Los Angeles herald., 1910-11-05
TROPICAL IMPORTS
To j. s. INCREASE
Forty Per Cent of Foreign Pro-
ducts Used Here Come from
Equatorial Regions
EXPORTS TO TROPICS GROW
$32,OOO,000 Worth Native Fiber
Growths Reach Mainland
from Philippines in Year
rSnecial TO The Herald

WASHINGTON, Nov 4.-More tnah
one-third of the merchandise enlerllI >
the United States last year was Vi
tropical production. With the SIoW
ing demand of our manufacturers lOt
tropical products for use in their srea'
industries and the increasing REQUIRE
ment of our population for foodStullS
produced only in tropical and subtrop-
ical climates, the dependence of Iile
limited States upon the tropics steadlly
and rapidly increases. Tropical anu
subtropicaI products brought INTO con-
tinental United States in the hscSI
wear 1910 aggregated $636,0OO 600 IN
value. against $685., 100000 in 1900, $29S,-
600 900 in 1890, and $242, ,OOO,000 IN 1ooo'
The share which tropical and suptrop-
ical products formed of the merchan-
disc entering the United olales l"s'
year was 40 per cent.
Nearly $500. 900 900 worth of the trop-
ical and subtropical merchandise en-
tering continental United States last
wear came from our own islands Inc
total value of merchandise brought
from those islands in the fiscal year
1910 was $96, 100000, practically al OIL
which was, of course, of tropical pro-
duction, leaving about S64O,OOU'ouO
worth of tropical material drawn from
foreign countries. In 1900 the Value
of merchandise drawn from troplcal
islands under the United States nag
was but $50 900. .OOO the contributions
of our own tropical area to the trop-
icaI requirements of the United STATES
having thus trebled in the last decade
EXPORTS INCREASE
Meantime the exports from the Unit
ed States to these tropical lSIahuS
under the American flag have grown
mn IL, 20 J..
1910, having thus also more than trepled
In the period in question.
The principal articles forming this
large importation of tropical products
are sugar, coffee, india rubber, tobac-
co, silk, fruits and nuts, fbers, cot
ton, vegetable oils, gums and tea. In
each of these articles the total eA-
ceeds $10,000,000 per annum, ranging
from $12, 100000 in the case of cocoa
and manufactures thereof to $lf2,OOO'-
600 in the case Of sugar. Other ar
ticles of tropical production whose an
nual importations range from quar-
ter million to nearly $10.000.000 include
cinchona bark, cabinet woods, cork,
dyewoods, feathers, indigo, ivory, lico-
rice root, olive oil, opium, rice. sago
and tapioca, spices, sponges, vanilla
beans and vegetable oils. OF tropical
sugar the imports have doubled IN
value in ten years, having increased
from $50 O00, 900 in 1900 to $172,000,000 in
1910. India rubber imports Increased
from $31 100000 in 1900 to $1O1, ,25OOO0 in
the fiscal year just ended. Imports Oh
coffee have grown from $52,500,OOO IN
1900 to $69,5OO,O00 in 1910; while other
important increases during the same
period include fruits and nuts, from
S19,250 600 to nearly $41, 100000; unman-
ufactured silk, from $500. 900 to over
S67 ,OO0 600; tobacco and manufactures
thereof, from S15,6O0,OO0 to $39,25O,OOO;
and fibers from $24,250. 900 to $32,5OO,O OOO.
SUGAR FROM HAWAII
Tea imports have not materially in
creased during the decade, having
been in 1900 $40. 900 and in 1910 $13,-
800 900, a sum considerably less than
the figures of 1880, 1905 and 1908. I'M
ports of cocoa and chocolate nave
meantime doubled from $6,000,0 900 in
1900 to $12, ,000, 900 in 1910; also those Of
cotton, from less than $S,00O,0O0 in 1900
to S17, 900 in 1910; and gums, from
$7OOO,000 to S13,50O,OO
In teh sugar supply Of the United
States, now almost exclusively of do
mestic and tropical origin, Hawaii
plays an important part, the arrivals
from that territory in the fiscal year
1910 having amounted to 1913, 100000
pounds, for sugar not above No. 16
Dutch standard, Porto Rico 569,0O000O
and the Philippines 176,0O0,000 pounds.
OF the foreign sugar imported, by far
the greater part came from Cuba,
3,510, 100000 pounds, S15,0000OO pounds
from the Dutch East Indies, and
smaller quantities from South America
and the West Indies aside from Cuba
and Porto Rico already mentioned.
Nearly one-third Of the $32, 100000
worth of imported fibers consist Of
manila grown in the Philippine is
lands. From foreign countries the i'm
ports of coffee in 1910 aggregated 874,-
1000 pounds, while 100000 came
from Hawaii and 163, $50 pounds from
Porto Rico. OF tobacco, the imports
from foreign countries amounted to
$39, ,250,000, of which $1,600,000 came
from the Philippines, $5,600,0O0 worth
from Porto Rico. Imports of fruits
and nuts from foreign countries ag-
gregated $41. OO0,OO last year, less than
100000 worth having come from the
Philippine islands, while shipments
from Hawaii were valued at $780,
600 and those from Porto Rico at
81 100000.