Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-01-11
UNCLE SAINTS COMMERCE.
Some Interesting Statistics of Our
Commerce With Other Nations

At the annual banquet of the Rochester
chamber of commerce at Rochester, n. Y,
few evenings, ago. Mr.. @. p Austin chief
of the bureau of statistics, delivered an in
teresting address pregnant with facts and
figures pertaining to. the growth of our
internal and foreign commerce 1t was an
able exposition, showing the work of this
latest addition to Uncle Sans departments
Among other things, Mr. Austin said
THE United States has been none too
soon in the organization of a department of
commerce and labor. The great Importance
of international trade has attracted atten-
ton in all parts of the world, and tie strug-
gle for representation in the worlds mar
kets has become more and more intense
with each year. Already many of the lead
ing nations of the world have organized
departments of commerce. with cabinet
ministers to. direct the work and TO make
and cause to be made such studies and
Investigations as may prove helpful to the
producing. manufacturing and commercial
interests of their Respective countries. No
less than twenty countries and colonies or
the world now have departments which.
under one title or another, devote their
attention to commerce.. and among these
are nearly all the great commercial ceun-
tries of Europe. and Of, the commercial
world The international. commerce OF the
world, so far as we can measure it, amount
ed in the year 1909 to about 10000 CCOCOo.
That is the total of imports and exports,
combined. OF all countries and colonies OF
sufficient Importance to maintain any sort
Of a record of their commerce. A third of
a century ago. in the year 1870. the inter-
national commerce of the world was ST.
o0QC00.oQ0. but the development and use OF
steam and steel and electricity in transpor-
tation and commerce, by land and sea.
during the wonderful period in which this
generation has lived. has brought it to S22.-
100000, 600 in the year 1908.
ITO determine what the internal COM
merce of country is is much more difficult
than to measure its foreign commerce. Our
best mode of measuring the internal COM
merce Is to take the value of the various
great products at the farm and mine and
forest and factory, as stated by the decen-
NAL census. and after allowing proper
addition for the cost of transportation to
the first dealer who handles them accept
this general total the value of the in
ternal commerce of that year. allowing for
only single transaction in each article.
THE internal commerce of the United
States was in 1870 5000 10000 and in
1900 it was $20G0O.0c0Oo0. With this def
mite basis of $20C0,OoO.0O0 in 1909. and
knowing what rapid development has oc-
CURED in all lines during that period. We
may safely and conservatiyey put the in
ternal commerce of the year 1903 at 81, COO
100000, a sum which actually equaled the
entire international commerce Of the world
in that year.
1.-The three great nations Of the world
with which 1t is necessary to compare our
rate of progress are England. France ana
with the United States, supply one-half the
total international commerce of the world.
Taking still the year 1870 as starting
point and comparing conditions In the four
countries in 1870 with the latest available
data, it may be said that the exports of
France have increased $271oC0 go. those of
the United Kingdom SAB .o0'.eoo those of
Germany 1907 .00000 and those of the United
States 81 OPS 100000. the increase Of the
United States being equal to that of Ger
many and the United Kingdom combined
and nearly equal to all of the three countries
under consideration. Comparing the growth
by percentages of increase. 1t may be said
that the United Kingdom shows gain or
As per cent France 50 per cent. Germany
ITO per cent and the United States 200 per
cent. In 1870 the United States stood at the
bottom of the list. her exports being less
than those of any Of the three nations
named. In 1903 she stands at the head OF
the list, her exports being greater than
those of any other of the countries under
consideration. These figures 1t Is proper
to say, relate to exports of domestic mer-
chandise only, and do not include the res
expectation of foreign colonial merchan-
disc which forms considerable snare OF
the total exports of the European countries
in question, especially the United Kingdom.
I'VE produce three-fourths of The worlds
cotton and corn. which makes 1t improbable
that rivals are likely to trouble us in either
of these directions. unless w;lifut fmita-
ton of production or excessive prices
through speculation forces other countries
into development of new Industries OF this
character. AS to meats. there have been
for the past twenty years continuous re-
shut out of this country or that. but our
expectation of meats and live animals for |
food instead OF decreasing In that time,
have practically doubled IN value value In
about the exclusion Of our products. but
our expectation OF manufactures in 1868
was nearly three times az great IN value as