Tonopah daily bonanza. [volume] (Tonopah, Nev.) 1906-1929, 1912-01-09
OUR TRADE WITH RUSSIA.

On account of the strained relations now ex-
isting between Russia and the United States,
much interest has been aroused regarding the
volume and relative Importance of the trade be-
tween the two countries As direct shipments
between ports account for only small part of
the business, exact figures cannot be given with
confidence in their accuracy, the discrepancies
between the official trade reports issued by the re-
spective governments being very great. 1t is,
however, evident that our trade with Russia
has been growing fast during the past decade and
its total volume is at least double that
of the year 1901.
Our exports to Russia have shown a steadier
rise with fewer recessions from previous records
than has been the with import trade. In
the last fiscal year we exported to Russia mer.
ehandise valued at $24, 704 049, as compared with
S9.590.070 in 1901, and these 1911 exports sur
passed all previous records. At the same time
our imports from Russia valued at $12,
2O3 ,462, compared with S7034 421 in 1901 !;
but IN two other years in the last decade our
imports had been much larger In 1907 these
imports valued at ST. 704 1872 and again in
1910 they to Sl7,377 2l2.
Russian official figures have been sometimes
almost double and again less than half those
given III our trade reports in recent years Much
Of our trade with Russia is handled through Eng.
llSh. Germany and other European houses which
Is
no way of arriving at the exact truth because
European middlemen are not given to telling
too much about their own business and naturally
wish to keep both Russia and the United States
dependent on them far possible 1t appears
from Washington statistics that agricultural i'm
PIGMENTS the most important item in our
exports to Russia, with cotton second and
other manufactures of iron and steel third; while
hides and skins come first and raw wool second
m Importance IN our imports from that country
As Russia buys cotton largely in Liverpool
and other foreign markets the figures given are
not reliable, but they show exports to Russia
valued at S6,240,O00 i'll the last fiscal year II
VAS probably two three times that amount
IN reality. Russia is producing large
amount of cotton at home and the development
of this branch of her agriculture may have an
important influence our cotton belt in future
years Russia is now the chief source OF the
Worl, supply of flax and genuine hemp fbers
ara IS ambitious to add cotton to the list
IT IS unlikely that strained relations or the
abrogatlon of treaties will have any appreeablt
effect on Russia 5 consumption of American raw
cotton; but they may diminish seriously her pur
chases of our agricultural machinery, of which
she took rs, l26,4l5 in the last fiscal year This
trade has been built up at great expense and it,
loss would be a serious blow because the agricul
tural implement business is still in its infancy il
Russia. Russia is and will continue for Ions
time to be, the greatest producer of wheat anC
other small grams IN the world and she pos
vast areas of virgin soil in Asia which
have hardly been scratched
As our chief imports from Russia consisted
last year OF hides and skins valued at So, 400,
39l, and of wool valued at $2007 1863 much o.
which came to us through second hands, it il
unlikely that an interruption of relations vii
make much difference to this business We vii
continue to get what we want of these raw
roducts. so Russia does not seem likely to los
our friendship. Raw furs and skins and licoric
root VIII also come to from Russia through
European mddlemen.
As buy from Russia very little excep
raw materials that must have while Russ
takes more than half her imports from us in tn
shape 81 manufactured goods, our position
weaker than hers as far possibility of iniur
TO trade IS concerned However, there is NJ
use III crossing that bridge till we come to il
and Russia may aceede to our Just demands be
fore the situation becomes acute