The Bottineau courant. (Bottineau, Bottineau County, N.D.) 1895-1929, 1922-12-28
Opens
Way to Battle

detour by way of the Kiel canal. The
Germans have been contending that
the Treaty of Versailles does not re-
quire the opening of the KEEL canal to
international shipping, and the coun-
Gil of ambassadors has decided to turn
the question owe to the International
COurt of Justice at The Hague. Any
way, the kiel canal, built mainly for
military purposes, has been
much Of a t~hOroughfare for merchant
men. The establishment of the new
Baltic states, Finland. Esthonia, Lat
via, Lithuania and Poland, some of
which recently have excavated their
harbors for deep-draught %freighters,
has made the new Baltic market
important than ever before.
Prior to the wal this market was of
small interest to the United States.
Except for Denmark and Sweden. it
was dominated commercially by Ger
many, American imports were neg
ligible, and the Stars and Stripes were
seldom seen in the Baltic. All this
has been changed. Copenhagen. the
gateway to the Baltic, is now entered
by an American vessel every fourth
day, on an average, the year round.
Most of the American exports there
still go to Sweden and Denmark. For
the fiscal year of 1922, Denmark i'm
ported $3.50 900 worth of American
goods and Sweden $4,000 600. Little
as it is realized in this country Den
mark is as good a customer as, for
instance. the Brazilian republic whose
imports from the United States for the
last fiscal year amounted to $685.
600, 600.
The United States shipping board,
the more important New York banks,
many export and import firms. and
other large American business con-
Germs have general agencies and their
own representatives in Copenhagen.
Secretary Hoover's representative,
Magnus Swensson, when he went to
Europe to supervise the distribution of
American fOodstuffs in Scandinavia
and the Baltic countries unhesitating-
ly chose Copenhagen for his distribut-
ing center. The same conditions which
determined this choice logically point
toward important cooperation between
American exporters and Danish mer.
chants. The American gets along very
| well with the Dane, as a rule.
Americans directly interested under.
stand the Importance Of the great
market around the Baltic sea. Den.
mark and northeastern Germany,
Sweden, and northern Russia are the
old Baltic trading places, but since
the war rapid development has over
come some backward conditions In
Finland, Estbonia, Latvia, Lithuania
and Poland. Combining an area as
great as that of France and the United
Kingdom and a population only a few
millions less than that Of France
these new republics will have to be
reekoned with.
For the great future trade of the
whole Baltic region Denmark is max
ing preparations and improving the
port of Copenhagen, which Is the OAR
daneI1es of the north, the port being
convenient for transshipment, storage
and w~arehousing. Large steamers
bound for the Baltic with cargoes fol-
several ports find it improbable to &c
unloading from harbor to another
They use Copenhagen as q port Of
transshipment, where there are nc
duties to pay for goods I'm transit, and
whence they can have their cargoes
distributed 10 the various ports Of uItI
mate destination by the regular route
! vessels.