The Washington times., 1922-03-19
MONEY TRADE
Philippine Islands.
Empire Of Riches.
Abandoned By q. 3.
1urops's Progress.
6urope's Rrogress.



CHICAGO, March .ls.--Amsr1cans
are m sxtravasxnt nation. Even In
the hardest times thsy ars reckless
In handling their prosecutions. Mr..
Hoover says % every thirty days
but even Mr.. Hoover dossn't tell
half the story.
BY recent negotiations with other
nations and the treaties now In the
Senate, the Philippine Islands havs
bsen cut OF from tbe Cnlted
States, and left almost helpless
within reach and inf1uence Of Japan
and 0ngiand. Even 0snators whip
oppose the treaties seem to reGAre
them ~ too trivial 70 b oonsidered.
either ~ TO their preesnt wealth
or future development.
Only the politics Of the islands
msnt. Otherwise no curiosity or
viewpoint, any other COUNTRY would
regard such negligence a. next door
to commercial lunacy. Whyf
Becauss hsfs u q mdne Of natural
wealth, resources and opportunity
such a. NO othsr nation on earth
would leave undsvsloped.
The total wealth Of these islands
u nearly 5000. ooo. 900. The for
ests alone would cover the whole
State Of Illinois and q larger part
Of Indi9nar-all disable timbsr, and
owned by the United States Gov
srnmlsnt. On the 5000 ISLANDS only
one-tenth of the land II cultivated.
and yet this cultivated land u
worth nearly &34o. 900. 900.
Ernn1no ~ R2choa.
A. Dewey said. the islands are
an empire Of riches: They are
nearly - large a. Great Britain
territory ~ Austria, Belgium. IIoi-
land. Switzerland. Latvia and Lth-
uania combined. They nave -
much unused and undeveioped re-
sources a. all Of them together.
New Zealand II only q little larger,
6aghallin only Q third a. large. and
Formosa only one-eighth their sire.
Rather than lose New Zealand,
England would fight the world, and
her business men would support her
In the war. Rather than give up
Saghalin. Japan risks war with Rus
sia- And a. for Formosa, the jap
anese would defy any power. East
or West, to take tho Islands from
them. Yet the American people,
through their Government. seem
willing to let their $4,000, 900, 900
property In the Philippine Islands
slip away, pass within the reach and
influence Of foreign powers, and
make little effort to retain this
great commercial. industrial, and
agricultural prise But there u
moro TO the story Of American buG.
ness. American Government, and
the fate of the Philippines than ID
told by the foregoing figures.
Not only ~ this six-billion dollar
property left unprotected In our pres
ent negotiations with foreign ma
tons. but on account Of foolish laws
and weak business policies ut Wash
iheton this same property has been
abandoned largely TO the use and
profit Of foreigners in the last twenty
years. On this subject the Bankers
Economic Service makes Q report In
its latest bulletin.
European Capital Leads.
The business Of the islands ID
almost entirely In foreign hands,
says the report. European capital
In the islands stiil outweishs Ameri.
can" and this condition 10 due 10
the fact that foreign investors enjoy
protection Of their respective ''"n.
sulates." while American investors
enjoy no such protection" In EVIL.
dence, the report cites some OF the
figures already given.
BY such unbusinesaiike work, Il ID
brought to pass that Great Britain q
Investments in the Philippines have
grown to $500. 900. 900. while Amcri.
cas- investments are little more than
half that amount.
In . word. the American people
have . property Of $4,000, 900, 900
which they abandon largely to for
eign capitalists. Where foreign CAPT.
| talists fail to work II. the Americans
let Il for the most part lie Idle BE-
cause they are discouraged by their
Government from doing the business