New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1916-08-13


n. American business houses live up
4. ~ contracts in their dealings with
SS..tr,l and South American countries
wo still anxious to send snow
ar .,rers and warming pans TO the trop-
THE answers are that better than
sS n.r cent Of our obligations are car
ont 10 the letter and the business
IeSsrc,ed on the highest possible
80 while about 90 per cent of 1t
lsac,s no credit whatever upon the
Ire.;,.S States. and that we are still
,.srlcirr in some very amsteurish per-
t.r,rces in our efforts TO sell goods
in new heids. :J ,u. 60
...sro,t Americans who come IN con-
~. with our commercial problems IN
& So,tbern countries. The interro-
Wv 49, concerning our business ethics
ke..,Ssc;ollv are prompted by the fact that
~ ,ysvalent complaint here at home
$50 S.s the last wear about poor deliv-
80. on merchandise, sudden price IN
cresses and IN some cases aosoIute
s.;nrs 20 deliver promised commodities
hen echoed very sharply in Gen.
..I md South American countries.
We'll informed buoiHVoS nv, f.
IN aware Of the fact that, as IN
oost boom periods, we have seen IN
30 limited States during recent months
an extraordinary number OF unwar-
rsr,ed advances in prices OF raw ma
.s-;sls and manufactured products, re-
mutations Of valid contracts Tor the
sslverv Of goods and minor violations
~ Inc laws of sound business. THESE
;rfractions have been almost entirely
;, tho ultra-selfsh and shortSighted
ne, who are tempted by big prohts
10 eyade their obligations and take
rrSpe advantage Of violent swings IN
3 sellers market. Such men are
.bougbtless Of the future and will un-
6opbtedly pay dearly for their mas
c~etjons when rapidly increasing pro,
duetiOn overcOmes sporadic demand ana
rormal conditions return. IL rs wei!
Lrown that reprehenSIble activities OF
iris sort are confined TO compare
.ivelv limited number OF houses, Dut
NO understand the resentment such
nrsctices are stirring up here at nome
ms. now. and we ought, therefore, TO
,oalize more clearly the damage done
i, foreign lands by similar methods.
Il matters little that the guilty hrms
ave very few in number. Unfortunately
the trouble is they are active and cor
so;cuous. and are held up by our crit
ic. os examples Of American business
integrity. while the fact that the great
bu't Of our business IS conducted on
lie finest possible basis is very ire
oucrt'y given little consideration. -,
The rev wave Of complaint IN South
America mas developed naturally enough.
The general shortage of merchandise
because Of the scarcity of ships made
Sou,b American merchants especially
ANXIOUS 10 get their supplies. In the
past they have had little difficulty IN
filling their requirements, for the SER
vice rendered by European concerns mas
been excellent and reserve stocks neld
In South America were ample, but when
shelves began to get bare and the out
look for replenishing stocks was very
gloomy they were ready TO buy OF the
first nan to come along promising re-
lief When the army of new statesmen
from the United States invaded Central
ard South America, therefore, soon
after the war broke they were generally
regarded as rescuers, and what they mad
70 offer was promptly accepted IN most
cases. Many of these men were sent OUT
In the latter part of 1914 and early IN
1915 BIZ houses with no previous ex-
perience in Latin-American countries
A. result of the confusion in the
first months of the war business was
dull and uncertain with these mer-
chants. and they did not anticipate the
business activity which was sure TO
come as a result OF war demand ana
domestic prosperity. based on good
tyops and full-time employment OF our
people. They sought South American
business therefore, TO keep going, but
thew hardly began TO receive orders pc
fore the demand for goods at nome de-
veloped in q most extraordinary way
spd prices began TO climb. Az once
large numbers Of these firms became
less enthusiastic about Pan-Amerlcah
business, and sent notices TO their new
customers that the orders given IN good
fstn, with prices supposed TO be firm,
could not be accepted; that charges
would have 70 be higher; that instead
Of reasonable credits which the repre-
sentative talked about cash IN New
York would be necessary, or that the
goods offered so eagerly but little
while before could not be delivered at
any price and the orders would have TO
be cancelled. Houses with responsible
representatives in these countries or
those at home having previous expert
enee INDUCED in none of this conduct
but there is no use blinking at the fact
that many things Of this kind occurred