Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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Proposed Annexation of Hawaii. SPEECH OK HON. JAMES NORTON: OK SOUTH CAROLINA, In the House of Representatives, Saturday, June 11, 1S9S. j ^ IJ/v.,rta Uovtrt/v nn/lar nnncir]. 1 X 11C J lUUJt AJU> uuuvi vviijiu j eration the joint resolution CH. Kes. 259) to provide for annexing the Hawaiian Islands to the United; States? Mr. Norton of South Carolina said: Mr. Speaker: We have listened with attention to a great deal ol 1 learning upon the subject of the principles which should actuate us ; in our foreign relations, and it ha* been with surprise that we have heard it stated that the policy ot 1 the fathers of the Republic was, opposed to territorial extension, j One of the first acts after the Re- i public was an endeavor to induce 1 Canada to become a part of the United States. A few years latei we trebled our territory by the' purchase of the Province of Louis-, lana, and a short time afterwards, lino Ktifnr^ harl titnp tf> flevelob 'W4fe ' the Province of Louisiana, we bought Florida. it is contended that these were all a part of the main continents,j which, of course, is true. But as early as 1809 Thomas Jefferson : wrote to President Madison concerning the acquisition of Cuba: It will be objected to our receiv l ing Cuba that 110 limit canthen be drawn to our acquisitions, i Cuba can bCoSenued by us with-' out a navy, and this develops tin 1 principle which ought to limit oui 1 views. When the United States was too young and too poor to own a navy, it was a wise policy thai limited our acquisition ot territory to that which we could detenu without a navy. The early father^ ; believed in an extension of tern-1 tory, but did not believ e in adding j territory which, at that time, uuciei ! the circumstances, they could not defend. Those same early fathers fought 1 against a popular demand lor u general pension system lor the soldiers ol the Revolutionary wai ana limited me ion nom $03,0001 lo $90,000 a year. They lougtn ; against ail internal improvements! en the ground ihat ihe btates 1 would ha\e to provide them, li waa nearly tort) years alter the 1 establishment oi mis Government ( ociore a dollar was expended upon livers and harbors, ihis policy ol pay ing no pensions ana masing no improvements was caused by | exactly the same thing which caused the policy of adding no territory tnat coum not be detenu- j ed without a navy, 'lhe Govern-j incut had no means ot raising suilicient revenue. Jefferson wanteu Cuba annexed because the Uniteu states had a sufficient navy to ucfenu it, and JefteHon, Auams, i Monroe were the greatest lano, grabbers this country ever hau, j except possibly Jackson and folk, j As cany as 1S43, while the Hawaiian Islands were very lack-! ing in civilization and betore we owned much of a navy, Mr. Legarc, our Secretary of State, said: lhe Hawaiian Islands bear such peculiar relations to ourselves thai! we might even feel justified, con-1 aistciitiy with our own principles, in intertering by force to prevent their falling into the hands of one i of the great powers of Europe, Secretary of State Daniel Webster wrote to our minister to Hawaii, Mr. Serverance, July 14, lboi:, The Hawaiian Islands are ten ; times nearer to the United States than to any of the powers or! Europe. Five-sixths of their com- i mf?rrinl intercourse is with the United States, and these considera-; lions, together with others of a more general character, have fixed the course which the Government of the United States will pursue in regard to them. Two years later Secretary of State Alarcy wrote to Minister Mason, in France: I do not think the Hawaiian Government can long remain in the hands of the present rulers or under the control ot the native inhabitants of these islands, and both England and France are apprised of our determination not to allow them to be owned by or to fall under the protection of these powers or of any other European nation. It seems to be inevitable Pthat they must come under the ! control of this Government, and it would be but reasonuble and fair that these powers should acquiesce in such a disposition of them, pro; vided the transference was affected ! by fair means. Secretary Fish instructed Mr. : Pierce on March 25, 1873, as fol! lows: The position of the Sandwich Islands, fronting and commanding the whole of our possessions on the i'acihc ucean, gives to tne future of those islands a peculiar