The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-12-29
QUICK DELIVERY IS FEATURE OF EXPORT DEMAND NOW MADE Recent Examples of the Mil lions Pouring in to Amer
 ican Manufacturers EXPORTS FOR YEAR
 OVER TWO BILLIONS Sentimental Effect of Rate Decision Will Help Railroads in Securing
 Much Needed Funds for
 Improvements
By HOLLAND

By HOLLAND
 New York December 2S-(Special 1.-The New Years greeting can be symbolized to the people of the United States by brief statement of commercial conditions as these have been developed in the past four months and by the promise which they give of great business prosperity in the year 1915.
 On the first of September of this year, no one would have ventured to predict that four months later it would be possi- ble for official statement to be made by the Washington authorities that our for eign business for the month of Decem- Der alone was as much in our favor as is represented by s125, GOO 900. In Septem- ber it looked for time as though ou. foreign trade was gone. The financial situation was perilous, but there was really greater peril, or seemed to be to thoughtful observers, in the probability that we sohuld lose for months much of our foreign trade. Within day or two after the first of the year, there will probably be official announcement that the record made in the month of Decem- Der of our exports, but in terms of money, is the greatest in our history. It will also be possible for the authorities to re- Jort that our sales to bclligerent and neutral nations have been in the past three months large enough completely to wipe out our indebtedness on current account to those nations and to leave a consider able balance in our favor.
 That is the reason why the representa- tives of the British treasury department whv, in November, visited the United States. commissioned to perfect some emergency agreement whereby fairly good financial relations between Great Britain snd the United States could be main- tained, have recently announced that there is no longer occasion for any agree ment of that kind. In the last three months of the present calendar year, we have sold enough of our commodities to convert an unfavorable trade balance into favorable one, and probably early .n January the announcement will be made that our total exports for the calendar year were of the money value of a little over s2,000,00O GOO, not quite as much as the record made the previous year, but still large enough to show that we are maintaining our foreign trade.
 
 much of this trade is the fact that it is spot cash trade. Very large drafts made by representatives of bellgerent and neu- tral nations are daily passing through the large banking institutions and some of them it has been necessary to take to Washington for the purpose of securing such Endorsement as makes them negoti- able. Almost all of the purchases are paid for when the commodities are put upon ship While it has been deemed ex- pedient by the administration at Wash ington to disapprove of propositions in .vclving the making of loans to any of the belligerent nations, nevertheless fi- nance has pointed out way in which financial accommodations can be secured without the formality of placing foreign loans in this market. No one is able to say, even approximately, what the az gregate amount of credits established by belligerent and neutral nations in the Uni ted States is, but every one knows that the aggregate is very large sum.
 Reports have recently come from Wash ington ntimating that the demand upon the federal reserve banks for rediscounts has been disappointing because it is so small It was by means of rediscounts that the federal reserve banks are ex- pected to earn reasonable returns upon their capital, but apparently they are not earning the expected return, so that now in order to give them some oppor- tunity for gaining income the proposition is made that they be permitted to buy government bonds; in other words, invest their money in national securities.
 What the Reason Is
 Presumably one of the reasons for this small demand for rediscounts is the plethora of money which the establish ment of credits here by beligerent na- tions has caused. Purchases continue to be made upon scale that is without any precedent. An industry which is occu- pied with making canvas received an or der yesterday for S1,000,000 worth of can vas material which is to be utilized for certain war purposes. It was special order-that is to say, special in the sense that 1t must be filled within very short time, and the industry is to be occupied day and night in f Ing this order
 There came wi.rh a few days an in- uuiry for cocoa. It came from neutral nation, but the suspicion is strong that the real purchaser IS Germany. How Swiftly business of this kind is done may be shown by the celerty with which this cocoa demand was met. A cable dispatch sent at evening named the price and the time when the commodity would be de- iivered The first thing in the morning Ut the business office there was received a cable reply accepting the terms and giving instructions as to the amount which was very large, and the method oi shipment When the cocoa is delivered to the steamer payment will be made for fl, and there are good reasons for sur missing that the final payment will bt made by Germany.
 The Trade Increase
 The December record of our foreigr trade is of such magnitude as to indicate that instead of the trade in october anc November being ephemeral our foieigr trade in these commodities has constantly increased and is sure to be increased until war ceases Sometimes the remark is made that these orders are of benefit to only few American industries. Some of these industries are reaping unexpected harvests at this time, but many others feei no stimulating effect by reason of our foreign trade. But it is inevitable that the large amounts of money which