The Prescott daily news., 1915-01-02
NEw-YEAR OPPORTUNITY TO RESTORE NATIONAL
 PROSPERITY

nroducts of this country exceeds $40,- ooo OOO. .OOO a year. Of recent years we have exported about to per cent of this. or from $2,000,000, to $2,- 100000 ,O0O annually. Thus less than one-sixteenth of the total value of our produets has gone abroad.
 While this $4O,OOO,OOO,OoO of value represents the output of the country, if does not, of course, begin to repre- sent the volume of trade. These pro- ducts are sold and resold, giving en- plovment and profit to millions of peo- ple. They are transported back and forth. furnishing freight to the rail- roads and employment to other mil lions. They are the basis of all of our business file. But even in their primary state the output is $40,00O,- 100000, while we have exported only 5 to per cent of it.
 We are now exporting partly by reason of the heavy demand in Europe for war munitions, probably quite as much as during years of peace. h. deed it is quite possible that the total exports of the coming year, notwith standing the decline in the price of cotton and the smaller exports of that staple, will equal the highest exports we have had, and possibly run far ahead. It is true that this is due to war conditions. Nevertheless, the goods have to be made and sold and shipped, and the money comes back to us, or the agricultural products have to be raised and exported, and they, with the exception of cotton, are being sold at a high price. What is there, therefore, in the European sit uation to have any such effect on our present depression? We are selling almost as much to Europe as former ly, and if we are not, because of the war, importing as much, it merely leaves a larger market at home for our own manufactured products. So far as our foreign trade, therefore, is concerned there is no foundation what ever for inactivity in trade, except as to cotton, and this will be offset in the total volume of other exports.
 We have just as many people as we have ever had, and their number is in- creasing at the rate of about 1,500000 year, making more mouths to feed and more bodies to be clothed
 The war has not in any way lessen ed our natural resources. It has not destroyed our timber, our coal, our Iron, our water-powers, nor any of the other vast resources which give us an unmatched combination as compared With any other equal area in the world
 Europe is not buying heavily of our securities, but, on the other hand we are keeping at home the several hund- red million dollars that our tourists have annually spent abroad, more than offsetting the decline in Europe's annual investment in our bonds and stocks.
 What, therefore, is the matter with us?
 We know that the tariff has had depressing effect on many lines of in- dustry. We know that it has practi- cally destroyed some. But even an adverse tariff, bad as it is, is not a full explanation for the timidity and Tear and lack of business prevailing throughout the country. We ought to repeal the present destructive tariff destructive of national income as well as destructive of business. But look still farther.
 We know that for the last ten years there has been a relentless war upon ouslness, big and little. We know that the railroads have been very nearly throttled to death by adverse leglsatlon, State and national. The country has gone on the theory that men would continue to invest billions ol money in the building of railroads even though they might have no voice Ill the management of these roads or m the fixing of the rates for passenger ana freight business. It is difficult 'o imagine anything much more ab- Surd than this theory. One of it's di- rect results is seen in the figures pub i,Sheo last week that in sixteen States .ne new railroad mileage was less than !" any year since 1880, when the country had only one-half of it's pres