interest to the Government and people of the United States. It is very clear that this Government can not be expected to assent to their transfer from their control to that of any powerful maritime or commercial nation. Such transfer to a maritime power would threaten the military surveillance in the Pacific similar to that which Bermuda has affordeu in the Atlantic. The latter has been sub-, mitted to from necessity, but we desire no additional similiar out-' post in the hands of those who may, at some future time, use them t r\ AMr rliei/lfinirro IVS UUl ui^aumua^^, There has not been a Secretary of State or a President of the United States, except those of the last Administration, during fifty years who have not contended that at some time Hawaii must become a part of the United States. We are not departing from early traditions nor going contrary to the | wisdom of the fathers. We are j adopting the unanswerable icasonmgs of Thomas Jefferson, who wanted Cuba added to our territory, and of President Polk, who wanted Hawaii. Our mode of getting a foothold ii i? i . upon inese lsianus nas uecu suung- j ?y criticised. Our minister to | Hawaii was waited upon by cer-i cian prominent gentlemen of llono-1 iulu, who informed him that they intended to establish a provisional government. They requested him to land the marines from the Boston in order to protect the interests of the Americans resident on the islands. They formed the provisional government, and the minis ier caused the marines to be landed. It is said that on account of .ne American sailors being there ?.fie Ilawaiians made no resistencc and it is claimed by the opponents of annexation that the consent of .ue people was not obtained, because if the marines had not been j i aided there would have been determined armed resistance. In other words, Minister btevens landed the troops to protect American property, and in protecting the .vmencan property he has aisu succeeded 111 ettectually protecting all propeity. If his critics are .jght, he ought to have refused to nave landed the marines and let .ne revolution proceed. American property would undoubtedly have oeen damaged and probably Amen.an citizens killed if he had adopted .nis course. Stripped of all useless verbiage, .ne proposition ot the annexation Hawaii presents a very simple n WP I UUSUieBO JJluuiem. (tuna, uiv v ^oing to gain and what are we going 1.0 lose? The principal productions of the islands of Hawaii are sugar, coffee, .ea, rice and bananas. The United states raises some sugar, but the .mportations of sugar in 1897 amounted to ?99,066,181. Ihej United States raises some rice, buti che importations ot rice last yeai dmounted to 33,517,360. The United States raises no tea, anu ine importations last year amount ed to ?14,835,862. The United states raises very few bananas, and we imported last year ?4,068, 320 wortn. Hawaii raises no wheat, and no corn for exportation. Its only pioducts are those which are raiseu .n the United States or raised in coo small quantities to meet the domestic demand. The coffee and tea industries of Hawaii are a^ yet largely in their infancy, ana | there are greater opportunities for ! increasing the area of coffee and i Lea than in any other line of agriculture in the United States, i The United States raises a ; surplus of corn, wheat, and cot ; ton, and a deficiency of sugar, cof[ fee, and tea. The Hawaiian Islands ! are deficient in corn, wheat, and cotton, and produce a surplus ol coffee, sugar, and tea. They need exactly what we want to sell, and | they have exactly what we want to 1 buy. Tfieir lines of agriculture do not ' come into competition with pro ducts raised in this country except possibly sugar in Louisiana. The price of sugar, coffee, and tea will naturally be reduced to the con-! sumer, the cultivation of the sugar, j coffee, and tea lands and the devel-j jopment of those resources will give remunerative labor to thousands of j others, while the increased de-j I mand for manufactured goods will increase the amount of labor needed in the different States of the, Union. There could not be a1 I country where the products come1 ! into less competition with those of ] , our own people or where the bene-' | fits derived would be felt so equal- j I ly by all ot our citizens as Hawaii. ! The use of sugar, coffee, and tea j 1 is universal, and the great increase | | in home production consequent! j upon the annexation of Hawaii; : must ot necessity reduce the price j of