Arizona republican., 1905-03-06
TROPICAL TRADE
Growing Demand for Equa-
 tOriaI Products
The Contribution of the Insular POs- sessions of the United States to the General Volume.


 ducts are becoming each year a mere l important factor in the fmportations of the United States. and reached in 1904 the highest total in the record of our foreign commerce. A statement just prepared by the department of com merce and labor, through it's bureau Of statistics, shows that the total value of tropical products brought into the United States during the. calendar year 1904, including the receipts from Hawaii and Porto Rico, aggregating S465, 100000, exceeding by 3O.00O, GOO the highest record of any preceding year.
 The growth in tropical mportations has been very rapid, far exceeding that shown by the general importations In 1870 the total imports of tropical and subtropical products amounted to S14O, ,00O.OOO; in 1880, S242. eco. 900: in 1890, $29S. .0OO, ,OOO; in 1900 $335. .000. 900. and in 1904, S465OO0 OO0 Meantime the general imports into the country in creased at a much slower rate, being in 1870. S461. .O0O,O 900; in 1880, $597 0OO,- = coo; in 1890, SS23. .OCO. 900; in 1900. sS29,- 000,000. and in 1904, s1.036, ,0G0. 900, cx- elusive of S36. 1000. 900 worth of products shipped from Hawaii and Porto Rico In 1870 tropical products formed 30 per cent of the total imports of the United States; in 1904, they formed 43 per cent. Thus it will be seen that the general imports of the United States have increased during the last quarter century by S575, 100000, or 125 per cent while the imports of tropical pro- ducts have increased during the same time by $325.OO0.0O0 or 232 per cent. In other words, of the total increase Of S515,000,000 in the general imports of the United States since 1S7O near two-thirds should be credited to inn portatiols of tropical products.
 Even these figures do not show the real increase. because of the great re- ductiOn in prices of many of the arti- cles forming this huge total. The val ue of the sugar of tropical production brought into the country in the past year, for instance. was s114.O00.OO0, as against $7O,00O, 900 in 1870; but the number of pounds brought in from the tropics last year was more than four times as much as in 1870. The total number of pounds of tropical sugar brought into the country last year was nearly 5.OOO.OO0, GOO, including that from Hawaii and Porto Rico, while the number of pounds imported from the tropics in 1870 was less than 1,25O,- 900. 900.
 The value of tl4a coffee brought in last year was sSS,OOO, GOO, as against S24,O00,000 in 1870. yet the quantity last year was 1,117,00O,OOO pounds, as against 235.OO0,OOO pounds in 1870.
 The 50O,00O pounds of silk brought in in 1870 was valued at $3.O00.O0O. while the 16,5OO,O0O pounds brought in last year were valued at about S55, ,000 900.
 4 Q in in 1870 was valued at S1.OO0,O0O, while over three times that quantity brought in last year was valued at less than s25O0. 900.
 The 47,00O.OOO pounds of tea brought in in 1870 was valued at nearly S14,- 100000, while the 107.OOO,OOO pounds brought in last year was valued at s17, ,OOO, 900.
 The average cost per pound of the sugar brought into the country in 1870 was about 5 cents, while the average cost last year, including that brought from Hawaii and Porto Rico was about 1-2 cents per pound. Tn India rubber, however conditions are revers- ed. the average cost per pound of the 10,000.000 pounds brought in in 1870 being about 36 cents per pound, while that of the 62,O0O,0 1000 pounds brought in last year was over 70 cents per pound
 The per capita consumption of trop- ical products by the people of the United States has also increased since 1870, having been in that year but $3.63, while in 1904 it was $5.69, and this, too, despite the great fall in prices meantime, as above noted. Based up on the high prices prevailing in 1870, the importations of tropical products last year would represent a total val uation of nearly or quite 1000, ,0OO, ,G00
 The tropical islands of the United States contributed nearly $50,O00, ,0O0 worth of the $465,O00,O 900 value of trop- ical products brought into the country last year. over $25,OO0.0O0 of this was from Hawaii. nearly SIS. ,O00 worth from Porto Rico, and more than S1O,- GOO. 900 worth from the Philippines. In 1896 they contributed $19, ,0OO, 900 worth to the tropical requirements of the country.
 Sillicus-Why do they call this place a reformatory?
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