New Britain herald. [microfilm reel] (New Britain, Conn.) 1890-1976, 1918-12-24
COMMERCE BETWEEN
NATIONS DEVELOPS
From Two Billion in t848 to Fifty
Billion in 1913

New York. Dec 24-The chief
causes OF the growth Of international
commerce from less than $4,000. 000,-
600 in 1918 to pprUXimatcJy $50, 900
100000 in 1918 WAS the subject of a
lecture delivered last week before the
class in international trade and COM
mCrriai geography in the educational
department of the National City Bank
of Now York. Growth in population.
chea peninR in transportation, and a,
division Of labor among groups of
men the world over were, in the
opinion OF the lecturer, the chief
cs uses of this growth.
We can scarcely realize" he said
that man, who had only been able to
build up d world trade of S2,O00.O00,-
600 4 year in all the centuries of his
life upon the globe, should have
suddenly in one century increased it
to $4,000, 100000. When Daniel
bod, a Virginia engine builder. came
in 1878 to New York tl1cn a village of
10000 people, filled with the idea that
he could build an engine which
would drive a vessel across the Allan
tic and persuaded Francis FicI1el to
build the ship for him they Jointly
laid one section of the foundation for
the tremendous growth of world COM
merce. The other sections of the
foundation upon which words COM
merce has grown are the railroads,
the telegraphs. the telephones, and
the financial and banking systems"
1t was just one hundred years ago
that the little steamer The Savan-
NAH built in New York for the
transatlantic experiment. passed out
of New York to Savannah, Ga. which
port it left a few months later on it's
successful venture across the ocean,
to which the stea mship was up to that
time unknown BY 1854 world inter
national trade had grown to $4,000
100000, by 1900 it was $2O.00O,OOO.-
900, by 1913 $4,000, 900. 900, and in
the year just ending aggregated prob
ably $50,000,000. when measured
in the inflated currency of the present
period. Meantime world railways
had grown to $4,000 miles. It is
difficult to realize said the speaker,
that only one hundred years ago the
world had no steamship crossing the
ocean, not a mile of railway or a foot
Of telegraph or ocean cable while as
for telephones, wireless telegraphy or
flying machines they are the product
of the present generation.
During the century of power trans
portation-lS1S to, 1918--the world
steamships grew to about 10000, 900
net tons with q. value at the begin
ming Of the recent war of about
$4,000, 600, 600, aud the worlds rail-
roads had grown to 720, 900 miles with
value of probably S70.000,0OO,O00.
With the "a pid increase in gold pro-
duction in the last quarter cen fury.
the money of the world had grown
from $40, 100000, 900 in 1896 to about
81 5, 900, 600, 600 at the beginning of the
European War. Then with the neces-
Stty for ready currency which faced
each of the nations at war, came an
enormous imitation. and the worlds
money (incIuding the uncovered
paper"D is low about $4,000. 900, 600.
The banking power of the world
which estimated by accepted au-
thorities at less than 50 900, 00O. 900 in
1910, and 81 1000, 100000 in 1890, was
pro- a bly, ss5, 900, 900, 900 in 1914 and
has, Of course. enormously increased
during the war period, and banking
power is an extremely important fac
tor in world trade and rapidly in
creasing in Importance.
The prin cipal cause Of these ire
mendous International EXCHANGES
which have grown with such unexa1n-
pied rapidity within the last century
can be stated in a single and very
brief phrase--a division of labor. the
assignment to certain areas and their
peoples Of the production Of certain
articles for interchange in world
CONNIE cree It was found that certain
areas could produce wheat more sue
coSsfuIIy than certain other areas and
this was true also with reference 10
tho other great requirements Of man
corn, meats sugar. tea coffee. cotton.
wool silk, iron. copper. tin. lumber.
india rubber and manufactures-and
that tho respective areas especialIv
suited to the production Of these in
diVidua1 articles could produce them
much more readily and cheaplv than
could other countries requiring them.
especially If, by the develop, ont Of
cheap and plentiful transportation IA
cilities, these articles could be readily
moved from the place Of production to
the places whore required. Cost of
transportation has been so reduced
that a British workman could in 1910.
pay with one days labor the cost of
transporting a years supply of bread
and meat from the mississippi Valley
to his own door; and the application
Of power to farming had made it pos
si'ble in 1910 to produce A bushel Of
wheat with 10 minutes Of human la
Dor. against three hours of labor re-
auired to produce a bushel one hun
dred years earlier.