The Rock Island Argus and daily union. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1920-1923, 1920-12-21
u. S. HEAR
OF WORLDS
COMMERCE
Foreign Trade for 1920 Is
Reported Larger Than
Any Previous Year.

washington, lee. ll.-AHe UniIeu
States has been made the heart Of
the worlds business by the west
ward trend OF commercial affairs
and has reached the stage in its in
dustrial and commercial develop
men where the maintenance Of for
eign outlets is necessary to con-
tinued domestic prosperity, Director
r. s. MacElwee of the bureau Of
foreign and domestic commerce of
the department of commerce. an
nounced today in his annual report.
Declaring that the present stag
nation in the business world was
only a passing phase insofar as this
country was concerned, Director
MAcElwee urged that the develop
ment Of foreign markets be taken
up with renewed vigor.
Our foreign trade in the fiscal
year of 1920, with a total value of
81, 3,349. .661, ,401, was larger than in
any previous year." he said. 1T ex-
ceeded by $4,000, ,000, 900 the former
high record in 1919, and was more
than three times the value Of the
combined imports and exports in
1914, the last year before the war.
MANY people are more interested
now than they were year ago in
foreign commerce. There were a
few firms who had the foresight to
take out life insurance while they
were in good health. Others now
wish they had done so. The. only
real insurance that will spread the
risks OF -depression----.hstweea- the
crests of the waves of domestic de-
mand is the allc.ing of q substan-
tial quota of the firms product for
foreign commerce and the building
up in the worlds markets of SELL
ing organization and clientele that
will net necessarily fluctuate with
the waves Of demand at home.
Depression After War.
"A depression regularly follows a
great war, and its time Of occur
ence may be estimated, from his
torical analogies, as about two to
three years after the close of hos
tilities. We are not going to have
a panic in the United States, but
| we certainly feel the kind Of reac-
ton that the surgeons call shock
after an operation"
To meet the increased demands OF
business and carry on the work of
the bureau Of foreign and domestic
commerce $1,493,270swas asked of
congress for the next fiscal year.
That is an increase OF more than
half a million dollars over the pres
ent years appropriations. OF the
total for next year 81. 100000 would
be spent for commercial attaches
abroad and for the promotion Of
commerce.
It is proposed to double the num-
Der of commercial attaches making
"a, and to. increase the number of
trade commissioners abroad by II,
making total of Sc, while CONNER
cial agents would be tripled with a
total of 80. a..
Estimates include 100000 for
commercial attaches, 100000 for
promoting commerce in general,
$3.50, 900 for promoting commerce in
Central and South America and
$50 900 for promoting commerce in
the far east. The increased appro-
priations would permit greatly in
tensified development of markets
for American goods in Latin Amer
lea and the far east which are con-
sidered the most promising fields
for American commercial effort at
| this time, the report stated.
Traces Trade.
Going back 800 years, Director
MacElwee traced the center of COM
mercial supremacy from Phoenicia
westward to London where it had
been since between 1861 and 100
and said the last war had moved the
center Of commerce westward again
the predominant interests at the
present time Being on the Pacific
! in addition to the Atlantic. Analy-
! sis show, he said, the reason for
! the rise Of nations that successfully
dominated the worlds commerce to
be that they were situated at the
crossroads Of transportation; that
they developed their merchant ma
=, rine and a navy to protect it; that
they possessed the raw materials
needed to supply the wants Of man
and developed the artesans to shape
these raw materials into the form in
! which man could use them.
I'VE are spared out across the
paths Of the westerly movement in
i the destiny Of commerce." Director
MacElwee said. 'As to natural re-
sources and the skill of our artes.
ans. these need no comment. De.
spite high wages. Yankee ingenuit,
and American ability to organize
mass production with improved
labor-saving machinery have madi