OCEANIA
Oceania, the island division of the world, includes Australasia and the
great groups of islands in the Pacific Ocean. Some of the larger islands
are regions of great productivity; others are important as
coaling-stations; still others have positions of great strategic value.
When it is considered that more than half the people in the world live
on the slopes of the Pacific Ocean, and that they depend on the
metal-working and manufacturing people of the Atlantic slopes for
clothing and commodities, it is apparent that the commerce of the
Pacific Ocean must reach enormous proportions.
For this reason the various island groups of Oceania have been acquired
by Europeans, and from the moment of their occupation their commercial
development began. The great majority of these groups are within the
limits of the sago-palm, bread-fruit, cocoanut, and banana, and these
yield not only the food-stuffs of the native people, but the export
products as well. Copra, or dried cocoanut meat, is the general export.
It is marketed in Marseille, London, and San Francisco. Sago is prepared
from the pith of a species of palm. Considerable quantities are also
exported, and it is used as a table delicacy. The banana is the
food-stuff upon which many millions of people must depend. In spite of
their small aggregate area, the food-producing power of these islands is
very great.[83]
On account of its central position, Honolulu, the capital and chief
port of Hawaii, is the most important mid-ocean station of the Pacific.
It is almost in the direct line of traffic between the Pacific ports of
the United States and Canada on the one hand, and those of Australia,
Japan and China on the other. It is also in the route of vessels that
may hereafter use the American isthmian canal in going between European
and Asian ports.
In the cultivation of export products native Malay labor is almost
always employed, inasmuch as Europeans cannot bear out-of-door labor in
the tropics. The natives are generally known as "Kanakas," and there is
not a little illicit traffic in their labor. Chinese and Japanese
coolies are also employed as laborers.
=The Commonwealth of Australia.=--The commonwealth of Australia consists
of the various states of Australia together with Tasmania. Their
position corresponds very closely to that of Mexico and Central America,
and the climate and products are not unlike. A considerable part of
Australia is a desert, and a large area is too arid for the production
of bread-stuffs; the eastern coast, however, receives abundant rains.
Australia produces nearly one-third of the wool-clip of the world. On
account of the climate, the quality of the wool, much of it merino, is
excellent. More than half the clip comes from New South Wales.
Two-thirds of the wool goes to Great Britain to be manufactured; nearly
all the rest is purchased by France, Germany, and Belgium. Less than two
per cent. is sold to the United States.
Since the introduction of cold-storage plants in steamships, Australia
has become a heavy exporter of meat. Areas long unproductive are now
cattle-ranges; mutton constitutes the heaviest shipment. Inasmuch as the
transportation is almost wholly by water, the cost is very light, and
the mutton can be sold to London dealers at less than four cents per
pound.
[Illustration: THE COMMERCE OF THE PACIFIC]
[Illustration: AUSTRALIA]
Wheat is grown mainly for home consumption. Grapes for wine and for
raisins are good-paying crops in Victoria and New South Wales. Both
products find a ready market in Great Britain. Australian claret is a
strong competitor of California claret for public favor, and the two are
similar in character. Cane-sugar is grown in the moist regions of
Queensland; it is the chief supply of the commonwealth and the
neighboring islands. The forests produce an abundance of hard woods, but
practically no building-timber. Jarrah wood paving-blocks are an
important export. British Columbia, Washington, and Oregon supply much
of the building-timber.
Gold has been the chief mineral product since the settlement of the
country. The mints convert the metal into coin. As a rule the value of
the exports exceeds that of the imports, and the excess swells the
amount of metal exported. The most productive mines are in the district
of Ballarat. Coal is abundant on the east coast, and a considerable part
is sold to California, and more to Asian ports. Tin is extensively mined
in Tasmania.
More than fifteen thousand miles of railway have been built to carry the
traffic of the country. Most of them were built by private corporations,
but on account of financial difficulties and poor service they were
acquired by the government. The policy proved a wise one.
Great Britain encourages the trade of her colonies, and gets about
three-fourths of the traffic of the commonwealth, the imports being
manufactured goods. Of the foreign trade the United States has about
half, nearly all of which is landed at San Francisco and Puget
Sound. Wool, cattle products, and coal are exported to the United
States, and the latter sends to Australia structural steel--mainly
rails--printing-paper, and coal-oil.
_Melbourne_ is the largest city. _Sydney_ is the port at which most of
the ocean trade is landed. _Brisbane_, mainly a coal and a wool market,
is connected with British Columbia by an ocean cable. Steamships by way
of the Suez Canal generally call at _Perth_ and _Adelaide_. _Hobart_ and
_Launcestown_ are the markets of Tasmania.
=New Zealand.=--This colony is one of the most prosperous and best
administered states in existence. The cultivable lands produce enough
wheat for home use, and an excess for export. Cattle and sheep are the
chief resource, however, and pretty nearly everything--meat, hides,
wool, horn, and bones--is exported. Dairy products are not forgotten,
and under the management of an association, these are of the best
quality.
New Zealand flax (_Phormium tenax_), a kind of marsh hemp, yields a
fibre used in making cordage. The kauri pine furnishes the chief supply
of lumber. A fossil kauri gum is collected for export; it makes a
varnish almost equal to Japanese lacquer. Gold is mined, and there being
no mint, all the bullion is exported. The only manufactures are those
which are connected with the meat export and the dairy industry. The
exports noted more than pay for the manufactured goods. Most of the
trade is carried on with Great Britain. _Wellington_, the capital, and
_Auckland_ are the centres of trade.
=New Guinea.=--This island, one of the largest in the world, is somewhat
larger than the State of Texas, or about one-third larger than Germany
or France. The gold-mines first led to the exploration and settlement of
the island, but it was soon apparent that the agricultural resources
were even more valuable, and it was divided among the British, Germans,
and Dutch.
The western part of the island is distinctly Asian in character; the
eastern and southern parts resemble Australia. Coffee, rice, and tobacco
plantations have been established in the former; grazing is the chief
industry in the latter. Ebony and bamboo are among the forest products.
