The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1916-08-16
NEW OPPORTUNITIES:
 ABOUNDfNG PROSPERITY

In the Scientific American of July 1 is a comprehensive contribution on New Opportunities for American Commerce and Industry. Its author is Joseph E. Davies, of the Federal Trade Commission.
 MT. Davies in his story, points out | that, so remarkable and extraordinary are the conditions which obtain to- day. few appreciate the opportunities that are afforded. He says: This nation is at peace in a world torn by colossal war. We are nat urally protected in our isolation by two great oceans each of which is held by naval experts to be the equivalent of a irst-class battle fleet of any of the frst-class powers of the world. For that adequate protection which we re- quire for our national security by req son of. this isolation, less capital is re- quired to be taken from the produc- tive lines of industry, in investments in producing armaments and mill itary preparedness than for any other first-class power of the earth. An unprecedented volume of foreign gold has moved and is moving into this country. The government mint has been taxed to the utmost. Six months of the year 1915 recorded at the San Francisco mint the receipt of ten times as much gold coin from Austra- lia. Japan and China as was receiv- ed for the entire year preceding.
 The gold coin and bullion in the Treasury has increased almost a third over what it was two years ago. We have, it is estimated, one-fourth of the total gold coin of the world.
 Our per capita circulation has in- creased within the year from $33.96 to s38.28.
 Shipments of merchandise into this country have been practically constant during the last three years, but the balance in our favor of exports over imports is six times as great for 1915 as for the preceding year. Within the year the individual bank deposits in national banks have in creased 525 millions of dollars, an average increase of $5 for every one of our population.
 Within the past year the total de- posits in our national banks have in- creased two billion 19s millions of dol lars.
 The total resources of the national banks of the United States exceeded by 370 millions the greatest resources ever shown in this history of our na- tional banking system, and showed an increase of two billion 270 million over the resources of tb SC banks Q year ago.
 A recent report O. le Comptroller of the Currency discloses that to the aggregate resources of the Bank of England, the Bank of France, the Bank of Russia, the Reichs-Bank of Germany, the Bank of Netherlands, the Swiss National Bank and the Bank of Japan there would have to be added the enormous total of three billions of dollars to equal the aggre- gate resources of the National Banks of the United States as of date of April 18th of this year.
 Our national wealth is estimated at PIP billions of dollars, or 25 billions more than in 1912.
 Our national wealth is estimated at PIP billions of dollars, or 25 billions more than in 1912.
 With one-eighth of the population of the world, it is estimated that we possess nearly one-third of it's total wealth.
 These are the basic conditions that established a period of the greatest domestic prosperity that this country has known. Our factories are work ing night and day; the standard of living and the wage scale of labor are higher than ever heretofore. Domestic requirements areconstantly growing and cannot be supplied. What was regarded as a sporadic impulse in na- tional prosperity has come to be rec ognized as permanent condition that would exist by reason of these facts if dependent upon local demands alone Fundamental conditions such as these must induce new opportunities for the future in domestic industry, quite independent of unusual or ex- traneous conditions.