands.
Will Benefit Farmers Most.
. The American farmer will be tn,
=. chief, tho prominent gamer by the open
~ ing up of this vast section to trade an.
commerce. For there are limitations t,
Oriental agricultural resources. AS tn