these staples. It is a very good rule for nations as well as indivi I duals that land which produces j; ! that which its owner can best disI pose of is the very best property | obtainable. That is precisely the ; ! situation Hawaii occupies toward ' the United States. There has been a great deal said i i v ' aireaciy concerning me strategic j I position of Hawaii in time of war, and before I consider that subject I want to call attention to the strategic position of Hawaii in:, time of peace. It is on the direct line of live out of six steamship 1 companies who operate from Mexi- 1 can, United States, and British)' ports on the Pacific to point in 1 oriental countries. It is twenty fiye hundred miles nearer all points , in the Pacific islands, China, Japan and Australia than any present} j market. If the bommerical interests of the United Stales took , advantage of the manificient position of Honolulu, with its splendid harbor, they could, by establishing*, large houses there, practically con- " troT, the trade af the Orient. lames G. Blaine stated, after ' thorough examination of the subject that the territory dependent upon the Pacific Ocean for a commercal outlet comprised an area of nearly Soo,ooo square miles j. larger in extent than the German ' Empire and the four Latin coun j tries of Europe combined. Across the Pacific Ocean there lies nearly | one-half the world's population,: and the territory of our Pacific States, being the nearest market to them, would, if Hawaii a as uti-j lized and its commercial possibil-; ities developed, control three-! fourths of that trade. Jobbing houses situated at Honolulu, em-j ploying large capital, would find | th.-mcplvpi in rfntpr nf dictri. ! ~ bution between the East and the West, very much nearer both than any other market; and the possibil- a lties of such a position are practi- r cully without limit. Honolulu, on v account of its position, could be I made a modern Carthage. a The exports last year of the ' countries that could be made de- 1 peudeent upon the markets of Ha-,' waii and our Pacific coast amount-; 1 cd to ?2,500,ooo,ooo of which I we only sold $55,250,000. The c importance of our Pacific coast * trom a cuommercia! point of view : ' is vastly greater in its possibilities I than that of our Atlantic coast. 11 And if we can throw our western 1 irontier twenty-five hundred miles 3 into the Pacific Ocean, thus saving time, distance, and cost of trans- r portation, we will be beyond the v reach of European competition, j I The average war ship is built to' ^ carry coal for about 5,000 nnles; j1 the average merchant vessel does e not carry that much coal. A vessel c starting from San P'rancisco to f eastern ports is halfway out of coal 1 I'hpn chp rparhps Hr.nnlnln Thnt ^ hole in her bunkers must be filled. ( If Hawaii were held by a power 1 which became unfriendly to the 2 United States, it would practically c destroy our entire trade with the c Orient, which now amounts to t $56,000,000 a year and cound very 1 easily be made to amount to at ^ least ten times that sum. At the : that President Polk and Secretary of State Marcy and Daniel Web- ' ster advocated the annexation of ( Hawaii the population of our ^ Pacific coast was not as great as; * the present population of Port- 1 land, Oregon, f he islands of the ' south Seas were unknown and uu- J explored. Not a single line of!' steamers plowed the waves between 1 the United States and the Orient. * And yet these men with prophetic ' vision saw that the Pacific Ocean was destined to become more im- j portant to the United States than ' the Atlantic, and that Hawaii was 1 the key to the Pacific. William H. Seward, in address 11 ' % i ing the United States Senate, said, as to the commercial activities of, Kurope: They will ultimately sink in importance, while the Pacific Ocean,I its shores, its islands, and the vast! regions beyond will become the' chief theater of events in the j world's great hereafter. The Kuropean rations realized this, and within the last fifteen j years Germany has annexed the1 j great Marshall group, France the: Marquesas Island and tne L,ow; i Archipelago, and Great llritian: Ellice, Phceuix, and other islands, i The United States has annexed ; 1 none. We are allowing the trade of the Pacific, which belongs to us j by all natural right, to be wrested from us while we discuss the noli-, cies of the fathers when this country, without a navy, and surrounded by hostile tribes of Indians,! keeping it