The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1911-01-27
World Wide Contributions TO tine Conn
forts of American Homes.

The contributions which people Of
other parts OF the world are making
to the comforts and requirements of
homes In the United States are quite
as interesting A. the subject of last
weeks discussion, regarding the art
cles which producers In the United
States had contributed to the COM
forts Oh homes In other parts OF the
world. Our tea, our coffee, ourcorks,
our bananas, our camphor, our hcor-
Ice. or pepper, nutmegs and other
spices, our silk, some of our cotton,
"a considerable part OF our wool and,
strange as it might appear, some
part OF the onions, potatoes and
cheese consumed in the United
States are brought from other coun-
tries and in many cases from the OPP
poBite part Of the globe and out OF the
way parts Of the world.
Few people would suppose, for ex-
ample, that this great agricultural
country imports oniOrs, or potatoes,
or clover seed, on honey, yet the val
use OF onions imported I'm 1907 and
1908 was nearly q million dollars in
each year, and they came from Egypt,
Australia, Japan, the Canary Islands,
Uruguay, Cuba, the British West In
dies, Bermuda, Canada, Mexico and
Spain. OF potatoes more than 3h
million dollars worth were imported
i'm 1903, the largest contributing coun-
try being Scotland, with over one
million dollars worth, Ireland and
Great Britain, each three quarters OF
a million dollars worth, and the re-
mainder largely from European coun-
tries and, in smaller quantities, from
the British West Indies, Australia,
and even China and Japan. Pepper,
or course, ID not produced i'm the
United States and it Is not surprising,
therefore, that 2 million dollars
worth is imported annually, much OF
1t from the Dutch East Indies, al
though largely accredited to the
Straits Settlements, the southermost
point Of eastern Asia, to which this
merchandise ID transshipped from the
East Indian Islands, known century
ago as the Spice Islands" while
smaller quantities come direct
from Netherlands, the country which
has for so many years administered
the government OF those islands and
controlled largely their lines OF pro-
duction. Nutmegs, Of which the i'm
portations amount to quarter mil
lion dollars year, are also drawn
chiefly from the Spice Islands," or
the Dutch East Indies.
One could scarcely expect that such
an agricultural country al the United
States would find it necessary to i'm
port clover seed, but the quantity i'm
ported runs as high as 20 million
pounds a year, chiefly from Germany
and in smaller quantities from
France, Italy and Scotland. Sausage
castings, which we would scarcely ex-
pect to see imported into country
slaughtering food animals In such
large numbers, are imported to the
value OF from 2 to three million dol
dars' a year, but far the largest con-
trfbutor being England, from which
the importations in 1909 were over IL
million dollars, the remainder being
from widely scattered countries, from
Germany, Turkey in Europe, China,
Australia and Turkey in Asia. Nat
ural gas il another article which we
would scarcely expect to see i'm
ported, yet the importations run az
high as $4,000 per annum, being
piped across the river from Canada
at or near Niagara Falls.
OF the more commonly used arti-
cles OF which other parts OF the
world are the chief source, sugar Is
the largest in value, its importations
ranging about 100 million dollars 2
year from foreign countries and 70
million dollars year from our own
| island possessions, Hawaii, Porto Rico
and the Philippines. Nearly all OF
that coming from foreign countries
is drawn from Cuba, which supplies
" last fiscal year with 31a billion
pounds valued at 931a billion dollars.
. or coffee, the importations range
from so to IS million dollars a year
and in exceptional years al high az
100 million. The bulk Of this comes
from Brazil, though a considerable
portion comes from Java, Mexico,
Central America and the northern
section of South America, and COM
paratively small quantity from
Africa. The tea importations, which
amount to from ~ 10 ID million dol
lars year, come chiefly from Japan,
China and India, much Of tho latter,
however, reaching the United States
by way of England.
One would scarcely expect to see
raw cotton imported into the United
States In view on the fact that she
produces three-fourths Of the cotton
81 tha world, but the value OF cotton
imports ranges as high as 20 million
dollars year. the bulk OF 1t coming
from Egypt, through Mexico and
Peru contributes considerable guam
titles, even India, China, the Dutch
East Indies and the British West In
dies make small contributions.
MI OF the raw silk used I'm the
United States in manufacturing the
$50 million dollars worth OF silk
goods turned out annually by our
factories ID brought from other parts
of the world, chiefly from Japan and
China, though i'm smaller quantities
from Italy and France. To the liz
million dollars worth of hides and
skins imported last year nearly every
grand division contributed. OF goat
skins alone the imports last year
amounted To 30 million dollars,
brought from such distant countries
as India, China, the Straits Settle
ments, Persia, Morocco, the Belgian
Congo, and Madagascar. &
VII N W. N