=British Possessions.=--The Fiji Islands are among the most important
British possessions. They number about eighty habitable and twice as
many small islands. Sugar is the chief export product, and it goes
mainly to Australia and New Zealand. Cocoanuts are also a large item of
export trade. _Suva_ is the chief trading-port.
The Tonga Islands are nominally independent, but are practically a
British protectorate. Among other British possessions are Cook, Gilbert,
and Ellice archipelagoes, and Pitcairn Island.
=German Possessions.=--The Samoa Islands are perhaps the most important
German possession, and German planters have made them highly productive.
They were formerly held under a community-of-interest plan by Great
Britain, Germany, and the United States. A joint commission awarded the
greater part of the territory to Germany. In addition to the ordinary
products, pineapples and limes are exported. Most of the trade is
carried on by way of Australia. _Apia_ is the trading-port.
Bismarck Archipelago, and the Solomon, Marshall, and Caroline groups
have also been acquired by Germany. The last named was purchased from
Spain at the close of the Spanish-American War.
=French Possessions.=--New Caledonia, together with Loyalty Islands,
Fortuna, and the New Hebrides group, have great wealth in the matter of
resources. New Caledonia, a penal colony, has productive mines of chrome
iron ore and copper. It is the source of a considerable supply of nickel
and cobalt. A railway to the coast has been built for the carriage of
these products.
Tahiti is the principal island of the Society group, and under the
missions long established there, the natives have become civilized. In
addition to the usual trade, sugar and mother-of-pearl are important
exports.
QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION
How will the commerce of the Pacific be changed by the construction of
an isthmian canal?
What has been the effect of the Australian wool-clip on the cloth-making
industry of England and Germany?
How will the acquisition of Hawaii and the Philippine Islands affect the
commerce of the United States?
From Commercial Australia find the trade of the United States with the
Commonwealth.
FOR COLLATERAL READING AND REFERENCE
From a cyclopædia read the history of Australia as a convict colony.
Commercial Australia.
APPENDIX
TRADE OF THE PRINCIPAL COUNTRIES OF THE WORLD AT THE BEGINNING OF THE
TWENTIETH CENTURY
Sells Buys
Country Imports Exports to U.S. from U.S.
Argentina $110,000,000 $161,850,000 $10,000,000 $11,000,000
Australia 201,000,000 224,000,000 5,263,000 28,164,000
Austria-
Hungary 335,486,000 383,748,000 10,000,000 6,844,000
Belgium 428,651,000 352,850,000 14,920,000 51,444,000
Bolivia 5,845,000 15,618,000 22 120,000
Brazil 97,330,000 165,461,000 64,914,000 11,517,000
Canada 181,238,000 177,443,000 42,482,000 105,790,000
Chile 46,916,000 61,201,000 7,474,000 4,507,000
China 203,421,000 124,528,000 18,126,000 18,176,000
Colombia 10,695,000 18,487,000 4,811,000 2,924,000
Cuba 66,584,000 63,278,000 46,664,000 27,007,000
Denmark 111,542,000 75,549,000 797,000 15,500,000
Ecuador 6,541,000 7,509,000 1,578,000 1,590,000
Egypt 75,366,000 77,754,000 8,867,000 1,321,000
France 843,255,000 774,497,000 81,315,000 78,406,000
Germany 1,290,254,000 1,054,685,000 99,970,000 184,679,000
Greece 26,782,000 18,100,000 1,447,000 286,000
India,
British 264,318,000 392,025,000 47,172,000 5,647,000
India,
Dutch 67,755,000 100,632,000 32,309,000 1,653,000
India,
French 36,576,000 30,513,000 ... 118,000
Italy 331,668,000 265,270,000 27,631,000 34,046,000
Japan 127,397,000 124,209,000 36,855,000 21,163,000
Mexico 64,036,000 77,583,000 17,273,000 83,722,000
Netherlands 815,442,000 695,763,000 17,273,000 83,722,000
Norway 83,255,000 43,616,000 ... ...
Peru 11,276,000 21,890,000 2,911,000 2,312,000
Philippine
Islands 30,279,000 23,215,000 4,421,000 4,027,000
Portugal 62,497,000 30,546,000 3,642,000 4,454,000
Roumania 41,878,000 54,041,000 101,000 31,000
Russia 269,493,000 375,276,000 7,236,000 6,506,000
Spain 161,867,000 129,399,000 7,041,000 16,786,000
Sweden 143,363,000 104,878,000 4,370,000 11,521,000
Switzerland 202,651,000 161,458,000 16,035,000 233,000
Turkey 103,110,000 64,876,000 2,437,000 184,000
United
Kingdom 2,540,265,000 1,362,729,000 155,292,000 598,767,000
United
States 903,321,000 1,355,482,000 ... ...