constantly in warfare, j was not in a position to defend distant territory, and therefore could not ccnset to take it. If the Island cf Cuba had been annexed when Thomas Jefferson wanted it annexed, we would to-; day have control of the trade ot the j West Indies and obtain a much' larger share of the trade of South ; America, and we would never have; had a war with Snain. If we con-! trol Hawaii, we will control theI Pacific and protect ourselves,' against future wars. It we take the words of Jefferson, that we should not control a territory that requires a navy, we will not annex ; Hawaii; but if we take spirit of the, language of Jefferson, which was; that we should annex Cuba because we could defend it, we will annex I lawaii, because we are amply able to defend it. I plead with the Democrats to follow the policy of Jefferson, their leader, and annex whatever territory it is to the interest of the United States to possess so long as it is within the ability of the United States to defend it. I ask the Republicans to follow Daniel Webster; I ask the i Democrats to follow Thomas Jef-j r t? .1 I ICT8UU. ii uiL'SC arc uui 111c laiuci a, , :o whom belong the paternity of ;he two great political parties? And the gentlemen who are 1 iguring out tremendous costs at:acheu to the maintenance of these 1 slands I refer to our govern-; nent in Alaska, which has cost js nothing. We have made little i iirect revenue out of Alaska, but t has more than paid for itself. I A'e will make but little direct M evcnue out of the Hawaiian Is- ' ands. The time will come when he mineral resources of Alaska i vill make it another California, i ind the time has come now when ' Hawaii, as a commercial outpost i ind a country for the production : >f those staples which can not be ; )roduced in the United States, i :an be made of immense benefit to he United States. Along our Pacific coast, not in:luding the Territory of Alaska, ve have l,8io miles, and it is vithin the knowledge of all of us 1 hat the protection of that coast is i ibsolutely inefficient. We have 1 )n the Pacific coast as a usual implement nine vessels, aggre- < ration 35,141 tons displacement.!1 \nd in Asiatic waters we have; < ive more, of 13,846 tons. In order j < 0 reenforce this fleet the Atlan-j< ic squardron must travel overii 4,000 miles of water in which l he United States has not a sin- j 1 jle coaling station. In case of, z udden war reenforcement for our |1 'acific fleet are impossible. ! ] Japan has a fleet of 48 vessels,; iggregating 173,057 tons displace-1 nent; Great Britain has in Asiatic ; vaters 41 vessels, of 07,200 tons; iussia has in Asiatic waters} ibout 20 vessels. Three powers lave fleets in Pacific waters double; hat of the United States, with; ler long coast line to protect.; "rom Hawaii, if any one of these j lowers owned that island, they :ould at any time throw a full; leet upon our coast. With i Iawaii in our possession we can ! irevent the ships from coaling j ind we can communicate danger 0 the main coast. There isj nnthpr viewto takeof the question.! Without Hawaii our coast; j nay be attacked at. any lime, j1 vhile with it it is exceedingly im>robable that our coast will ever, >e attacked at all. The annexa-( ion of Hawaii would be the great-1 st preventive of war thct we! :ould possibly secure, and the | naxim "An ounce ot prevention; s worth a pound of cure" is very: tpplicable. If we had annexed! Juba when we ou^ht to have an-i lexed it, we would never have had! t war with Spain. It is not a case >f the United States trying to >over the earth or to add to her erritory; but with nations, as with ndividuals, self-preservation is the irst Jaw 01 nature, anu we aie icting for our self-preservation. 1 The western line of the States t is they originally existed was < ;ndangered| by hostile tribes of ( Indians, and the United States Government never stopped for a < noment until that danger to its i :rontier was over There are no 1 Indians to the west of us now, i but there are some dangers over there which we must guard i igainst, and eight Presidents of i the United States and ten Secre it _m Lanes ot btate, every j\avy oineci and every Army officer who have looked into the question, have agreed that the remedy for the danger which threatens our Pacific coast lies in the annexation cf Hawaii. It has been asserted that tne I lawaiians are incapable of self government and can not, therefore, be assimilated with our politicial institutions. In the same breath