Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1919-06-15

at right prices from the American fac
tories. must be fostered. Diplomacy in
foreign trade. as recently explained in
these columns, is looking to aroustng
the good will of the several nations
toward the United States and doing
this as far as possible by suggesting
how commerce Of mutual advantage
can be engaged in. Standardization of
goods shipped from this country gives
the foreign buyers something depend
able on which to base orders and to
ity. Cancellation must retain the ad-
vantages gained through diplomacy.
Standardization and the personal serv-
ices Of consuls. commercial attaches.
trade commissioners and the rest Of
the army of overseas agents OF the
|, government.
To develop successfully and perma-
rangement Is necessary
Settling for settling disputes
Mt. that will invariably
AsPuses' arise in all buying, es-
pecially until absolute confidence Of
the parties has been established. The
and the organised efforts Of the Ameri-
can commercial leaders to develop
foreign trade on q scale the world
never dreamed Of before mako this
all the more necessary. In the face of
an open world competition q work.
able system of arbitration or concil-
iation ts necessary in each of the
foreign centers to which goods are
to be shipped.
The fundamental difficulty at pres
emit. as pointed out In an official re-
port by one Of this country's best COM
mercial attaches. e. w. Thompson a,
er as a rule honestly believes the
goods he ships are exactly according
to the orders received. Likewise the
average large foreign buyer honestly
believes in his own judgment concern
Ing the goods when they arrive. These
honest opinions are often at variance.
A few standard organizations. like
the London Corn Exchange, have been
successfully utilized in some special
commodities which have standard
specifications. But even in the best
cases an arbitration at q distance
leaves traces of dissatisfaction which
initiate against future relations.
To reconcile successfully opposite
opinions on opposite sides Of the
ocean, 1t Is necessary 10
Unified have some unified agency
a with Offices on each side
Agency. in which local influences
and acquaintanceship can INSPIRE con-
fidence in the decisions. This agency
toh< he do
partment Of a largo New York hnan-
cial institution already having
branches or Offices in important for
eign centers. This department should
have such a staf that the report Of
the foreign agent on tho character of
any given American shipment, on ar
rival at destination. will be consid-
cred authoritative and, above all, trust
worthy-in other words. they would
hand down their decisions a. trade
judges. -.
It is proposed that sales might be
made under q standard clause some
think like all differences to be ar
bitrated and settled through the IN
ternational adjusting agency" Such
clause might be stamped on the
draft in a way to automatically bind
both drawer and drawee, wherever and
however negotiated.
A difference between buyer and
seller may be: ~ Only financial.
legal and commercial: or co techni-
cal Financial. legal and commercial
differences may easily be arbitrated
by some existing committee Of the
chamber Of commerce or similar or
ganixation at the place of destination.
The important point would be To
haye the adjusting agency represented
on this committee. or at least In a
position to review the findings
Al TO technical differences, each of
the foreign agency branches should
ind in it's locality some
Experts responsible expert in each
line Of merchandise whom
Neo01u' 1t could call in on .occa-
sion and pay q fee to examine any
given question. Generally speaking. q
technical dispute would involve (a)
a physical or chemical question as to
the competition Of the article: o. a
mechanical question, such Is the
adaptability Of the article for the
purpose intended. Disputes relating