The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1917-02-15
PENSACOLA'S OPPORTUNITY.

FENSANOLAS OFFOR1ONl1 I.
Industrial preparedness is term which
In its restricted sense indicates possibility
of war; but industrial preparedness, in its
/ full meaning, is the pot of gold at the rain
bows foot towards which the government
of the United States began to struggle be-
fore political jealousies fired the world with
/ a lust to lill-the industrial preparedness
/ of peace.
Had the South In general and Pensacola
in particular believed in industrial pre-
paredness, had they hardened to the COM
mercial recruiting of the department of
commerce, they would have been. able to re-
sist the blow which crushed business two
and half years ago.
But as the mountain would not go to
l'Mohammed, Mohammed must needs go to
the mountain Or, expressed in more work
aday language, the recent visit of E. E.
Judd, commercial agent of the bureau OF
foreign and domestic commerce of the de-
partment of commerce, has emphasized to
Pensacola business men the many trade OPP
portunities that are simply waiting to be
picked up-dollars crying to be rescued!
Mr.. Judd is in charge of the New Orleans
office-the second established in the United
States, by the way-in which district is in
free Other bureaus are located throughout
the United States, and their purpose is to
Keep in touch with the various commercial
interests of the country, supply statistics
regarding foreign markets, and help the
export and manufacturing interests.
Drop a plumb line from Pensacola and
grazing Yucatan it will hit plump in the
center of Honduras Give it a forty-five
& IL, ~
lengthening the radius, 1t touches Vera
Cruz, importing center of Mexico. Incline
the angle very slightly to the east, and bare
ly missing Cuba, it will hit the Panama
canal.
Latin Americal East and west coast
that's our obvious market-the great new
world that offers more opportunities than
the newly discovered America to the Eliz.
abethan merchant princes-a country
which is only sparsely settled along the
coast and rivers, and whose interiors have
hardly been explored that needs every
thing in unbelievable quantities.
To satisfy this demand when develop
rnent really begins in Latin America, enor
nous factories will be built all over thu
South This, however, will hardly be in OH
day, because our own country must first b.
developed before we can send colonists ant
capitalists further south. But in the mean
time, exporting interests can be profitabl,
established here and magnificent mari
time commerce built between here ant
Latin America.
Lumber, ominously enough, has been OH
one thought-no wonder that when tn
world began to plan in terms of bullets, on
house of business, builded upon the sands
crumbled before the tide of war. Not onl
lumber, but machinery, textiles, feed, rope
harness, barbed wire, guns, jewelry, walk
ing sticks, umbrellas, canned goods, glas
and china, furniture, ice boxes, shoes, oil:
clothes, coal, pianos, stoves, nails, cement
p1ows, drugs, railroads. boats, plumbing
there is nothing you can name that Lati
America does not need. She has been buy
ing it all from Europe and New York
mainly Europe. That market cut off, re
mains only the United States Withor
fighting New Yorbs trade-though W
have 2,000-mile advantage in proximity
we have the opportunity now of winnin
Europe's share, and will have it for sever;
years after the war. And of all the Soutl
Pensacola by reason of its harbor and loo;
ton, is best suited to be the headquarters
for the trade campaign, and the commerc
bureau in New Orleans will give US til
password that will enable us to gain Ell
trance through the enemy's linesl