White Bluffs spokesman. [volume] (White Bluffs, Wash.) 1907-1938, 1926-12-03

is urged by j. j. Underwood in his
report to the trustees of the Seattle
Chamber of Commerce when he re-
turned from two months trip to
Japan and China early in November.
Mr. Underwood is in charge of the
Washington Bureau of the Seattle
Chamber of Commerce and this sum-
mer was recalled to the West and
sent to the Far East to investigate
possibilities for further developments
of Pacific Northwest trade in that
field. His trip was cut short by two
weeks on account of illness and he
was unable to visit Tientsin and Har-
bin.
In his report he declares that it is
clearly apparent that Americas fu
ties and the development of the mer-
chant marine, lies in China and the
Philippines more than in Japan. He
points out that Japan is rapidly be-
coming manufacturing nation and
the Japanese are learning to manu-
facture for themselves the products
they now import from the United
States. Japan, he says, has it's own
ships to carry such commodities as
it exports and imports. China is with
out such ships, and the Philippines is
American territory. 1t is therefore,
he says, in the latter two countries
that the greatest commercial future
lies in the Far East
In his report Mr.. Underwood con-
tinues:
"The commission of Seattle bust
ness men who visited the Orient last
year created very favorable impress
sion among the business men of the
Far East and drew great deal of at
tention to the fact that there is
unity of interest between those coun-
tries and Seattle. / believe that an
other commission should visit the
Orient in the near future.
II found that little business comes
to Seattle from the ports tributary
to Manila and Shanllhai from the
southwark. The fact is that there are
no manufacturing plants in Seattle
using the products of the Far East
and the countries tributary thereto
meaning all ports between Manila
and Columbo.
"In one group of shipments that
looked up l found that out of $500
tons, only five tons were destined to
Seattle. Another thing that initiates
against our procurement of westbound
cargoes is the fact that many for
warding agencies have been estab-
lished in both San Francisco and Van
couver, B. c., while practically none
have established in Seattle.
slightly less than 100000 tons of
rubber moves from the above-men-
toned southern ports to the Atlantic
seaboard, about 60 per cent of it going
through Suez and 40 per cent of it
through Panama. The rate from
Singapore to Akron via either the
Suez or Panama Canal is $21.92 per
ton. The combined rate from Pa
cific Coast ports to Akron is $2260,
leaving differential of &c. / be-
lieve that some efforts should be
made to procure part of this business
through the ports of Vancouver, Seat
tie, Portland and San Francisco. This
would have to be brought about, how
ever by conference with the steam
ship companies.
Another thing that would tend to
increase business would be the estab-
lishment of government cable from
Sitla to the Far East by way of the
Aleutian Islands, this cable terminal
ing at Manila with "Y' running to
Shanghai and Yokohoma or Kobe. The
present cable system is frequently in
terrupted because of grinding on the
corals between Midway Island and
Guam. An effort also should be
made to have press messages carried
to and from the Far East either by
or cable at very reduced
rate.
"What is really needed in the Far
East is a good press agent"
Representative of the Golden
Gate district have been selling San
Francisco to the Far East for at least |
seven years and they have made a
god job of it. Portland maintained a
man at Shanghai for three years.
talked to representatives of the Cham
bers of Commerce at both Manila and
Shanghai and in tentative way they
agreed to come in on definite prop
osition of attracting tourists from the
United States to China and the Philip
pines. They expressed the opinion
hat the Japanese also would be will
ng to come in on some plan of that
Kind if a definite program is worked
out. There is no doubt that years of
the Sunshine route to the
Orient has redounded to the benefit of
san Francisco.
Zone of the ways in which that
could be combatted would be the es-
Adjustment of stop at some point
n Alaska and we could then adver-
Use trips to the Far East via the
land of the Midnight Sun. OF course,