The French Broad hustler. [volume] (Hendersonville, N.C.) 1896-1912, 1911-11-30
4 LII Do II y LWINII LETT
PANAMA CANAL TRADE9

~ LII H10L}LXL
PANAMA CANAL TRADED |
Irving z. Bush, Harb0r Expert, Pre-
diets Great Boom to Follow Rechart-
ing of Ocean Routes Cotton Trade
Now Pays Big Tribute TO Europe
Better Banking System Needed to
Give the South COmamnd of Its Own
Trade.
New York, Nov. % Irving 7. Bush,
-
of the Bush Terminal Company, who
has put millions OF dollars into pier
development nthe New York water
front, and who is recognized as an au-
thority on coastwise and overseas
commerce, said before leaving Sor
Europe that he believed that the great
est benefit from the opening OF the
Panama Canal would accrue to the
Southern ports
"The port OF New York." said Mr..
Bush, naturally viii lgain form the
great expansion of our trade with the
Orient that will follow the opening of
the Canal, but the Southern ports, es-
pcially the ports on the Gulf, like New
Orleans and Galveston, will reap the
lgreatest benefits.
"The commercial interests Of the
! South are looking forward to the
growth of their trade with the opening
OF the Canal, but do not believe they
fully realize what this coming rechart-
ing of ocean routes means to them.
s The opening of the Suez Canal marked
an epoch in the worlds commerce; the
Iopenfng of the Panama canal will mark
greater epoch.
"The South has been making great
strides in our export trade, which now
reaches the enormous total of two bill
lion dollars a year. How few people
realize that, next to New York, the two
greatest shipping ports of the country
are the Gulf port of New Orleans and
Galveston. They far outstrip the ports
of Boston and Philadelphia. 1t is ou1
wonderful trade in cotton that has
placed the South in such a command
ing position in our export trade. w
are selling abroad every year close Il
half "a billion dollars worth of thu
South's great staple. Cotton is the
bulwark of our export trade.
"But the South canot reap the full
benefit from its export trade and from
the opening of the Panama Canal 81
long as it continues to be dependen
upon the outside fnacial ceters Of tn
financing of its trade.
Every pound of cotton that is ship
ped to-day from the South pays its tri
butte to the London banker, either di
rectly or through New York. One o
our leading International bankers sal
at New Orleans, last week, that tn
United States paid hundreds of mil
lions of dollars year tribute to for
eign bankers for financing our foreig
trade. A good share of this tribute
paid by the South.
"The whole country needs a NOR
modern banking system to finance GU
So, 500, 000, 900 of foreign commerce.
is time we stopped paying tribute
Europe for doing work that we ough
to do ourselves for our own profit. Blu
the South, more than any other sectio
OF the country, and especially in vie
of the expansion of Southern con
merce that will come with the oper
ing of the Caanl, is in need of bette
banking system.
SCI do not mean to say that the Sout
has not strong sound banks that con
pare most favorably with the banks {
the rest of the country. Nor do
mean to say that banking progress
the South has not kept pace wit
Southern busienss. In fact, there hs
. been wonderful increase in til
South's banking resources in recel
years. In the past ten years, Will
the deposits of the banks of the who
country have gained 116 per cent, thos
of the South have gained 241 per cen
or more than twice as much. Snr:tl
ern bank deposits have increased r'=Fr
1900 from 1910, 100000 to 100000
900.
( "But what the South needs
this is what the whole country needs
is cooperation between the banks ths
will enable them to do the work thu
foreign bankers now do in f1nancin
y American commerce.
l GAS business man interested in OF
foreign trade, have special intereI
in banking reform that will place us c
q par with the nations of Europe
handling the credit transactions tn;
tcontrol the overseas commerce Of Il
world"