Uruguay 24,497,000 28,674,000 1,975,000 1,481,000
Venezuela 8,457,000 17,962,000 6,610,000 2,737,000
INDEX
Acapulco, 269
Acré, 281
Activities classified, 4
Adams, 220
Aden, 354
Adjustment to environment, 86
Afghanistan, 355
Alaska, 254
Alberta, 265
Alexandria, 384
Alfa, 124
Algeria, 385
Alpaca, 111, 115
Altitude, effects of, 32
Aluminium, 179
Amazon River, 53
Amber, 146
Ambergris, 204
American Indians, 86
Amritsar, 362
Amsterdam, 318
Anaconda, 250
Anchovy, 207
Angora wool, 115
Anthracite coal, 224
Appalachian region, 222
Arabia, 354
Argentina, 291
Arid region of U.S., 240
Arkwright, 108
Asian Rivers, navigation of, 53
Asphalt, 157
Assiniboia, 265
Astrakhan, 347
Athens, 341
Atlanta, 239
Atlantic coast-plain, 213, 221
Attar-of-roses, 338
Australia, 392
Austria-Hungary, 335
Bagdad, 354
Baku, 347, 348
Baltimore, 217
Baluchistan, 357
Banca, 181, 364
Barbados, 273
Barley, 101
Barmen-Elberfeld, 308
Batavia, 364
Bauxite, 179
Beef, exports of U.S., 244
Beet sugar, 186, 303, 321
Beginnings of cities, 82
Belgium, 313
Belgrade, 341
Bengal, 361
Benzine, 156
Bergen, 312
Berlin, 308
Bermuda, 273
Bessemer-steel boilers, 63
Big tree, 198
Billiton, 364
Birmingham, Ala., 165, 225
Birmingham, Eng., 302
Bismarck Archipelago, 397
Black walnut, 199
Blende, 182
Bluefish, 206
Boers, 86
Bogota, 277
Bohemian glass, 336
Boise City, 250
Bokhara, 347
Bolivia, 280
Bombay, 362
Bosnia, 337
Boston, 215
Boxwood, 200
Brass, 178
Brazil, 288
nuts, 289
Breakfast, travels of a, 1
Bremen, 308
Brenner Pass, 66
Brick tea, 134
Bridgeport, 221
British Columbia, 265
India, 358
Bronze Age, 181
Brussels, 316
Budapest, 337
Buenos Aires, 293
Buffalo, 225
Bulgaria, 338
Burlington, 237
Burma, British, 362
Burr clover, 34
Butte, 250
Cacao, 134
Cairo, 384
Calcutta, 123
California fruits, 251
Callao, 279
Camel's hair, 116
Camphor, 378
Canada, 261
Canadian Pacific Railway, 263
Canal, Chesapeake & Ohio, 56
Chicago ship, 56
Erie, 55
Grand, 370
Kaiser Wilhelm, 57
Ludwig, 337
Manchester, 57
Nicaragua, 59, 270
Nord Holland, 57, 318
Panama, 58
Rideau, 54
St. Mary's Falls, 228, 263
Suez, 57
Welland, 54, 263
Cañons, effects of, 18
Canton, 374
Caoutchouc, 141
Capacity of locomotives, 63, 64
Cape Nome, 254
Cape of Good Hope, 387
Cape Town, 389
Caravan tea, 134
Carpet wools, 112
Cashmere shawls, 363
Cattle-growing, 240
Cavité, 258
Cereals, 88
Charleston, 218
Cheviot, 112
Cheyenne, 244
Chicago, 84, 228, 230, 234
Chicago River, 228
Chicory, 131
Chile, 281
Chinook winds, 261
Chocolate, 136
Cigars, manufacture of, 137
Cincinnati, 236
Cities, growth of, 83
Clearing-houses, 215
Cleveland, 225, 230
Climate, 29
Clipper ship, 44
Cloth, antiquity of, 105
Coal, 148, 257, 258, 264, 265, 268, 298, 323, 333, 344, 365, 368, 379
areas of the world, 147
prices of, in U.S., 149
tar products, 153
Coast commerce of U.S., 222
Coastplains, 22
Coca, 278
Cocoa, 134
Cocoon silk, 119
Cod fisheries, 204
Coffee, 127, 271, 277, 290
Coke, 151
Colombia, 275
Columbus, voyages of, 11
Commerce in Western Europe, 13
Communal life, 81, 344
Competition and pools, 67
Constantinople, 340
Copal, 146
Copenhagen, 313
Copper, 159, 162, 177, 248, 266, 279, 344, 379
Cordage, 122
Corn, 98, 232
Corn, oil of, 100
Cotton, 106, 238, 269, 289, 302, 306, 326
Cotton, Egyptian, 109, 383
gin, 109
Indian, 360
Peruvian, 108, 278
sea island, 108
Cotton crop, distribution of, 239
Creosote, 145
Cripple Creek, 248
Crompton, 108
Crusades, wars of, 8
Cuba, 271
bast, 124
Currant grapes, 341
Da Gama, voyage of, 11
Dammar, 146
Davenport, 237
Deadwood, 250
Demerara, 286
Denmark, 312
Denver, 250
Detroit, 230
Diamonds, 388
Dias, voyage of, 11
Differentials, 71, 73
Divi-divi, 285
Division of industries, 41
Dubuque, 237
Dutch East Indies, 364
standards, 188
Eastern Turkestan, 376
Ebony, 200
Economic regions of U.S., 213
Ecuador, 279
Egypt, 381
Electric railways, 76
Eminent domain, 76
Esparto grass, 124, 385
Exchange of products, 5
Fairs, 346
Fall line, 53, 221
Fall River, 220
Felt hats, 209
Fertility of irrigated regions, 33
Feudalism, 7
Fiji Islands, 396
Fisheries, 266
Fish hatcheries, 207
Flax, 120, 300, 314, 343
New Zealand, 124
Forced draught, 63
Forest areas, 193, 261, 288, 299, 310
Fort Dearborn, 228
France, 320
Freight rates, 63, 69
French India, 365
Galveston, 238
Gasoline, 156
Geneva, 334
German Empire, 303
Ghent, 314, 316
Glucose, 100, 191
Gold, 166, 172, 248, 264, 268, 286, 344, 379, 395
Grain elevators, 94
Grape industry in New York, 36
Graphite, 153
Grasses, 88
Great Britain, 295
Great Central Plain, 22
Great Lakes, 227
Great Salt Lake, 247
Greece, 340
Griqualand West, 388
Guam, 258
Guatemala, 270
Guayaquil, 280
Guiana, 286
Gulf coast, 237
Gums, 141
Gutta-percha, 144
Halibut, 256
Halifax, 264
Hamburg, 308
Hamilton, 265
Hanse League, 13
Harbors, 26, 47, 84
Hargreaves, 109
Hartford, 221
Havana, 272
cigars, 137
Hawaiian Islands, 255
Helena, 250
Hematite, 163
Hemp, 121, 257
Henequen, 122
Herodotus quoted, 106
Herring fisheries, 205
Herzegovina, 337
Hickory, 199
Hilo, 256
Hodeida, 130
Holland, 316
Hongkong, 365, 374
Honolulu, 256, 392
Houston, 238
Hudson's Bay Company, 208, 262
Iloilo, 258
Inclination of axis, 36
Indianapolis, 237
Inland waters, 50
