The evening leader., 1918-10-31

ana ours be wholly removed by our
own establishment of resident trade
commissioners in about ten regions of
minor political Importance.
Instead of being content with thir-
ty travelling agents covering the en-
tire world, as last year, we are asking
now for thirty in Europe alone (when
the war is over), and as many more in
the Far East and South America.
"Our conception of the future for
eign trade and of the use OF our mer-
chant marine in connection with it is
that of service. We should think it
i'll to alte. the high ideals of mutual
service ncw prevailing during the war
into ideals Of mutual injury after the
war. Commerce is not in our thought
"a more humane species of strife but
in any vital understanding of it is a
matter of mutual exchange for mutual
benefit. Nor will it do to forget that
among our associates in the war are
those who have been at once the
source of supply for many needed
things and also our own largest Gus
toners.
"But our foreign technical service
must be reinforced and organized by
ia force ct Washington that can test
the work for scientific accuracy, unity
it, tabuiate it for comparison with
previous data, attach correct conclu-
sions, and put it into readable form
for your merchants. The bureau
should have for this purpose highly
competent statisticians, economists,
commodity specialists, customs ex-
Iperts, shipping advisers, and so forth;
without them the authority and help
fulness of your department of com
merce fails completely. Men Of such
grades receiving decent salaries OF
three to six thousand dollars are al
lowed to the regular government COM
missions and to some of the war
boards, whereas we are restricted to
salaries around eighteen hundred for
some of our best research men. AS a
result the bulk Of our work falls upon
overworked division administrators
who tire out and leave US"
Eventually, the convention was told,
the department of commerce should
have added to it a bureau of indus
trial practice that would aid in elm
mating waste in man power, time,
material, and overhead cost; also a
division Of material valuation, for
Studying the original sources, the
handling and the grades of foreign
and domestic materials, a division of
Information on internal waterways
|and railways, a division of distribu-
tion economy, and a division of cost
finding methods.
eve at Washington" explained Mr..
Cutler, ''are not so lost in the details
|of our daily routine that we do not
frequently lift our eyes to the COM
|mercial horizon and see new develop
|ments in prospect. The main purpose
back of our daily work and our plans
Tor the future is just this: We want
to give the commercial public steady
flow of trade and industrial informa-
ton, comprehensive, straight to the
point, and usable. Nor should it fail
ITO deal with every phase of business
where there is fundamental prob
lem. Without such helpfulness and ad-
|vice our business interests may be
Iou.stripped by European operators.
Fer we know that the European man.
ufacturer and merchant, under the
spur of war needs, has acquired habits
of scientific management that have
made him more efficient than ever be-
fore. During the last four years he
has been forced to measure with SEN
sitive scales his scanty resources in
men, materials, and time, and certain
ly our own producers must observe
the same rules of scientific precision
if they hope to hold their own in COM
petition. There is not the slightest
doubt of our ability to meet all COM
ers on an equal basis if we add to our
natural energy and ingenuity deter
mination to be guided by facts prop
erly ascertained and explained. No
agency is better able to discover and
collect the facts than the department
of commerce"