The American Chamber of Commerce Journal

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Part of The American Chamber of Commerce Journal

Title: The American Chamber of Commerce Journal
Issue Date: Volume XVIII (Issue No. 6) June 1938
Publisher: The Chamber
Year: 1938
Language: English
Subject: Philippines -- Economic conditions -- Periodicals.; Economic history.
Rights
Place of publication: Manila
extracted text: Just Little Things Halfway in 1938 Sewing Machine Business Do You Think Justly of Us? Manila's Local Meat Supply Growing Asiatic Immigration EDITORIAL: Halfway in 1938 ------oOo-----MINING REVIEW Kilometer 73 Observation Post Culled from the News What the Diggers are Doing How Things Look to Clifford A. Greenman April 1938 Gold Production OTHER IMPORTANT FEATURES AND THE USUAL MINING AND COMMERCIAL REVIEWS ^cemc 7lif> to Ctlbai/ ANTIDOTE FOR JANGLED NERVES A Pleasure Trip Along the Scenic Route to Albay • Laguna de Bay • Ricefields • Sugar Cane • Mount Makiling • Mount Banahaw • Coconut Belt • Laguimanoc Bay • Siain Beach and Coast Line on Pacific • Coast Line Along Ragay Gulf • City of Naga • Hemp Country • Mount Isarog • Mount Iriga • Mayon Volcano • Kagsawa Ruins • Legaspi Bay If yours is a business trip, combined business and pleasure, by traveling the pleasant way consult Traffic Department Tel. 4-98-61 Information Local 42 Downtown Office Tel. 2-31-83 . 521-523 Dasmarinas R. E. BERNABE Chief Clerk LEON M. LAZAGA Traffic Manager CANDIDO SORIANO City Agent MANILA RAILROAD COMPANY 943 Azcarraga, Manila /N RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1938 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL 1 "Kent A Kange and let me do the Cooking” Here is an important thing to re member — Electric cooking, or roasting, will not dry out the meat being roasted. This means that you get the job done the most economical and tasty way. Another point worth considering is that I can cook a meal for as little as P.01 per person if you will take full advantage of my services in your home. Why not come in, or call me, about equipping your home to get the full benefit of the lowest rates? You will be surprised how little it will cost you. Reddy Kiloivatt MANILA ELECTRIC COMPANY Meralco Electricity Costs Less ELECTROLUX THE SERVEL GAS REFRIGERATOR Life-Long Service At Minimum Cost With an Electrolux in your home your refrigera tion problems are completely solved. These prob lems are— No Moving Parts No Expensive Repairs No Interruptions No Wasted Food Lower Operating Cost Greater Convenience More Ice Cubes Greater Beauty More than one million of these economical re frigerators are in daily use, proving to theii* users that their choice was a happy one. Come in and let us show YOU the size needed for your home and tell you about our Easy Purchase Plan. MANILA GAS CORPORATION /N RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMHER OE COMMERCE. JOURNAL 2 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1938 OXY-ACETYLENE Welding & Cutting Equipment Philippine Acetylene Co. 281 CALLE CRISTOBAL, PACO MANILA, P. I. LETTERS Miss Winifred Lewis —An English-forms teacher in the Bureau of Education. I want to thank you for the nice little bouquet you handed me on page forty-five of your April issue. The unexpected flow ers met along the way make the trail pleasant to follow. (Miss Lewis writes occasional verse of more than medium merit). Jack Foster, jr. —Of New York World-Telegram, through the Orient last year as a roving keen-eyed reporter. A copy of your magazine came to my desk this afternoon and I have just finish ed reading your article “Looking Forward Toward Borneo”. It was extraordinarily interesting. It is one of the subjects that certainly is not considered very often by Americans thinking about the Philippines. Is there a very considerable group in Ma nila who have this same point of view as you? By the way, what is the present feeling about independence in Manila? We get a number of brief dispatches on the subject but none of them seem to indicate any clear cut attitude. Jim and Peg Marshall have just come through New York on their way to London. We spent several evenings together talking about the Philippines and the East, and how tired we got of New York. (It is hoped our “Borneo” views will reach the attention of state department officials whom they should interest. Readers will recognize Jim Marshall as the popular Collier’s staff member who writes intel ligently and gracefully, often pithily, about the Far East). Rev. E. K. Higdon —formerly a well known missionary in Manila for many years, now heading Philippines Bureau, New York. The “Philippines Bureau ’ is a center in North America for information about the Philippines. We hope to secure a complete current file of all periodical publications which deal in any way with Philippine in terests. No such file now exists in this country. Our budget does not enable us to sub scribe for newspapers and magazines. Therefore we look to you for possible aid Drive this new lowest priced Hud son—prove for yourself it is a better deal for your money. No matter what car you are driving, come in and see a combination of room, smooth performance, sturdi ness and safety on one hand, and of remarkably low cost of ownership on the other, such as has never before been offered in any car in this price class. The Hudson 112 makes 22 to 25 miles per gallon Sole Distributor ESTRELLA AUTO PALACE LEVY HERMANOS INC. 536-568 Gandara Manila IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMHER OF COMMERCE- JOURNAL June, 1938 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL 3 since your periodical is important for the purposes we have in mind. Could you send it to us for the