The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1920-09-24
SECOND SECTION
UNITED STATES MORE DEPENDENT
 UPON TROPICS

The increasing reliance of the United States upon the tropics for food and manufacturing material is evidenced by the fact that over three billion dollars worth of tropical and sub-tropica1 products entered Conti- mental United States in the fiscal year 1920 against less than one bil- lion dollars worth i'll 1913, and less than half billion in 1900. Of course, says a statement of the National City Bank of New York in discussing this closer relation of the United States with it's neighbors in the tropics, some part of this tremendous in crease is due to the high cost of but nevertheless it is fact that the quantity of tropical products consum- ed in the United States has tremen- dously increased and seems likely to go on increasing, irrespective of high and still advancing prices. For ex- ample, the quantity of cane sugar, all tropical, of course, entering Con tinental United States in the fiscal year 1920 was nearly 1-2 billion pounds against little more than 1-2 billions in the immediately pre- ceding year and less than six mil ly tropical, the quantity imported in the fiscal year 1920 was 1,40O, 100000 pounds against one billion year earlier and only s71,00o,oo0 in 1910. Cocoa, also exclusively tropical, shows a total of 420,O0O,00O pounds in the imports of 1920 against 109,- 0O0,0 in 1910.- Cocoanut oil, now 50 largely used for food purposes in in pounds in 1920 against 4S,000,000, 900 in 1910, and all of these at much higher prices than heretofore. In manufacturing material, the in- creasing demands upon the tropics are quite a sstriking as in those of foodstuffs Of in6ia-rubber, strictly tropical, the imports in 1920 were 632, ,000 pounds, in 1910 only the imports into this greatest cot were in 1920 s45,ooo,ooo pounds against S6,0O0,000 in 1910; of raw tropical climate, the 1920 imports were 47,00O,000 pounds against 2o,- 1 100000 in 1910; tobacco, 94,000,000 pounds in 1920 against 47,0O0,00O in 1910.
 This icrease in quantities imported has been made despite tremendous advances in prices meantime. The average price of raw sugar imported from foreign countries in the fiscal year 1920 was Sc per pound against 1910, yet the quantity imported '. 1920 was, as already shown, more than 50 per cent in excess of that ol 1910. Coffee imported in 1920 aver
 
 | less than Sc per pound in 1910, yet lthe quantity imported in 1920 was 60 | per cent greater than in 1910. Cocoa | imports in 1920 average 17c per l yet the quantity imported in 1920 Was l four times as great as in 1910. Raw silk imports in 1920 average $9.3C per pound against an average o1
 sS.21 in 1910, yet the quantity i'm ported in 1920 was double that ol 1910. Raw cotton imported in 1926 averaged for the full year 42c pei pound against about 1Sc per poun- 1 in 1910, yet the quantity imported ir 1920 was four times as much as il 1910, irrespective of the fact that the
 price per pound had advanced 15( l per cent.
 These figures of the increasing i'm
 portation of tropical products ir- 1 pective of the advance in price 1 plain in some degree at least the fac | that we are now sending to the trop ical and sub-tropical world thre
 billion dollars a year to purchase it
 over half billion dollars a. decad ago.
 Happily, continues the bank statement, our tropical friends hay
 apparently recognized the increase Ii
 our calls upon them for their natura
 products and are reciprocating thi
 attitude by a large increase in thei
 takings of our products. Manufact
 ures of all sorts and certain food
 stuffs, especially meats, condense r milk, and flour, are the principal i'm portations into the tropics, and ii people are steadily and rapidly in l creaSing their use of these article as produced in the United States. Tn value of our exports to the tropics world in the fiscal year 1920 aggre gated, in round terms, nearly tw billion dollars against less than ha a billion in 1910.
 It is announced from Washington b t party leaders that President Wilso