South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1919-03-17
FOREIGN TRADE IS
NOW ENCOURAGED
SeC'y RedfieId is Rendering
Business Much Service in
Foreign Countries.

While American business interests
are talking Of trade expansion. mer-
chant marine. and other phases OF
foreign commerce. the popular mind
is apt TO conclude that the United
States. as government. has been
doing nothing to encourage foreign
trade. As a matter of fact the de-
partment OF commerce has been
comfortably busy during the war.
to say the least. and IL is now rem
dering the business of the United
States such service in foreign coun-
tries as has not been excelled in
value and efficiency by any admin
istration va the nations history
Sec'y Reddeld OF the department Of
commerce. was one Of the speakers
before the governors and mayors
conference held i'm Washington the
first Of this month There was no
unusual enthusiasm i'm the greeting
extended 10 him. but there was an
extraordinary demonstration when
he ceased talking for ne held the
conference interested with accounts
of what the department had been
doing i'm foreign fields-activities OF
which few people, other than men
engaged in foreign business, know
much about
Departments Duty
ut is the duty under the law
governing the department Of com
merce." said Sec'y Redfeld, Ito fos-
ter. promote and develop the com
merce OF the United States. Our
function is to do that for business
and industry which the agricultural
department does for the farmer and
which the labor department so adj
mirably does for labor. The singular
business does not understand that
10 be so. AS il is, business crowds
us every day with problems far be
vond our power TO deal with ef-
fectively: and yet every day we run
across men Of affairs who have no
knowledge whatever of the fact that
there is a powerful friend OF bust
ness whose duty it is to serve com
merce. whose duty it is not to serve
anything else but commerce. for
them At work in washington.
Scc'y Redfeld then explained 10
the conference that the department
had commercial attaches all over the
world for the sole purpose OF serv-
ing American commerce free. As
indicative of the work these gov
eminent commercial agents are do
ing. free, for private business, the
secretary cited the following:
Yesterday there came TO my desk
a letter from one OF the largest
manufacturing concerns of the kind
in Pennsylvania 1t was "A letter OF
appreciation of the aid of the COM
mercial attache in that city securing
an order. the first instalment of
which was 100000. the second in
stalment OF which was $3.50, O00-all
of which would cost the company
that got il. nothing whatever.
Ten days ago there came from an
American manufactures this. That
two of his customers in Mexico had
written cancelling orders They
amounted 10 $4,000. but upon
bringing the matter before the trade
commissioner of the United States in
Mexico City the cancellations had
been withdrawn and the work was
90 proceed. In New England
year or more ago question arose
OF "a very large contract for the
equipment of two cotton mills in
Shanghai. The business had always
been controlled by other firms in
Great Britain but i'm Massachusetts
there arose men with certain inA-
cuce. which always commend them
selves TO me. namely, an entire will
ingness to believe that he could
compete with anybody if he had "a
chance am a manufacture my
SELF. and 7 have never had any use
FOR the manufacturer who said ne
could not compete with a foreigner
ON his own soil. The Massa-
chusetts man sent his salesman TO
shanghai 10 go among strangers
Not az all. To meet a gentleman
named Arnold. maintained there for
the purpose. whose business il was
20 understand the Chinese commerce
from the inside. TO be introduced by
him 20 the officials of the Chinese
government. whose mills these We're.
Through that instrumentality. in the
course OF very rev weeks, an OF
der amounting TO several millions
of dollars was placed and executed
i'm little town in eastern Massa-
chuSettS
Secy Redfeld said that in years
before the war the business obtained
% ythe department for American
F business interests and without cost
+ to the latter. would approximate nifty
million dollars a year. In IL Of the
, great commercial centers OF the
world the department now has able
commercial men looking out for or
ders for American concerns.
FIRE DIES GRONS STATION.
ATLANTA. Ca, March 1.-THE
& Southern railway freight transfer