Virginia free press. (Charlestown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1832-1916, 1912-12-05

national finances ana from the ever.
present danger Of international com
pIications due to disorder at home.
Hence the United States has been
glad to encourage and support Amer
lean bankers who were willing to lend
a helping hand to the financial re-
Mobilization of such coutries BECAUSE
|. this financial rehabilitation and the
protection of Their. custom houses from
being the prey OF would-be dictators
would remove at, one stroke the mem
ace Of foreign creditors and the mem
ance of revolutionary disorder
The second advantage to the Unit
ed States il one affecting chiefly all
the southern and gulf ports and the
business and industry of the south 4
The republics OF Central America and
the Caribbean possess great natural
wealth, They need only measure Of
stability and the means Of financial
regeneration to enter upon an era Of
peace and prosperity, bringing profit
| and happiness to themselves and at
the same time creating conditions
sure to lead to a fourishing In
| terchange OF trade with this country.
wish 70 call your especial attention
to the recent occurrences in Mica
ragua, for believe the terrible events
recorded there during the revolution
| of the past summer-the useless loss
of life the devastation of property,
| the bombardment of defenseless cities,
the killing and wounding of women
and children, the torturing of non
combatants to exact contributions,
and the suffering of thousands Of hui
| man beings might have been avert
ed had the department of state.
through approval of the loan conven-
| ton by the senate, been permitted to
carry out its now well-deve1oped policy
| Of encouraging the extending of e.
nancial aid to weak Central American
states with the primary objects of
avoiding just such revolutions by as
sisting those republics to rehabili-
tate their finances, to establish their
currency on stable basis, to remove
the custom houses from the danger
| Of revolutions by arranging for their
secure administration, and to estab-
fish reliable banks.
Agricultural Credits.
A most important work, accom-
plished In the past year by the Ameri-
can diplomatic officers in Europe, Is
the investigation of the agricultural
credit system in the European coun-
tries. Both as means to afford relief
to the consumers OF this country
through more thorough develop
,ment Of agricultural resources and as
| a means of more sufficiently maintain
ing the agricultural population, the
project to establish credit facilities for
the farmers is concern of vital Inn
| portance to this nation. No evidence
Of prosperity among well-established
farmers should blind us to che fact
that lack of capital is preventing a
development of the nations agricul-
tural resources and an adequate in
crease of the land under cultivation;
that agricultural production is fast
| falling behind the increase in popula-
ton; and that, in fact, although these
well-established farmers are main
tanned in increasing prosperity be-
cause Of the natural increase in popu-
lation, we are not developing the in
dustry of agriculture.
The need of capital which American
farmers feel today had been expert
| enced by the farmers of Europe, with
ago. The problem had been success
| their centuries-old farms, many years
fully solved in the old world and it
was evident that the farmers of this
country might profit by study of
their systems. I therefore ordered,
through the department of state, an
investigation to be made by the diplo-
matte officers in Europe, and | have
laid the results of this investigation.
before the governors Of the various
states with the hope that they will
| be used to advantage in their forth
| coming meeting.
Increase OF Foreign Trade.
In my last annual message / said
| that the fiscal year ended June 80,
| 1911, was noteworthy as marking the
| highest record of exports of American
| products to foreign countries. The
fiscal year 1912 shows that this rate
Of advance has been maintained, the
total domestic exports having valu-
| alton approximately of $4,000, 000, 900,
as compared with fraction over
| $4,000, 100000 the previous year. It
is also significant that manufactured
and partly manufactured articles con-
| tinue to be the chief commodities form
ing the volume of our augmented ex-
| ports, the demands OF our own people
| for consumption requiring that an in
creasing proportion of our abundant
agricultural products be kept at home.
In the fiscal year 1911 the exports of
| articles in the various stages Of man
ufacture, not including foodstuffs part
| " or wholly manufactured, amounted
approximately to 1907, 100000. In the
fiscal year 1912 the total was nearly
| $1.022, 100000, a gain of $114,OoO.O00.
Advantage Of Maximum and Minimum
Tariff Provision.
The Importance which our manufac-
lures have assumed in the commerce
of the world in competition with the
manufactures of other countries again
draws attention to the duty Of this
| government to use its utmost endeav-
ors to secure impartial treatment for
American products in all markets.
Healthy commercial rivalry in inter
| national intercourse is best assured
/ NV the n0ssaaainn of nronar nAana