Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-09-29
@rn1ERcEAL MgcEUM

the mercury tube-that green electric fans
which battles human flesh in CHASTITY pal
lor-a light which We now see In use at
amusement resorts, for making photo
graphic portraits at night. The man had
his foot upon treadle, which, every second
or more-whenever an automatic signal
would sound-he released, thereby dropping
a printed sheet of developing paper into
compartment underneath. Immediately
another sheet Of paper was fed a clasp on
the machine the treadle was pressed down
and this paper was raised against the
negative, through which the mercury tube
threw a powerful light. Then the signal
was again given, the paper dropped out
OF sight, IS before, and the clasp was refed.
photographs can be printed by this machine
in twenty minutes the energies of two men
being taxed to develop the photographs as
fast as the machine prints them.
Translating Exporters Letters.
OF special interest to business men is the
bureau of Information. department Of
the commercial museum. in charge of Mr..
Dudley Bartlett.
The bulk of the cost of this bureaus
work is sustained by subscriptions paid reg
ularly by leading American business firms,
which subscribe to memberships full
membership costs 500 per Year and gives
the holder unrestricted use of the bureau,
which answers all of his inquiries regard
ing commercial questions coming up in
the routine of his particular line of bust
ness.
In one section Of the bureau the writer
was shown a group of translators at work
upon commercial correspondence being car
ried on by American firms with houses In
all parts of the world Whenever a sub
scriber wishes to send a letter to any for
eiSn commercial firm, whether 1t be in Mad
agascar, Timbuctoo Swat, he simply for
wards to the bureau an English copy of
his letter and the necessary blank note pa
of his firm. The tr3nSlatOrS of the
bureau then frame his communication in
the language of the foreign firm, and the
translation goes out under his official letter
head. When the reply is received it is
translated into English and forwarded to
him.
Letters are here handled in all sorts of
languages and alphabets. Recently one was
prepared in one of the Hindu dialects. Oc-
casionally communications must be trans
lated into Arabic, aSd more often into
the Slavic languages. Japanese Chinese and
Siamese. The trainers Of these letters
must, of course be learned in the etiquette
of foreign letter writing. Thus a Spanish
business letter, framed according to the
code, must close, Your attentive and faith
full servant, who kisses your hands, etc.
Other nations employ forms equally curious
to Americans. Last year nearly 5000 were
translated for members, and these aggre-
gated nearly million and a half of words.
Information for Drummers.
The bureau also stands ready at all times
to respond to members inquiries for lists of
foreign firms engaged in any kinds of bust
ness; concerning the demands, extent or
sources of supply of the foreign market
in any produce local requirements of any
foreign government as to tariff, trade mark
or copyright laws; regulations as to ship
ping or packing goods. methods of handling
business, time of credit possibilities and
facilities for collecting debts-in fact, any
legitimate foreign information which a
business man would desire to know. One
class of information frequently asked for
by members concerns the regulations of
this or that country to commercial trav-
elers. 1t is important for a big house
opening up trade in a strange land to know
whether that country or any of its cities
or provinces exacts fees from commercial
travellers.
Many foreign governments, instead of re-
lying upon a tariff for such purpose, pro-
tect home industries by this tax upon the
drummers of other countries. This is SO
especially in many Latin-American coun-
lied also by a Mexican law. which, however,
though the state of Sonora, adjacent to our
frontier, Is now enforcing it very strictly.
This tax usually takes the form Of an an
nual fee paid to the government, state or
municipality.
About half of the answers which this
bureau makes to inquiries are never paid
for They are made by courtesy to many
firms amply able to subscribe to member
ship. In one section of the bureau Mr.. Bart
lett showed the writer tier upon tier of in
dex files containing data concerning 2oO,OOO