Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-10-25
DEPRESSION BARES NEED
FOR WORLD COOPERATION
Spirit Seen in Western Europe Recently
Also Manifested by Proposal for
Pan-American Trade Body.

| chambers of commerce or private in
| duStrial interests in the Western Henri
| sphere. With two ends in view: The
! promotion OF inter- American trade and
| the solution of numerous financial and
economic problems which confront to-
| day every one OF the countries on this
side of the Atlantic.
The idea is not entirely new. It was
recommended before by the convention
of the International Chamber of Com
merce which met in Washington sew
eral months ago. In that case. how
ever, 1t was not the creation of a new
| organiZat ton but the extension of the
activities of the International Chamber
of Commerce to Latin America what
! was heartily Endorsed.
Speaking before the International
Chamber, Senior Cohen of Chile stated
! at that time: Coordination and CO.
| operation appear to be utterly indis-
| penSable to weather out the present
| depression and to insure greater sta
bility for the future both through the
elimination of wasteful trade methods
and the enactment of legislation to
protect the domestic and international
, development of business"
And then he pointed out that this
was the task of private commerce.
stressing the danger that some govern
| mentS, due to non-eXiStence of COM
mercial bodies, may be reluctantly
forced to enter the field of business in
an attempt to carry out constructive
policy of reorganization in times of
crisis.
To this the International Chamber
of Commerce answered by recommend
ing the establishment of national
branches of the chamber in the Latin
American capitals.
Already Emphasized.
But even before the International
Chamber of Commerce, and certainly
before the Pan-American Commercial
Conference, advised cooperation as the
medicine for stricken inter- American
trade, another group of business lead
erS from North, Central and South
America had already emphasized the
Importance of unified action and made
provisions for the establishment of an
organization very much along the lines
which those two conferences later rec
| commended.
In September Of last year non
official conference of business men
gathered in Sacramento, Calf, under
the name of First Pan-American Re
ciprocal Trade Conference" The pro-
motors of this conference stressed its
ulO1lClal character THIS was W be Dut
friendly meeting OF producers, fruit
growers, representatives of trade bodies
| and commercial associations and all
others interested in the development of
markets for the products of the Amer
lean countries, with no official charac-
ter whatsoever"
AS I pointed out at the time, this
was a gathering of business men who
we're not interested in finding out who
started the Mexican American war or
! who sent the Marines to Nicaragua
Out of their open frank deliberations,
something really constructive was ex-
pected so long as political obstacles
were not in their way as they had been
in that of previous official conferences.
At the close of the conference the
creation of a Pan American Institute
Of Reciprocal Trade" was announced.
The purposes OF this new organization
were thus summarized: To prepare
later conferences; to further the carry
ing out of resolutions and recommends
tons Of said conferences; to establish
active, permanent relations with al
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