the opponents of annexation , assert that the reason for the success of the present Government I is that it has the moral support of i the United States. If the United States cau prevent insurrections j in the Hawaiian Islands by simple | moral support, can it not even; better paeyent such insurrections i when the entire power of thei Government is exerted in the control of the islands? Now, Mr,speaker, I have tried! to consider this question without any political bias, and have endcav ored to discuss it from a plain, practical, business standpoint, with due regard to all the principles ol our Government and with al deference to the traditions of oui history, and if any reason exists why we should refuse the gift ol these islands, offered to us by the Legislature of Hawaii, which is the official voice of the people ol Hawaii, and the only way in which the voice of the people can be officially heard, then I hope that some member will produce that reason, and that we will give all the consideration which its importance may demand. I have obtained from the Bureau of Steam Engineering of the Navy Department a carefully prepared and absolutely accurate statement of the importance of Hawaii in the matter of coal. It is not based upon any theories, but gives the actual amount of coal that has been used by the vessels named in making the trips outlined. The battleship Iowa under the most favorable conditions consumes G6o tons of coal between San Francisco and Honolulu, which left in her bunkers, which ?ifam filled tn thpir fnllpat- ranarifv ^ ""V vw *? ??- ?j j at San Francisco, 925 tons. Under usual conditions the Iowa uses 725 tons in going to Honolulu, which would leave 860 tons in her bunkers. The Massachusetts under the most favorable conditions uses 700 tons between San Francisco and Honolulu, and would have S60 tons left in her bunkers. Under usual conditions the Massachusetts uses 750 tons, which would leave 810 tones in her bun kers. The Charleston uses 300 tons in going from San Francisco to Honolulu, which would leave 400 tons in her bunkers, under the most favorable conditions. Under usual conditions the Charleston uses tons and has 38o tons ? ? J J remaining. The Monadnoek uses 273 tons going from San Francisco, ind has 113 tons remaining, under most favorable conditions. Under usual conditions the Monadnoek uses 383 tons going to Honolulu ind only has 4 tons remaining. The Monterey can not steam to Honolulu on her bunker capacity, tier greatest radius being 2,773 miles, but can reach Honolulu by piling coal on her decks. Xone of these vessels, which embrace the different types of the United States Navy, can carry enough cctuI to participate in an engagement at Honolulu of any :onsiderable duration and then return to San Francisco. In case :he Navy could not coal at Honoulu the United States would be ibsolutely helpless in Pacific .vaters. A war ship had better be vithont powder than without coal. \To European power can attack Mir Paoifir pnaci without coalinrr. ind the United States could conJuct no warefare in the Pacific Dcean without a coaling station. \ war ship without coal is but a lelpless bulk of not more value han a schooner without either >ailes or rudder. From San Francisco to Honoulu is a distance of 2,100 miles; rom Honolulu to the Carolines is >,00 miles; from the Carolines :o the Philippines is 1,900 miles; :rom the Philippines to HongKong, 900 miles. From San Fran:isco to Honolulu is an easy coalng distance for war vessels and uerchant steamers; from Honoulu to the Carolines is another ;asy coaling distance; from the Carolines to the Philippines is mother easy coaling distance, and ;he Philippines are within easy :oalingdi;tance of all Asiatic and Australian ports. The fortunes if war have thrown the Philippines md Carolines within our control; he Hawaiian Islands have been pffered to us as a gift. With this :hain of islands we would be impregnable in war, so far as any ittack on the Pacific Ocean is :oucerned, and no power on earth :ould compete with us in commerce. By accepting the advantage vhich has been almost providenially offered us, we will become the complete masters of the Pacific ^ u'CeUli. There is another class of people who wnl be greatly benefited by the annexation of Hawaii, about whom but little has been said. I refer to the laboring men. With the development of the sugar industry under present conditions in the Hawaiian Islands, the cheap cooly labor of China must of necessity be introduced