Comparative exports of hemp and sugar to Great Britain, the United States, and Europe.

Clearances from Manila, Cebu, and Iloilo from October 1 to December 31, 1897.

The following statement of the general trade of the Philippine Islands is taken from Review of the World's Commerce, 1896–97, shortly to be published by the Bureau of Foreign Commerce.

According to a British Foreign Office report (No. 1932, annual series, 1897), the total imports into the islands in 1896 were valued at $10,631,250 and the exports at $20,175,000. The trade with several of the most important countries (compiled from the respective official statistics) was:

About 13 per cent of the imports, says the Statesman's Year Book, come from Spain. Three-fifths of the imports from Great Britain consist of cotton manufactures and yarn.

Details of trade with the United States during the last two years are given by the United States Treasury as follows:

It should be noted that our trade is really much larger (especially in the item of exports to the islands) than is indicated by the above figures. Large quantities of provisions (flour, canned goods, etc.) are sent to Hongkong or other ports for transshipment, and are credited to those ports instead of to Manila.

In a report published in Special Consular Reports Highways of Commerce, Consul Elliott, of Manila, says that there is but one railway in the islands-from Manila to Dagupin-a distance of 123 miles. It is single track and well built, steel rails being used its entire length, the bridges being of stone or iron, and the station buildings substantial. English engines are used which make 45 miles per hour. The Government assisted in the construction of the road by making valuable concessions of land with right of way its entire length, and by guaranteeing 8 per cent per year upon the stock of the road for a period of ninety-nine years, when it is to become State property. So far, adds the consul, the road has paid more than 10 per cent per annum to shareholders.

Mr. Elliott also states that the Compañia Transatlántica (ManilaLiverpool) maintains a monthly service to Europe; that there are four lines of steamers to Hongkong, and many local lines plying between Manila and the provinces, the largest having twenty-eight steamers of 25,000 tonnage.

CONSULAR REPORTS NO. 203 (August, 1897) quotes from a report published in the Bulletin de la Société de Géographie Commerciale (Paris, 1897, Vol. XIX, No. 4), the following description of the industrial condition of, the Philippine Islands:

There are about 25,000 Europeans resident in the islands (the total population is nearly 8,000,000), of course, not counting the troops. Some 12,000 are established in the capital, Manila, the center of the colonial government. English, Spanish, and German houses are engaged in trade, advancing money to the natives on their crops. Such business methods involve risks and necessitate large capital in the beginning, but the profits are immense. The land is fertile and productive, and lacks only intelligent cultivation. Abaca (manila hemp) is one of the chief sources of wealth of the country. Sugar cane does not give as satisfactory returns, owing largely to the ignorance of planters. The average production is 178,000,000 kilograms (175, 186.96 tons), while that of Cuba is equal to 720,000,000 kilograms. The sugar goes almost entirely to Japan, England, and the United States. It is of poor quality and very cheap. The cultivation of tobacco is one of the most important industries, although it is capable of much greater development. The native coffee, although not equal to the mocha or bourbon varieties, has a fine aroma. It goes chiefly to Spain. Cocoa trees grow in abundance, and the oil is used for lighting houses and streets. The indigo is famous for its superior qualities. The inhabitants are apathetic to a degree that is noticeable even in these countries, where everyone is averse to exertion. The women have long and slender fingers, remarkably fine and sensitive, and well adapted to their work. The hats and cigarette holders they make and the articles they embroider are models of delicacy. Cotton spinning and work in bamboo are among the chief industries.