Intermontane valleys, 18
Interstate Commerce Commission, 76
Iodine, 282
Iquique, 283
Iran plateau, 349
Ireland, 265
Irkutsk, 347
Iron, 162, 236, 300, 323
galvanized, 182
ore, 163, 166, 300, 306, 311, 315, 323
Iron Gate, 338
Italy, 325
Jade, 159
Japan, 375
Jarrah, 200, 394
Java, 364
Joint tariff associations, 72
Jute, 122, 360
Kabue, 356
Kansas City, 236
Kashmir, 363
Kauri, 146, 396
Kerosene, 154, 157
Key West cigars, 137
Khaibar Pass, 356
Khiva, 347
Kiakhta, 347
Kiel, 309
Kimberley, 389, 390
Klondike mines, 254
Kongo River, navigation of, 54
Kongo State, 386
Korea, 376
Kristiania, 311, 312
Lac, 145
Lacquer, 378
La Guaira, 286
Lanolin, 114
Lassa, 374
Las Vegas, 250
Laudanum, 139
Lawrence, 220
Lead, 180
Lead pencils, 153
Leadville, 250
Leather goods, 221
Liechtenstein, 337
Lignum vitæ, 200
Lithographic stone, 305
Liverpool, 302
Llama, 115
Lobster fisheries, 207
Locomotive, Central-Atlantic type, 64
Logwood, 201
London, 302
Los Angeles, 157, 252
Louisville, 237
Lourenço Marquez, 390
Lowell, 220
Lynn, 221
Macao, 374
Mackerel, 206
Mackintosh, 143
Madagascar, 387
Madras, 363
Magnetite, 163
Maguey sugar, 187
Mahogany, 199
Malay States, Federated, 363
Manchester, Eng., 382
Manchester, N.H., 220
Manchuria, 376
Mandalay, 362
Manganese, 182
Manila, 258
hemp, 121
Manitoba, 265
Maple, 199
sugar, 186
Marco Polo, 9
Martinique, 273
Maté, 136
Maverick, 240
Melbourne, 395
Memphis, 238
Merino wool, 111, 112
Metals, influence of, in cities, 85
Mexico, 267
city of, 269
Milan, 328
Mileage books, 72
Millet, 359
Milwaukee, 230
Mingo Junction, 224
Mining, 248
Minneapolis, 230, 236
Miquelon, 266
Mississippi River, 52
valley, 232
Mobile, 240
Mocha coffee, 130
Mohair, 115
Mohawk valley, 220
Molasses, 191
Moline, 237
Mongolia, 376
Mont Cenis tunnel, 66
Montenegro, 341
Montreal, 264
Morocco, 384
Mountains, contents of, 17
Moscow, 347
Mulberry, 116
Nagasaki, 380
Nankeen cotton, 108
Naphtha, 154, 156
Nashua, 220
Natural gas, 157
Naval stores, 145
Nearchus, 107
New Brunswick, 264
New Caledonia, 397
New England Plateau, 219
New Guinea, 396
New Haven, 221
New Orleans, 238
New York City, 84, 214, 215, 230, 238, 250
New Zealand, 395
New Zealand flax, 123, 396
Newfoundland, 266
Nicaragua, 270
Nickel, 182
Nieuwchwang, 374
Nigeria, 387
Nile River, barrage of, 383
floods of, 33
navigation of, 54
Nitrate, 282
Norfolk, 218
Northern Securities Company, 227
Norway, 310
Nova Scotia, 264
Novgorod, 209
Oak, 198
Oats, 101
Ocean steamships, 45
Odessa, 134, 347
Ogden, 250
Ohio River, 52
Oil of theobroma, 135
Old Government Java, 129
Oleo-resins, 141
Omaha, 236
Ontario, 265
Opium, 139, 360
Oregon pine, 252
Ottawa, 265
Oyster fisheries, 207
Pacific Coast lowlands, 250
Paddy, 103
Pago Pago Harbor, 258
Panama, 277
hats, 133, 279
Pará, 291
Paraffine, 157
Paraguay, 293
tea, 136
Paris, 324
Passes, 19
Pearl Harbor, 256
Peking, 374
Penang, 363
Pepper, 365
Persia, 354
Persian lamb, 208
Peru, 278
Peshawur, 356, 362
Petroleum, 154, 225, 344, 379
jelly, 157
Philadelphia, 216
Philippine Islands, 256
Pine, 197
Piræus, The, 341
Pitch, 145
Pittsburg, 106, 224
Plains, 21
Plaiting straw, 124
Plateaus, 21, 247
Ponce, 255
Pools, 68
Population, distribution of, 81
Pork, 234
Port Arthur, 347
Port Huron, 230
Port Saïd, 384
Port wine, 330
Portland, Me., 217
Portland, Ore., 252
Porto Rico, 254
Portugal, 328
Pribilof Islands, 208, 254
Prince Edward Island, 264
Providence, 221
Puget Sound, 228, 252
Punjab, 362
Pyrites, 164
Quebec, 264
city of, 265
Quicksilver, 180
Rabbit skins, 209
Railway, Canadian Pacific, 263
Chesapeake & Ohio, 71
Chicago, Burlington & Quincy, 68
New York Central, 65, 67
Northern Pacific, 227
Sind-Pishin, 356
Southern, 71
Tehuantepec, 269
Transportation, 62
Transsiberian, 345, 372
Union Pacific, 66
Rainfall, effects of, 33
deficiency of, 33
Ramie, 123
Rangoon, 362
Raw silk, 118
Rebates, 71
Redwood, 198, 252
Resins, 141
Rhodesia, 389
Rice, 102, 359
Richmond, 221
Riga, 347
Rio Janeiro, 290
River navigation in Europe, 53
valleys, 21
Roads, macadamized, 78
Rock Island, 237
Rome, 327
Rotterdam, 318
Roumania, 338
Rubber, 141, 275, 278, 281, 288
Rug wools, 114
Rugs, oriental, 351, 355
Ruhr iron fields, 306
Russia, 343
Rye, 101, 344
Sacramento, 252
Sahara, 385
Saigon, 365
Sailing vessels, 47
St. Gotthard tunnel, 66
St. Louis, 234
St. Paul, 230, 236
St. Petersburg, 346
St. Pierre, 266
St. Thomas, 273
Salmon, 205
Salonica, 340
Samoa Islands, 396
San Antonio, 239
San Francisco, 252
San Joaquin valley, 250
San Juan, P.R., 255
San Pedro, 252
Sandarach, 146
Santa Fé, 250
Santiago, 283
Santos, 290
Saskatchewan, 265
Savannah, 238
Schooners, 44, 47
Scranton, 224
Seal fisheries, 208
Seasonal rains, 34
Seattle, 84, 252
Servia, 341
Shad, 256
Shanghai, 374
Sheep-growing, 242
Shell-lac, 145
Shoe manufacture, 221
Siam, 364
Siberia, 347
Silk, 116, 323, 326, 368, 378
Silver, 162, 176, 248, 268, 278, 304, 340
Sind, 362
Singapore, 363, 365
Sioux City, 236
Sisal hemp, 122, 267
Skagway, 254
Smyrna, 139, 353
Sorghum, 187
Sound Valley, 250
South Bethlehem, 224
South Chicago, 225
Southampton, 302
Spain, 328
Spermaceti, 204
Spokane, 250
Sponge, 208
Steel, Bessemer, 160, 169, 170, 222, 300, 304, 345