to such an extent as to very greatly reduce the cost of raising sugar. Since the discovery of beet sugar and the successful experiments in < 'ii this couutry, the raising or enner cane or beets fur the making of tu^ar employs thousands of people. If these people are brought into Uireci competition with llewaiian sugar raised cy cheap cooly labor, it must of necessity reduce wages in this country. If, upon the other hand, Hawaii becomes a part of the United States, the laws of tlit United States forbidding the importation or use of this class of labor will be made to apply tc Hawaii, and under the doctrine ol protection to American labor, whiel will apply in Hawaii as Well as it the United States, our sugar pro' ductiou will be enormously iucreasec while wages will not be reduced. For the reasons I have given, am for other reasons which have beet r fi'i ?a? witTgWiW? i 8B cct forth mo3t strongly by others, j i , I believe that the annexation of l i I lawaii is the most beneficial meas-; j f: lire, prospectively, that has been ; ( 1 introduced into Congress for many ' - years. I believe that it will be a ! ; matter of which every member will j : be proud in future years that he : has had the privilege of voting for| i accepting this territory by the I : United States, offered now without i cost. ;, : Mr. Speaker, each member on , , this floor represents the entireji 1 'r*i f/%/1 Cf o f on/1 if io V> 1 ,2 #1 11ftn 1 ^ v.. uiicu uiat^Sj auu n 10 1110 uut* \.\j favor ouly that which will be of J benefit to the country at large. But ; in addition to this representative 1 capacity he more directly speaks : tor his own section of the country j and for the Congressional district i that confened the honor of election upon him. I nave, in a general way, ; endeavored to outline til? advantages ] to be gained by the country at large, ( and I will now more particularly i dwell upon the benefits which will ' accure to the section I have the | houor in part to represent. t Mr. Speaker, the great staple of i the South is cotton. The cotton * crop of the world increased from ( 2,695,000 bales in 1865 to 6,541.000 bales in 1875, to 8,350,000 bales I in 1885, and to 13,157,000 bales in * 1805, these being the figures given , ^ bv Ellison & Co. There has not; been a corresponding increase in the < consumption of cotton, and the t prices of that important product 1 are now be'ow the cost of production t A great and important section is c suffering from fiuancial depression * on account of the lack of a market 5 for it* leading staple. Owing r<? \ rhere h??ing n > m an* 'ion to the countries m >n lv. . i we have always, until comparative!) e recently, exported all of our cotton [ to Europe, and from there it was i: sent toAsia aud Oceanica f We are beginning in a small w;iv 1 to gend American cotton direct!) : ' 'i tU? id llltsc UUUI11.1 IL'3, CMIU U1JC 10 marked by the constant increase of a the consumption of eotton in Asia J. In 1893 we only exported of cot- L ton cloths to China $1,038,657. In ' ( 1897 this had increased to $7,438,- U 203. In 1893 we exported to the 1 British East Indies of cotton cloth * .$144,759. In 1897 we exported t $199,880. In 1893 we exported y unmanufactured cotton ?o Japan to the amount of $68,423 In 1897 J1 this was increased to $2,345,016. v Of cotton cloth we exported to Japan, in iS93, $9,084, ln 1897, 1 $141,264 I Our exports to the other coun- t tries of Asia of cotton cloth increas- d ed from $65,654 in 1893 to $355,- '' 540 in 1897. Our exportations of s cotton cloth to British Australia in b 1593 amounted to only $80,626, a while in 1897 they bad increased to $249,810. Our exportations of cot- t( ton manufactures increased to v $290,790 in 1893 to $365,715 in 1897. The imports into the conn- _ tries of Asia and Oceanica for the C year 1890 amounted to $1,006,557,- 1 653. Of this amount the United ^ States furnished $47,759,167, or a j percentage of 5.32. The exports I from the countries of Asia amount 5 to $1,060,243,838, of which the \ United States received $92,026,272. Since the United States has established a direct trade in cotton goods with China, American trade has constantly increased, while German and English ;r trade has constantly decreased. Be- t| tween 1884 and 1897, ccording to a table prepared by Consul Fowler, of Chefoo, China, the trade in drills decreased 7,950 pieces of English and Dutch and increased 43/J10 of American. _ The number of pieces of English sheet- q intr decreased 1.00s. while