Our Achievements and Prospects: American

It is easy to see that Europe, with its overcrowded populations, its more difficult and almost insoluble problems, and with the limitations imposed upon development and opportunity by its closely peopled territories, must advance in wealth and material prosperity and the bettering of the condition of the masses by destructive revolutions or by processes which are painfully slow. The United States, with a country capable of supporting a population ten times in excess of that with which the new century opens, with its transportation so perfected that it can be quickly extended as necessity may require, with its institutions so elastic that expansion strengthens instead of weakening the powers of the government and the cohesion of its States, will advance by leaps and bounds to the first place among the nations of the world, and to the leadership of that humanitarian civilization which is to be perfected by people speaking the English tongue.

The great dominating fact that forces itself upon the attention of the outer world when America is mentioned is our commercial progress. It stares every commercial nation in the face like a haunting spectre. The foreign trader, economist, or statesman cannot read his local newspaper without being startled by new proofs of the irresistible invasion of his markets by American merchants. The great powers that have lived in the comfortable delusion of everlasting security against the inroads of harmful trade competition, have these few years been rudely awakened from their repose. Wars for territorial conquest have not ceased, but the weapons and aims have taken on a new and pacific-looking aspect. Where kings used to fight for kingdoms and keep shifting the frontier lines on maps, the captains of industry and princes of trade now cross the seas on grand crusades of commerce, with national markets and new fields in the remotest quarters of the most primitive old world for their battle-fields, and the practical civilization of neglected races for their aim and reward. What may be the chief stimulating causes of this striking expansion of American commercial mission-work it is not our province to ascertain. The chronicles of progress are our present concern. Enough for the immediate purpose that the broad field be fairly surveyed, not microscopically, for that would be as unprofitable as it is impracticable, but surveyed from the standpoint of an observant patriot, proud to see how the throbbing inventive and productive activity of his country - the youngest in the family of great nations - is astounding the elder branches by the boldness of its triumphal march along the highways of the old world.

Statistics may be uninviting to the general reader, though they can be so presented as to unfold the real fascination existing in the simple facts of our progressive life. It is only by comparing past and present data that we can rightly see and comprehend our progress, or retrogression. To attempt to convey an adequate realization of our commercial advance during the decade between any two censuses without citing figures, would fail in the main object of the effort, which is to enable the reader to get a firmer grasp of the situation by working out for himself the salient facts.

The first broad view of recent trade growth is best gained by a deliberate study of the following statistical statement, showing the increase of our export sales of manufactured goods in foreign markets. Two points are to be kept in mind; first, the increase of population from sixty-two millions in 1890, to seventy-six millions in 1900; and, second, note that foodstuffs are not included in the statement, unless the single item of malt liquors may come under that head.

This table shows the exportations of principal manufactures, arranged in the order of magnitude, in the fiscal year 1900, including all whose value in that year exceeded $1,000,000, and compares the exports of 1890 with those of 1895 and 1900:

Articles Exported from the United States. 1890. 1895. 1900.

Iron and steel and manufactures of $25,542,208 $32,000,989 $121,858,344

Oils, mineral, refined 44,658,854 41,498,372 68,246,949

Copper manufactures 2,349,392 14,468,703 57,851,707

Leather and manufactures of 12,438,847 15,614,407 27,288,808

Cotton manufactures 9,999,277 13,789,810 23,890,001

Agricultural implements 3,859,184 5,413,075 16,094,886

Chemicals, drugs, etc 5,424,279 8,189,142 13,196,638

Wood manufactures 6,509,645 6,249,807 11,230,978

Paraffine and paraffine wax 2,408,709 3,569,614 8,602,723

Fertilizers 1,618,681 5,741,262 7,218,224

Scientific instruments 1,429,785 2,185,257 6,431,301

Paper and manufactures of 1,226,686 3,953,165 6,215,559

Tobacco manufactures 3,876,045 Not stated 6,009,646

Fibres, vegetable, manufactures of 2,094,807 2,316,217 4,438,285

Bicycles Not stated 1,912,717 3,551,025

Books, maps, and engravings 1,886,094 1,722,559 2,941,915

Carriages and horse-cars 2,056,980 1,514,336 2,809,784

Starch 378,115 366,800 2,604,362

Cars for steam railways 2,689,689 868,378 2,554,907

India rubber and gutta percha manufactures 1,090,307 1,505,142 2,364,157

Spirits, distilled 1,633,110 2,991,686 2,278,111

Vegetable oils (except cotton and linseed) 326,227 491,436 2,162,759

Malt liquors 654,408 558,770 2,137,527

Clocks and watches 1,695,136 1,204,005 1,974,202

Musical instruments 1,105,134 1,115,727 1,955,707

Glass and glassware 882,677 846,381 1,933,201

Paints and colors 578,103 729,706 1,902,058

Gunpowder and other explosives 868,728 1,277,281 1,888,741

Brass manufactures 467,313 784,640 1,866,727

Soaps 1,109,017 1,092,126 1,773,921

Marble and stone manufactures 729,111 885,179 1,677,169

Zinc manufactures 156,150 237,815 1,668,202

Wool manufactures 437,479 670,226 1,253,602

Here are the total imports for the same years, important to consider alongside the above statement. In 1890 we imported, value in round numbers, $789,000,000, our exports being $68,000,000 in excess of our imports. In 1895 we imported $732,000,000, our exports being $75,000,000 in excess. In 1900 we imported $850,000,000, and our exports were $1,394,000,000, being $544,000,000 in excess of our imports.