Evening star., 1924-03-01
NEED OF ORGANIZATION
TO GET FOREIGN TRADE
Head Of Steel Corporation Sho,cs the
Necessity of Commerce
With Other Lands.

few OF our industries, which employ
many thousands Of men and women
and disburse a great many millions
OF dollars annually in wages, which
are dependent upon foreign sources
for their raw materials.
No rubber, for instance, Is produced
IN this country. but there are mani
fold uses for il among our people.
Crude rubber to he value of some
thing like a hundred million dollars
is imported annually. We produce
68 per cent of all the cotton grown III
the world and consume 81 per cent or
1t, but there are more plants for the
manufacture of silk in this country
than there are for the manufacture Of
cotton, and no raw silk Is produced
here.
Block or pig tin is used in the man
ufacture of tin plates. The entire
food canning industry Is dependent
upon this article for the preserva-
tion and packing of food; vet we are
dependent on the Straits settlements,
China and Tasmania for our tin.
Would Mean Reorganization.
Suppose for a moment. merely for
the sake of illustration, that sone
elemental catastrophe were to remove
any of the countries producing ma
terials not found in this country. A
vast reorganization of our industry,
our commerce and oGr life would be
merce and industry stop? Not at all.
The reorganization would he made
and We would go on with intensified
energy in new directions.
Does that not suggest the wisdom
and the importance of taking steps
now voluntarily in the same direction
that such a disaster would compel
us to take? There never was time
in the history Of this country in
which opportunities were greater for
1F raI raf1 fy.
the absorbing and fascinating work
Of developing new sources Of supplies
and new business in our products.
The figures of our foreign commerce
indicate that there is ALREADY in
creased activity IN non-Europeau
markets. Exports particularly or
manufactured articles. to Europe have
been decreasing, but similar exports
to other countries have been lncreas-
ing There are those who seem TO
think that this result IS -, only tempo
rary, ard due TO the diminssion OF Ger
man trade following the occupation
of the Ruhr. 1t may be, however. thar
there is an element or permanent ue-
velopment in il. Certainly il Is II"
part of wisdom for US TO strive I"
make it permanent.
For we must Keep il constantly JH
mind that conditions Of daily life il:
this country compel US, whether W"
consciously will ii so or not, to main
tain a certain amount OF foreign trad"
in order to keep our own people Re
muneratively occupied, and to supply ,
them with the things they need and
want.
This compelling impulse toward for
efgn trade will go on and intensity
1t is as we are successful IN our ei
fort to make permanent advance III
the newer markets. TO which we have
not been devoting the same attention
that we have given to our trade with
Europe, that we shall gain lasting
Improvement in our whole trade. with
corresponding benefit to all our peo-
pie.
Difficulties Not Insuperable.
There are elements of difficulty in
this program. Let us not forget that
very often the overcoming of diff
culties lends zest to the effort. Some
of these difficulties are more than
little puzzling. We shall meet the
competition of other trading nations
that feel, as we do, the necessity Of
expanding their trade. For the pres
ent. and as. long as conditions OF in
, ffation continue, especially among tne
more active of the industrial nations.
we suffer under the handicap of their
lower productive costs.
This is particularly true in Ger
many. where in the last few years the
chief lnuuSlTIdl pid4lNS nav PttIA ''A
! their bonds and mortgages in depre-
ciated currency and are free from that
! important element of overhead. 9th
er nations may have different eIe-
ments of advantage. Be GUM ana
France have it to a lesser extent. The
British, for instance, have more wide
spread systems of communication and
, more greatly ramified financial insti-
futions with which to serve their in
ternationai commerce.
The development of such facilitles
should occupy part of our effort We
have proved, in numerous lines, our
effectiveness in organization of pro
duction. No doubt we can demonstrate
a similar effectiveness in organization
for distribution, and this is phase
of foreign trade of paramount import
ance. Possession of effective ply
agencies of commerce is of the great
est value. Production Is the nrst'
others are transportation, communi-
cation and finance. We need eihcient
American organization in all.