the pieces of j. Instead of 5 per cent of the trade of j Asia being secured by the United States . there wouid be iully 50 per cent. This , is the nearest market; it is the greatest producing country on earth, and the r greatest manufacturing country, so far L as natural resources are concerned, j | With the advantages offered by nature. t, there could be no doubt that not less j than one-hall the trade of the East . : would seek the shores of the United , States. The South has sold cotton to . those northern countries where cotton 4 is least adapted to wear. It has not > tried to sell cotton to those countries i I ; A liere cotton goods, once introduced, j | ( 1 would be worn almost exclusively, i The immediate benehts to the South ; 1! will be great from the impetus given to ! ! the trade of the Pacific, augmented by ! [ f that of South and Central America, and ] if the Nicaragan Canal is subsequently ! I Inrlt there will be cities spiinging up: on the South All intic coast and Cull 1 coast equal In size and importance to | American sheetings increased 95,275. ( The first manufacture of cot'.on in \ China was announced by the Shanghai |. Chamb.r of Commerce on May 20, 1^5 Three mills were contracted for, one of y 40,000 spindles and two of 28,000 spin- j dies each. Another new mill was built ^ at Wuchang, one at Hongkong, and a y 12,000 spindle mill at Chang Kee. All j, of these mills have since increased their ( capacity. The one at Hongkong more q than doubled its number of spindles, j The demand for cotton goods has increased with wonderful rapidity. The experiments of the past three years in the direct sale of cotton and cotton goods to the countries of Asia and Oceanica prove conclusively that all we ^ require to control the great and growing trade of the Orient is for us to secure * just such advantages as would be af- ~ forded us by the possession of Hawaii 1 and the Philippines. If we secured these islands in the t Pacific, the conclusion would be irresisI tibly forced upon us that the completion ( 1 of thi Nicaraugan Canal could be de' ' ' mi.: ?l ......M 1 I lyeci no longer. 1 ms lauai >vuuiu oa?^ about one-half the distance between the j Southern ports and Japan, and would put the ports of the Gulf of Mexico nearer the Orient than any of the great markets of the Old World. Our cotton . would be shipped directly from Southern ports through the canal to the island of ' the Pacific Ocean, China, Japan, and Australia. With the unlimited coal supply of the South, and American islands which vessels could coal, the South, which is the greatest producer of cotton in the world, would become 4Ce greatest manufacturing center of v cotton, and control the markets of the" ^ world for raw cotton and the manufactures of cotton. s ? m i in i- - -i - in 111 - *' " t-" those of tlie 3i*ortli Atlantic coast. This policy will benefit all sections, but it will prove to be the commercial salvation of the cotton-growing States, as we introduce cotton goods to new customers in ivarmer climates. There is no party question entering into thi- matter; but it is fraught with great good, especially to the cotton grower of the South. The following is clipped from the Philadelphia Inquirer: Washington, June 2:1, 18O8. ThA runt'il irrmvf 1? /tf /mi r r?m?r>mor/>o with China.a subject just now attracting "pecial attention. Is shown som.what in ietail by a series of tables in the latest [lumber of Summary of Finance and Commerce issued by the Bureau of Sta:istics. These table shows that our exports to China in the >ear ending will be ibout four tin;cs as much a? in the year iS95. The exports from the United States to China in ISO5 were $3,603,840, ind in the fiscal year which ends with his month promise to be, in round num?ers, .ft 1,000,000. But for the fact that there has been ? reduction during the past year in the ,-alucs of many articles exported the igures for the present year would be :onsiderably greater than the sum lamed. The exports of mineral oils, for nstance, have increased this year more ban 4.coo.ooo gallons over last year, but iy reason of the decrsase in price the otal cash value falls considerably below ;hat of last year. In nearly all of the irticles exported from this country to ""liina lliprc has lippn an increase ill [iiantity iu the fiscal year I898 compared vith i8U7 or any preceding year. In >icycles, for intance, the exports to China 'or ten months of the present fiscal year unount to $24,006 against $11,444 in the :orrespondiii? months of last year. In telegraph, telephone, and other initruments of this class the exports of the en months are $22,374, against $3,940 in he same time last year. Carriages and :ars increased from $ 1,63a in the first en months of last year to $28,61 3 in the iorresponding months of this year, fruits ind nuts from $13,003 last year to 828,;9l this year; canned tw ef from 90,934 munds in ten montns of la-? vear 10 156.