The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-01-04
[ENGL|SH SHIP SENT 3TO CHILE BY CANAL ID TEST THE ROUTE United States Must be Alert If South American Trade
 Is to be Secured WEST COAST TO BE THE EARLIEST FIELD Canal Means That Millions of Unde- veloped Acres Must be Utilized
 to Get the Fullest
 Benefits
By HOLLAND

New York, January 3.-(Special.)-I tht
 latter part of November a steamship fly
 Ing the English flag, it is reported. sailed
 from one of the English ports for Chile The steamer was of 6oO0 tons burden, not
 q very large commerce carrier. but its
 size is less significant than was the fact
 that the captain was under instructions
 to take his ship through the Panama canal.
 This was the first English commerce bearer to make use of the canal. If there has been no mishap the steamer should
 reach Chile about this time. There are two important considerations associated with this shipment from England to Shile of a cargo which is to be unbrolen and
 is to make the short passage by way of the Panama canal. First of all it shows that notwithstanding the energy and con ceBtration of purpose which are now char acteristic of Great Britain with respect
 to the European war, that country is un- dertaking what in some sense is an ex- perimental utilization of the Panama canal for the purpose of maintaining some part of her trade with Chile. For the United States this indicates that we
 are still to maintain commercial compe- tition with Great Britain for some part o. the markets of South America.
 Then, in the second place, should this ex- pertinent prove successful we may ex- pect to see utilization upon large scale of the Panama canal by some of the nations across the sea which are anxious to keep as much as possible of their South American trade. We may not have there fore the chief part in utilizing this canal, and the predictions which were made by some who thought themselves experts that the Panama canal would not earn from tolls income enough to pay the interest upon cost, and who also asserted that the canal would be for the most part utilized for commerce between the east and the west coast of the United States will be found to have been inaccurate.
 One of the curious results of the con strrction of the Panama canal is the fact that, together with the European wa. and the opportunities for increasing Jour trade relations with South America it has led to careful study of the political, geographical and transportation systems |of the South American nations. This is |especially true of the 12 countries which lie to the south of us and which are bounded wholly or in part on the west by the Pacific ocean. All these countries
 will speedily be occupied in developng their great natural resources. especially mineral, and their agricultural fields. This should. it is believed by those who are Familiar with South American condition such, for instance, as the members of the house of William R. Grace & Co.,. which has for years been the leader in ccn merce between the United States and the west coast of South America, lead to great railroad expansion to the construc- tioi, of telegraph and telephone systems and in some parts of the country to ir- nigation. For this reason, there should be created constant demand for manufac- tilred commodities. and there is not a man. 1 ufactured article of the kind necessary for the full development of South Amer |