Stephenson, 63
Stockholm, 312
Stockton, 252
Sugar, 185, 289, 303, 314, 318, 364
Swash channel, 50
Sweden, 310
Switzerland, 331
Sydney, 395
Tacoma, 252
Tar, 145
Tea, 131, 360, 368, 378
Teak, 200, 365
Temperate zone, activities of, 32
Textiles, 105
Three-mile fishing limit, 262
Thrown silk, 118
Tientsin, 134, 374
Tin, 181, 364
Tobacco, 136, 237, 240, 364, 383
Tokio, 380
Toledo, 225
Topography and trade routes, 24
Toronto, 265
Torrid zone, temperature of, 30
Tortilla, Mexican, 100
Trade routes, ancient, 8
Transcaucasia, 348
Transvaal, 389
Treaty ports, 373
Trebizond, 351
Triple-expansion principle, 45
Tripoli, 386
Tunis, 385
Turf grass, 34
Turkey-in-Europe, 339
Turks invade Europe, 9
Turpentine, 144
Tussar silk, 119
Tutuila, 258
Tweed, 112
Uruguay, 294
Valparaiso, 283
Vancouver, 266
Vanderbilt locomotive fire-box, 64
Vanilla, 268
Vaseline, 157
Venezuela, 285
Vicksburg, 238
Vienna, 337
Virginia City, 250
Vladivostok, 347
Vuelta Abajo, 137
Vulcanized rubber, 142
Wai-wu-pu, 373
Walla Walla, 250
Warsaw, 347
Water-power, 84
Waterproof cloth, 143
Welland Canal, 263
Wellington, 396
Whale fisheries, 203
Wheat, 88, 96, 244, 344, 359, 367
White Pass, 254
Willamette Valley, 250
Winnipeg, 265
Wood-pulp, 124
Wool, 110,115, 117, 244, 251, 292, 297, 323
Yafa, 354
Yokohama, 380
Youngstown, 166
Yucatan, 267
Zinc, 182
Zinfandel, 251
Footnotes:
[1] If the edition for free distribution is exhausted, these may be
purchased from the Superintendent of Documents, Public Printer,
Washington, D.C.
[2] The greatness of Palmyra was due to the trade along this route, and
its decay began when the route was abandoned. The present town of Tadmor
is near the ruins of the former city.
[3] Cosmas Indicopleustes--in early life a merchant, in later years a
monk--visited India and Ceylon during the first part of the sixth
century. His writings contain much valuable knowledge, but in the main
they are theological arguments intended to disprove the Geography
written by Ptolemy.
[4] The date is variously given as 1169, 1200, and 1241.
[5] To Waldemar III. of Denmark it dictated terms that made its power in
Scandinavia supreme.
[6] For a complete list of books for reference, see p. xii.
[7] The record time on this route was made by the Lucania in five days,
seven hours, and twenty-three minutes, from Daunts Rock, Queenstown, to
Sandy Hook light. The fastest day's run yet recorded was made by the
Deutschland--601 nautical miles, a speed of 24.19 knots.
[8] In Congress the River and Harbor Bill always receives a generous
appropriation.
[9] In many instances goods designed for the spring trade in the Western
States are started via the canal in October, reaching their destination
at Chicago some time in April, the cargo having been frozen up in one or
another of the canal basins during the winter. The rate paid for this
slow transit is considerably less than the amount which otherwise would
have been paid for storage; moreover, it is nearly all clear profit to
the canal boatmen.
[10] The minimum depth of the canal is 22 feet; its width at the bottom
is 160 feet. It was begun September, 1892, and completed January 2,
1902, at a cost of thirty-four million dollars. More than forty million
cubic yards of earth and rock were excavated. All the bridges crossing
it are movable.
[11] This is on the supposition that night travel will be too dangerous
a risk. With a continuous travel the time would be about thirty-three
hours.
[12] On one great trunk system the average ton-mile rate in 1870 was one
and one-seventh cents; in 1900 it was just one-half that sum.
[13] The modern steam-making boiler has from thirty to one hundred or
more tubes passing through it from end to end. The heat from the
fire-box as a rule passes under the boiler and through the tubular
flues; it thus increases the heating surface very greatly. The forced
draught is made by allowing the exhaust steam to escape into the
smokestack, thereby increasing the draught through the fire-box.
[14] A single locomotive of the New York Central has hauled 4,000 tons
of freight at a speed of twenty-five miles an hour. A "camel-back" of
the Philadelphia & Reading hauled 4,800 tons of coal from the mines to
tide-water without a helper.
[15] The Vanderbilt boiler with cylindrical corrugated fire-box invented
by Cornelius Vanderbilt, great-grandson of the founder of the New York
Central, marks an important step in locomotive building. The cylindrical
form largely obviates the necessity of an array of stay-bolts to prevent
warping; the corrugated surface gives greater heating power.
[16] The Central-Atlantic type of locomotive illustrates a modern
improvement. The driving-wheels are placed a little forward of their
usual position, while the fire-box, formerly set between the wheels, now
overhangs each side of a pair of low trailing-wheels. By this means the
heating surface of the fire-box is increased nearly one-half. A lever
controlled by the engineer enables the latter to transfer 5,000 pounds
weight from the trucks to the driving-wheels when a grade is to be
surmounted. The daily run of such a locomotive is greatly increased.
