The daily telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1901-1926, 1915-03-16
The HAsKIN LETTER
LATIN AMERICAN TRADE

LA j lin AMEN
HI Understands
BY Frederic
IN all of our relations with Latin
america there has been an almost in
credible degree of mutual nifsunder-
standing. To the average American
citizen Latin America has been a
great tropical ilderneas full OF mon
Keys and parrots and fevers. and
lutte uninhabitab1e for Yankee.
And Latin America long regarded
us as lawless. mercenary people.
hent on exploiting everyone for our
own advantage.
One Of the most promising signs
of the times Is the tremendous pro-
gress which is being made in clear
ing up this mutual Ignorance. In
the last few years the Pan-American
Union has grown into a great bu-
reau OF all American ta1Mnation In
four languages. and its efforts are
being ably seconded by other COM
Inercial organizations.
Few Americans realize what a
strange impression our southern
iaeighbors have obtained OF us, nor
in comparison with the European ma
tons. There have been several
causes for this. In the first place,
many of the first citizens Of the Unit
ed States. who went to South Amer
4 lea were ones who had excellent
reasons for leaving home and they
did much to make the name OF Yam
ikee anything but respected. Then.
TOO, for many years the most made.
Iquate news reports from this coun-
Try reached the Latin-Americal cit
les. They heard Of violent and
startling happenings i'll this country,
Tive anil creative work. Strange as
lit may seem, Latin America is just
| beginning to realize that there is a
cultured class in the United States.
Hopelessly disparate points OF
view have contributed largely to the
mutual misunderstanding. For ex-
ample. Latin America is absolutely
unable to appreciate the philosophy
lof work for its own sake. They
have heard that in the United States
| old. gray-haired men are kept in the
industrial harness, and to them this
| is little short OF barbarism. The
first duty OF every South American
Ids TO support his parents, and he
Il
States the only way to Keep father
from working would be to handcuif
Elm
While North and South America
Ehaye thus been living in dence ig-
norance of each other. Europe and
South America have been making
| friends at a great rate. When 4
Icitizen Of the United States goes to
Latin America he goes to make his
pile and get out. The Italian OF
F'renckman goes with his family TO
Eoran a retail store and live me =
E,nglishman also goes to stay as the
representative or manager Of a Brit
fish firm The Germans take strong
er hold upon the country than any
of the others. for he very often mar
lries tie daughter Of some South
/ 5American family with a. good conf
mercial rating and thereafter does
business with his father-in-law anu
a few hundred cousins:
AS natural result OF these init
mate relations. it was European
ideals and institutions that first be-
came dominant in Latin America. It
our nei ghbors to the South ofus have
been learning what we really are
through the efforts of various organ
izations IN this country. Among
y these the Pan-Amerfcan Union has
been the leader. Under an universal
franc it sends to hundreds of, news
papers in all of the Latin-American
#countries weekly article about
what great Americans are doing.
Through this agency Latin America
has learned that Yankees inventor
the aeroplane and perfected the tel
cphone. and were the nrst to speak
ri az
cut by the Pan-American Union are
IN Portuguese, Spanish and French
4 and they are Invariably published.
i IN addition to these shorter arti-
icles, the Bulletin of the Pan Ameri-
4can Union. published monthly, has
Edone much to disseminate informa-
ition both in this country and Latin
america For the little republic OF,
Haiti a special edition OF the bulletin
lis gotten out in French, and probably
mo ma gazine in the world is awaited
by its subscribers with more eager.
Interest One time publication was
delayed and letter came from a
Haitian village asking that the maya
zine please be sent along In a hurry,
las stwenty-four people had come along
stance to hear 1T read to them.
The results OF this educational
lcampaign are gratffyingly evident.
During the last few years the attf-
3Htude OF Lating American editorial
writers toward the United States has
undergone a complete change. The
i tone of friendliness and admiration
for the greater northern republic is
tnore and more frequent in Latin
Il Amaricane newspapers.
The most remarkable result or
this propaganda has been to convince
Latin America that we are the great
inventive and industrial people OF
the world. When Uruguay wantedtto
establish a fish commission, it got an
iI.Americans expert to take charge or
IN o. "a src, tha4A r..