The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-04-26

Profitable cargoes can be obtained for yes sells plying between Brazilian, Argentine and Uruguay ports to the United States, but our own return commerce to those countries has not been great enough to encourage merchant marine service.
 Another subject which will be discussed will be centered upon the establishment in South America of branches of Ameri- can banks. It is especially fortunate that this subject can now be discussed from the point of view of experience brief though that be- as well as from the viewpoint of theory For already one of the largest of American banks has es- tablished branch institutions in South America and the representative from Uruguay will be able to report that an American branch bank was under organ ization when he departed from Monte- video for the United States.
 Some of the delegates from the South American countries are familiar by tra- dition, by family ties and by business as- sociation with the business life of the United States. For instance, from Ar gentina is to come as prominent a citi- zen and banker as any in the great city of Ruanos Aires. His name reveals .is American lineage. He is Samuel H. Pear son, who but for the enterprise and cour- age of his grandfather, Samuel B. Hale of Boston, would probably now be oc- cupied with finance and business in Bos- ton. MT Hale, at the time so many men of affairs in Boston looked upon the East Indian and the China trade as the most tempting of business vacations. ig- hored the Boston custom of that day, and, instead.s foundedss a, business house in Buenos Aires. This business has now be- come one of the greatest carried on by any house in South America, and MT. Pearson's 8 achievements as a business man t. kf. l. xf- I... tification with industrial, commercial and banking activities the aggregate represen- tative capital of which is said to be in the neighborhood of $500 000,000.
 Argentina is to be well represented at the conference, and the character of her delegates illustrates the strong and friend- ly trade sentiment which Argentina now entertains toward the United States. One of the delegates of Argentina was former ly minister of finance of the province of which Buenos Aires is the capital, and the Chamber of Commerce of that city is to be represented by two delegates.
 The Call for Capital
 Undoubtedly the fundamental purpose behind this conference is discussion and agitation which may lead to the discov- cry of the best method of financing the needs of the. South American countries. France, England. Germany and to some extent Holland, have heret0tOre provided almost all of the capital which the South American nations have needed for their development There has been, it is true, some conspicuous employment of United States capital, but this has mostly been on the west coast of South America, as, for instance, the capital identified by the name of J. Bs Haggin which has been utilized for working the copper mines oe northern Peru ,and for completing the railway transportation to and from those mines. So also the house of William R. Grace X Go. has furnished large capital for vest coast development. The Gug- genheims and Charles M. Schwab have contributed and are now contributing large capital for certain developments in Chile. But the great sources of capital have been England, Germany, France and. to a lesser extent Holland That SUD- ply hes been, temporarily, at least, cut off. The establishment of adequate bank ing facilities representing United States capital is to be one of the chief means by which our commercial relations with South America can be greatly increased and much of it permanently maintained even after the European war Is ended. Herein is undoubtedly contained the fun damcntal purpose which has led to the meeting of representatives of the states of the American hemisphere in financial conference.