(_See cut, p. 61._)
[17] A line from Vienna to Triest was opened about 1854; Germany was
joined to Italy across Brenner Pass in 1868; France was connected with
Italy through a tunnel near Mont Cenis in 1871; in 1882 the traffic of
Germany was opened to Mediterranean ports by a tunnel under St.
Gotthard. In this manner trunk systems have gradually developed.
[18] The building of the West Shore Railroad is an illustration. After
both roads had suffered tremendous losses the New York Central settled
the matter by purchasing the West Shore. This was one of a great number
of similar cases both in the United States and Europe.
[19] In Great Britain the ton-rate is about $2.30 per hundred miles; in
Germany, $1.75; in Russia, $1.30; in the United States, $0.70. The
difference is due as much to the length of distance hauled as to
economical management.
[20] Thus, A, B, and C are roads whose chief terminal points are Chicago
and New York City. The road C is the shortest of the three lines, but
its grades are very heavy. B is, say, one hundred miles longer, but has
no heavy grades. A is a very indirect route, and its New York traffic
must be trans-shipped at Boston, or perhaps at New London, and sent a
part of the way by water. If now an absolute ton-mile rate is fixed for
either road, it is evident that neither of the others can carry through
freight without altering rates. If C fixes a rate, then A and B must
either charge higher rates between Chicago and Montreal, or Chicago and
Albany, than between their terminals. And although this is illegal in
most States, the laws are evaded by "rebate," or repayment of a certain
sum to the shipper. Of the three roads B, on account of easy grades, is
in the best position to fix rates. It therefore makes, not the lowest
rate, but the one that will yield the best returns. C conforms to this,
and A takes what it can get, hauling at a very small profit. But if A
happens to be outside of the limits of the United States, it may openly
cut rates, because pretty nearly all the through freight it gets is
clear profit, and inasmuch as none of the laws of a State apply to the
Canadian portion of the road, it may do what the others cannot. And
while B is struggling with A, the three roads X, Y, and Z are perhaps
endeavoring to have some of the freight sent from Buffalo eastward over
their own lines. In instances similar to the foregoing it is customary
for B and C to divide the through business and to allow a "differential"
to A--that is, on account of its slower delivery of through freight, to
carry it at a slightly lower rate. B then adjusts its traffic with X, Y,
and Z in a similar manner; and on the whole this is the fairest way to
all concerned.
The following, one of many instances, shows the difficulties in fixing
rates that will not be unjust to either party: Danville and Lynchburg
compete for a certain trade. The Southern Railway passes through both
cities, but the Chesapeake & Ohio makes Lynchburg by another route;
Danville, therefore, is not a competing point, while Lynchburg is. As a
result, the Southern Railway charged $1.08 for a certain traffic from
Chicago to Danville and only 72 cents to Lynchburg, some distance
beyond, this being the rate over the other road. The matter finally
reached the Court of Appeals, and the latter sustained the Southern
Railway. The rate to Danville was shown to be not excessive, but if the
railway were required to maintain a rate to Lynchburg higher than 72
cents, it would lose all its traffic to that point, amounting to
$433,000 yearly. In a case of this kind there can be no help except by a
consolidation of the two roads; by virtue of the consolidation all the
Lynchburg freight will then go over the line having the easiest haul.
[21] That is, the Government pledged its credit for the money borrowed,
and in addition gave the companies alternate sections of public land on
both sides of the proposed line, the land-grants being designed partly
to encourage immigration and partly to increase the building funds of
the various companies. In several instances both the land-grants and the
money subsidies were scandalously used. At least one road used its
earnings to build a competing line and, after disposing of the
land-grant and pocketing the proceeds, allowed the Government to
foreclose the mortgage and sell the original road.
[22] From the Latin "castra," a camp.
[23] In 1897 the world's crop was 2,226,750,000 bushels, and as a
result, the countries in which the crop was short suffered from high
prices. Had it not been for the prompt carrying service of railways and
steamships famine would have resulted.
[24] In order to yield a crop of twenty-five bushels per acre the soil
must supply 110 lbs. of nitrogen, 45 lbs. of phosphoric acid, 30.5 lbs.
of lime, 14.5 lbs. of magnesia, and 142 lbs. of potash; these are
approximately the mineral elements taken out of the soil with each crop,
and it is needless to say that they must be replaced or the grain will
starve for want of nutrient substances.
[25] In the United States there are about seven wheat-districts, each
characterized by particular varieties that grow best in the given
locality. In the New England and most of the middle Atlantic division
Early Genesee Giant, Jones Winter Fife, and Fultz are chiefly grown. In
the Southern States Fultz, Fulcaster, Purple Straw, and May are
foremost. In the north central group of States Early Red Clawson, Poole,
Dawson's Golden Chaff, Buda Pest, and Fultz are common. In the Dakotas
and Minnesota Scotch Fife and Velvet Blue Stem (both spring wheats) are
generally planted. In Kansas and Texas and the adjacent locality the
principal varieties are Turkey, Fulcaster, and Mediterranean (all winter
wheats). In California and the southern plateau region Sonora,
California Club, and Defiance are the principal kinds (all winter
wheats). In Washington and Oregon Little Club, Red Chaff, and Blue Stem
(which are either winter or spring) are the main varieties.
[26] Sometimes the owner sends it to the nearest elevator at tide-water
where the grain is stored, not in bulk, but in the original packages,
subject to his demand. In the course of a month or six weeks it absorbs
so much moisture that the gain in weight more than pays the storage
charges.
[27] The elevators are equipped with "legs" or long spouts, within which
belts with metal scoops transfer the grain from car to vessel or _vice
versa_. The elevators at Buffalo will fill a canal-boat in an hour's
time, or load six grain-cars in five minutes. A large whaleback
steamship may be relieved of its 200,000 bushels in about three hours.