* '18 pound* in tin* urn m s I ml a, I >9 po . tl>; utci, iio t>. ii , u 20,080 pounds, and other articles iu ike proportion. In cottou cloth there s a reduction of about 12 per cent com>ared with last year, though the total lumber of . .ids t'v* v? a: wil' t> *ir!\ i.ju I hit 1 1 lines as Ucu us in 10 5 Our sales to China this year will show in increase of more than 3o?> per cent >ver those of IH89, while our imports rom that country .show an increase of >ut 85 per cent in the same liui". Our xports of merchandise to China in the >res*-nt fiscal year are tenfold t!io>- of lie fiscal year 1880. the total to that ear being *i,Io1,883, while that of i898 s likely to be 811,000,000, in round numiers. Our totf.l exp??r's t" a'l Asia this ea will am 11 iciuii . gaoi ni 10 [lore :h.i!i do:; 1. .- V 11 88o, and more tuan ten lilue> wnat liiey iere iti 187o. Of this total of 84o.ooo.ooo, about onehird goes to China (in part byway of longkong), one-tliird to Japan, and tuv mlk of the remaining third to India a'id lie East Indies. In this caiculai i -n of istnbution it is assumed that the hulk f the iniiorts into Hongkong, which re always heavy, are for China, the itatesman's Year Hook saying of the lusiness of that poit that it is "virtually part of the commerce of China." The following table shows the leading rticles exported form th^ United "dates 0 China in the last fiscal year compared nth those of preceeding _vear: Articles. 1897. 18l>6. .'locks and watches I 531,242 i 513,058 'rovisions j 45.640 j 50,191 Vheat Hour 72,100 1 45 S15 Vood aud m'f r's of 113,490! 151.945 'obacco, m'f r's of 229.9561 192,130 ron & steel, m'f Js of 333.00? | 84.398 lineraloils?'.... 3.371.937 2,166978 Cotton cloths 7,43-,203 j 3,854 146 til other articles... 281,304 359 46; Total 11,916,888 8,921136 The following table shows the total nportations into China from all parts of ?J u? ??1:_? in ftio vMr 16 world, Uy iCdUJUg ai kiv?iw? it* vi*v 896: Total imports into China, 1896: Articles. Value. .'otton, raw $1,056,*44 lour 1,216.568 iinseng 1.308,078 lachinery | 1,688,078 'ish and fishery products... 1 2.527.623 'oal I 2,863,701 V'oolen goods I 4,333.420 ron and steel manufactures | 4.981,516 ugar I 5,657,318 lineral oils I 6,751,281 wice I 12,137.759 )pium I 23,150,486 ' - -.J kill show a Uecmea increase iu uui >..? lortation t<> Asia, especially .Japan. That o China may he .slightly loss than last ear, for reasons above indicated. The figures given about do not take nto consideration the possibilities of im>roved cotton-goods trade with the Cenr 1 and South Amer.can countries vhich must follow imp: oved commercial elations and and vantages naturally growing out of an aggressive policy on he part of the Southern cotton grower ind manufacturer, protected in their nisiness mierests a> they extend by the tower of the I'nited States Governuen\ Geneal Woods, who went out as Colonel of the Kough Iliders, has been appointed military governor of Santiago instead of General McKib 1 bin who returns to ins com maim. No men living are more worthy to be trusted than those who toil up from poverty. .'utton goods 04,020,092 l11 other articles 3iJ.3c9.520 Total 170.991 ,.<?'4 The following table shows the value of ur exports in.o China, Japan, and all i.sia since i81>o: 'ear. China. Japan. All Asia 880 $1,101,388 j $2,152,888 $11,645,703 811 5.447,680 I 1.461,1)76 12.917.348 882 5,8115.9^3 j 2.540.664 18.393.671 883 4.080.322 3.376.434 16.341,742 1.62(1 C78 I 2.^28.^29 lJi.9i3.778 W?s H,390,500 i 3.057.4151 -?-739> '7SS6 7.520.5S1 I 3-135-53-> I 3i.ySo.99-' 887 6,246,626 : 3-33S-592 1 ,9-3-!2-,72 8sS 4o?2o?5 I 4-'4,3^ I ?9-92l,''5; SS9 2,791,12s I 4,619.980 | l?43f6-6 S9i) I 2,946.2091 5.232,6431 i9,6y6,S20 S9i ! S.70i,ooS 4.y?7i6!*3 I -5-553'3?s 892 | 5.U63.497 I 3,29?,iii I 19599,350 Si'3 | 3,900.4*7 i 3,11)5.494 I 16.222.354 S94 5.S62.426 | 3.:is6.*i5 , 20.S72.701 s'J5 j 3.603^40 | 4 634-7'7 I '7v325:?57 S96 ! 6,921.933 1 7.6-W.6S5 , 25.03:1,02.1 897 j 1 1,924 433 1 ?3-235-47'8 j 39-,74-9Q5 Tlu- figures tor tliu fiscal year iS9S 1 1 /?..r