Most of the east-bound wheat of the Middle West is transferred to the
seaboard by rail, but that of the northwest, which forms the chief part
of the crop, is shipped from Duluth through the St. Marys Falls Canal to
Buffalo, where it is transferred to cars or to canal-boats. New York is
the leading export market, but Boston, New Orleans, Galveston,
Baltimore, and Philadelphia are also important shipping ports.
[28] The following is approximately the yield of the chief wheat-growing
countries in bushels per acre:
Denmark 42
England 29
New Zealand 26
Germany 23.2
Holland & Belgium 21.5
Hungary 18.5
France 19.5
Austria 16.3
Canada 15.5
United States 12.3
Argentina 12.2
Italy 12.1
Australia 10
India 9.2
Russia 8.6
Algeria 7.5
The low average in Australia, India, and Algeria is due mainly to lack
of rainfall; in the United States and Russia, mainly to unskilful
cultivation.
[29] It seems to have been introduced into Turkey from India about the
latter part of the fifteenth century, after which it was occasionally
heard of in Europe as "Turkey corn."
[30] The "tortilla," the national bread of the Mexican, consists of a
thick corn-meal paste pressed into thin wafers between the hands, and
baked on hot slabs of stone. The corn-meal "mush" of the American, the
"polenta" of the Italian, and the "mamaliga" of the Rumanian are all
practically corn-meal boiled to a thick paste in water.
[31] The gin, invented by Eli Whitney in 1793, enabled one man to do by
machinery about the same amount of work as previously had required one
hundred laborers. For want of the laws necessary to protect his
invention, Whitney was defrauded of the profits arising from it. Neither
Congress nor the courts gave him any relief from the numerous
infringements, and he died a poor man.
[32] The commercial distinction is a sensible one: hair is hard, crisp,
straight, and does not felt; wool is soft, curly, and felts readily.
[33] An ounce of eggs produces about forty thousand worms, and these,
during the grub stage, require about fifteen hundred pounds of leaves,
about one-half of which is actually consumed.
[34] Charles II. of England also forbade its use (1675) and attempted to
close the coffee-houses that had sprung up in London, but in spite of
the ban and the prohibitive tax laid upon it, the use of coffee became
general. Similar efforts to close the coffee-houses in Constantinople
failed.
[35] The full-grown leaf attains a length of from four to nine inches;
those picked rarely exceed one-and-a-half inches in length.
[36] Brick tea consists of leaves moulded into bricks under heavy
pressure. Refuse and stems are also thus prepared for the cheaper
grades.
[37] The following are the chief rubber-producing trees: _Siphonia
elastica_, or _Hevea brasiliensis_, Amazon forests, yields Pará rubber;
_Manihot Glaziovii_, also a tapioca-producing shrub, Ceará province,
Brazil, furnishes Ceará rubber; _Castilloa elastica_, Central American
States, Nicaragua rubber; _Ficus elastica_, British India, and _Urceola
elastica_, Borneo, Indian rubber. There are rubber-producing trees in
Florida, but they have little commercial value at the present time.
African rubber is taken from a variety of plants.
[38] The process of vulcanizing was made practicable during the ten
years ending in 1850. It was invented and perfected by Goodyear in the
United States and by Hancock in England; for ordinary purposes, where
both strength and elasticity are required, about five per cent. of
sulphur is added. The addition of about fifty per cent. changes the
rubber to a hard black substance known as "ebonite," or "hard rubber."
[39] In 1823 a Scotchman, Mackintosh, applied the discovery, that rubber
gum was soluble in benzine, to the water-proofing of the cloth that
bears his name. This invention was about the first extensive commercial
use to which rubber had been put.
[40] From the fact that most of the dwellings in the United States are
built of wood, the United States is a very heavy consumer of turpentine.
[41] A slender strip of metallic lead was used instead of graphite in
the first pencils made. The use of graphite did not become general until
about 1850. The hardness of a pencil is regulated by mixing clay with
the powdered graphite.
[42] These percentages are on the supposition that the ores are
chemically pure; the percentage of metal actually obtained is somewhat
less.
[43] These percentages are on the supposition that the ores are
chemically pure; the percentage of metal actually obtained is somewhat
less.
[44] These percentages are on the supposition that the ores are
chemically pure; the percentage of metal actually obtained is somewhat
less.
[45] These percentages are on the supposition that the ores are
chemically pure; the percentage of metal actually obtained is somewhat
less.
[46] The limestone has no essential part in the smelting of the ore
except to produce an easily-flowing, liquid slag; hence it is called a
_flux_. Some ores smelt and flow so easily that a flux is not required.
[47] Under ordinary circumstances about two tons of coal, or
three-quarters of a ton of coke, are required to produce a ton of
pig-iron.
[48] Terne plate is sheet-iron coated with an alloy of lead and tin.
[49] Heredity is likewise a factor. The seeds of knotty, scraggly trees
are very apt to produce trees of their own kind and _vice versa_.
[50] This sum represents more than ten times the amount of gold coin now
in existence. Less than five per cent. of the business of the great
industrial centres is a cash business. Even if the money existed, the
transfer of such immense sums would greatly retard commerce. In order to
effect a speedy settlement of payments, clearing-houses are established.
At the clearing-house the representatives of the various banks meet
daily and liquidate the checks drawn against one another; and although
the total yearly volume of payment aggregates the sum mentioned above,
the _balances_ for a year are but little more than two billion dollars.
Even this does not always represent cash payment, for a bank that is a
debtor to another at the close of one day may be a creditor for an equal
sum on the next.
[51] These roads are financed by the Northern Securities Company and
form a link in the Hill-Morgan lines. Their intercontinental traffic is
large.
[52] Their dividing line is the centre of a street.
[53] The brand consisted of any specific device, such as an initial, a
monogram, or a conventional form that might be easily recognized. The
device was registered and imprinted with a red-hot iron on the flank of
the animal. Ear-marks, such as notches or similar devices, also
indicated ownership.
[54] In many cases Government land, not owned by the rancher, has been
fenced in. No objection was made, however, until the sheep-grazier came.
He demanded the removal of the fences, claiming that he had an equal
right to graze his herds on public lands. But inasmuch as a range once
grazed by sheep is ruined for cattle-growing, the quarrel between the
grazier and the rustler has become one in which both the grazier and the
rustler turned upon the sheep-owner.
[55] It is one-third of their capital stock plus the bonded
indebtedness.
[56] The high latitude of the wheat-region, which in most cases is too
cold for the growing of food-stuffs, in this region is tempered by
occasional warm winds known as "Chinook winds." These winds are the
saving feature of wheat-growing. They prevail also in British Columbia,
Washington, and Oregon.
[57] Freight rates from Coatzacoalcos to San Francisco are already fixed
at $6.50 per ton; by the transcontinental railways they vary from $12 to
$15 per ton.
[58] The entire Cuban crop is comparatively small, being but little more
than one-eighth that of the United States.
[59] Vegetable ivory is the seed or nut of a species of palm
(_Phytelephas macrocarpa_). The kernel of the nut gradually acquires the
hardness and appearance of the best ivory, for which it is employed as a
substitute.
[60] The leaves of this shrub (_Erythroxylon coca_) contain a stimulant
substance that in its effects is much like the active principle of
coffee. They are much used by the native laborers to ward off the
feeling of lassitude that comes with severe labor in a tropical climate.
A native porter will carry a load of one hundred pounds a distance of
sixty miles with no food or rest, but merely chewing a few coca-leaves.
The plant yields the substance _cocaine_, now in demand all over the
world as an anæsthetic in eye and throat surgery.
[61] More than a score of species of the tree from which this bark is
obtained grow in the higher eastern slopes of the Andes, but a very
large part is obtained from the tree, _Cinchona calisaya_. The medicinal
substance, quinine, is extracted from the bark, and in the past
half-century it has become the specific for malarial fevers. So great is
the demand for it, that the cinchona-tree is now cultivated in India,
Java, and Mexico.
[62] Only a very small proportion of the Panama hats in the market are
genuine. Many of the imitations, selling at retail for ten dollars or
more, are serviceable hats; most of them, however, have but little
worth.
[63] Nitre, or "nitrate," is a native nitrate of potash, or nitrate of
soda. The latter, commonly called cubic nitre or Chile saltpetre, is the
kind occurring in Chile. Inasmuch as it is very soluble, a plentiful
rainfall would soon leach it from the ground and carry it to the sea.
The nitrate is thought to be of vegetable origin.
[64] The pod of a shrub (_Cæsalpina coriaria_); it contains a
considerable proportion of tannin and is used for tanning leather.
[65] The pericarp or pod contains about twenty-four prismatic-shaped
nuts.
[66] The cattle for Cuba and Brazil must be shipped in open pens in
crossing the tropics. With the exports for Europe the case is different.
If it is summer at the one port it is winter at the other, but it is
always summer in the tropics, and cattle-ships fit for one zone are not
fit for the other--hence the great difficulties in shipment of live
animals to Europe.
[67] For this reason Great Britain is practically a free-trade country.
A protective tariff on imported food-stuffs and materials to be
manufactured would hurt rather than protect British industries.
[68] This is equivalent to the imposition of a tax on all the sugar
consumed at home.
[69] Most of the lithographic stone is obtained at Solnhofen.
[70] This is a little greater than the average ton-mile rate on the New
York Central Railroad between New York and Chicago.
[71] The name Zuider, or Zuyder, means "south"; it was so named to
distinguish it from the North Sea.
[72] Some years ago many of the most valuable vineyards were destroyed
by an insect pest known as the _phylloxera_, introduced from California.
The trouble was overcome by replanting with American vines, the roots of
which were immune to the pest. On these roots were grafted the choice
French vines, the leaves and twigs of which were immune. In this manner
the vineyards were restored with vines that are proof against attack,
and the wine output has reached its normal amount.
[73] It is cultivated as an ornamental tree in the Southern States and
in California.
[74] A small vein of coal occurs near Freiburg.
[75] The St. Gotthard tunnel is almost nine and one-half miles long; the
Arlberg tunnel is six and one-half miles in length. The tunnel now
nearing completion under the Simplon Pass is more than twelve miles
long. Five railways cross the northern frontier into Germany, and German
commerce profits most by them.
[76] Persian rugs are the finest. As a rule the designs are floral and
many of them contain legendary history worked in fantastic but beautiful
patterns. Among those of especial merit are the Kermanshah tree-of-life
fabrics, now somewhat rare. The rugs of Tabriz and Shiraz are also of
high value. In general, Persian fabrics are characterized by very fine
weaving, a short pile, and elaborate designs. Turkoman rugs are usually
a rich brown or maroon in color, and are apt to contain slightly
elongated octagonal figures. The Bokhara and Khiva-Bokhara, or Afghan
rugs, are the best examples. The Baluchistan rugs are usually very dark
in color, with bright red designs and striped ends of cotton warp.
Turkish rugs are made almost wholly in Asia Minor or Anatolia. Large
carpets of American and European designs are made at Ushak and Smyrna.
"Smyrna" rugs are made in Philadelphia.
[77] The most valuable Kermanshah rug, now no longer made there, is the
tree-of-life prayer-rug, an illustration of which is shown on p. 350.
The design is emblematic of the story of the Garden of Eden.
[78] In 1900 the aggregate value of the wheat exported to Great Britain
was only £2,200.
[79] Since the treaty of 1901, which forbids the importation of
fire-arms, a number of large plants for the manufacture of fire-arms,
smokeless powder, and fixed ammunition have been established on the
lower Yangtze.
[80] The islands are mainly in the belt of prevailing westerly winds.
More rain, therefore, falls on the west than on the east coasts.
[81] This region is also known us the Gold Coast. Formerly it furnished
the chief British supply of gold, and the gold coin known as the
"guinea" received its name from this circumstance.
[82] This region was formerly comprised in the Boer republics, Orange
Free State and South African Republic. In 1899 they declared war against
Great Britain, with the result that they were defeated and annexed to
that country--the former as Orange Colony, the latter as Transvaal
Colony.
[83] It is estimated that twenty-two acres of land are necessary to
sustain one adult on fresh meat. The same area of wheat would feed
forty-two people; of oats about eighty-five people; of maize, potatoes,
and rice, one hundred and seventy people. But twenty-two acres planted
with bread-fruit or bananas will support about six thousand.