next year, beginning July first? The Philippines Bureau plans to read, digest and classify for ready reference the news and articles in the various publi cations. Occasional bulletins and other materials on Philippines affairs will be issued to a rather long list of readers. Our sources, of course, will be credited. We plan to publish at times a list of Philip pines periodicals for the use of those inter ested in keeping abreast of Philippine life and thought. The Philippines Bureau will also become an information center by making its perio dicals and other files available at all times to press, radio, publishing, lecture, com mercial, travel, church, educational, medical and other interests. Mission Boards, churches, educational institutions, philanthropic funds and inter ested individuals have cooperated in estab lishing this Bureau. If you are able to give us your valued aid, we shall be very grateful. If you desire, we shall also be glad to keep you informed as to the devel opment of the Bureau’s activities. Here’s how to get Manila’s! Genuine Manila Long Filler Cigars in cellophane are obtain able in your city or nearby! EXPERIENCED TRAVELERS-CARRY TRAVELERS CHECKS AND LETTERS OF CREDIT In the Far East, America, Europe, South America, the Caribbean—wherever you may go—National City of fices, affiliates and correspondents are ready to serve you. By carrying National'City Travel funds, this world wide banking service becomesi available to travelers everywhere. THE NATIONAL CITY BANK OF NEW YORK C. A. Bond Philippine Tobacco St., New York City Internal Revenue Manila, P. I. List of D i s trib u t o r s furnished upon re quest to— INSURANCE For Every Need and Purpose WORKMEN’S COMPENSATION PUBLIC LIABILITY AUTOMOBILE FIRE MARINE ACCIDENT PLATE GLASS ATLAS ASSURANCE CO., LTD. THE EMPLOYER’S LIABILITY CONTINENTAL INSURANCE CO. ASSURANCE CORPORATION, LTD. ORIENT INSURANCE COMPANY INSURANCE COMPANY OF NORTH AMERICA General Agents E. E. IISII. INC. Telephone 2-24-28 — MANILA — Kneedler Building 220 W. 42nd Collector of M A N I L A S made under sanitary conditions will satisfy your taste I (Health Bulletin No. 28) Rules and Regulations for the Sanitary Control of the Factories of Tobacco Products. “Section 15. Insanitary Acts.— No person engaged in the handling, preparation, processing, manufac ture, or packing of tobacco products or supervising such employment, shall perform, cause, permit, or suf fer to be permitted, any insanitary act during such employment, nor shall any such persons touch or con taminate any. tobacco products with filthy hands or permit the same to be brought into contact with the tongue or lips, or use saliva, impure water, or other unwholesome substan ces as a moistening agent;...”. IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE • JOURNAL 4 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OE COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1938 Pure Product J fe7>C0TCH Ink Li .r ^•ii^TscoHond JondonK®lft890^ Ml Sl< \ Special Reserve a fine old SCOTCH 8 years in wood before it's bottled Direct from the Distillery in bond Trans-Pacific Trading Co. KRUEGER'S first BEER IN KEGLINED CANS AT ALL GROCERS OR DIRECT FROM TRANS-PACIFIC - TRADING,CO. P.O.BOX 497 » MANILA • TEL. 2-42-04^ Good for a Healthy Thirst! cycol MOTOR OILS A RE refined with skill and experience. Graded with care, each to fit a specific need in lubrication, they represent the answer to the problem of economy in operating expenses. TIDE WATER ASSOCIATED OIL CO. 5th Floor, S. J. Wilson Bldg. P. O. Box 1632—Tel. 4-98-88 JUAN LUNA—MANILA if you should be suddenly taken away, would your wife and children lose the home they cherish so dearly? Mortgage Insurance will solve your problem—per manently—and at surprisingly low cost. We’ll be pleased to give you complete de tails about this splendid policy. FILIPINAS LIFE ASSURANCE CO. Filipinas Building MANILA P. 0. Box 1485 Tel. 2-22-42 IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLE/.SE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OE COMMERCE JOURNAL Just Little Things • Our younger friends and our magazines—the ma gazine Esquire for men is one of the most interesting you can pick up—remind us of the moral cowardice our conservatism in apparel conceals. We are inhibited, that’s what. When we bought our first vest, forty years ago, we weren’t inhibited yet and that waistcoat was to our real taste. It was mauve, brown-checked mauve if you will believe us, an excellent bit of wool. But we had to discard it after all, because too late we observed that in Oklahoma at that pe riod only gamblers likely to be tinhorns wore vests that contrasted with their coats. Our business was teaching. It is the same with every man our age, when it comes to clothes they just won’t go to town; when yGU see us on the Escolta, our suits are all white drill and we cut them all the same way—it is the ut most of our courage to change over, evenings, to the doublebreasted white coat from the oldtime mess jacket. Our children and their children cultured in an era of color have it all over us in courage about clothes, and the good shops in town enable them to obey that impulse and be nonchalant under all chromatic cir cumstances. For our children and their children know color when they see it, and have color responses and know how to satisfy them. With us a drab age passes, may we only live to see an evening gathering of folk dressed up where the men are not all cliches in sombre black. Think of the personal discretion that was exercised by the Founding Fathers in this sort of thing. There was per sonality in every get-up, even in carriages and harness. Tailors were not tyrants then, men who fought for liberty spurned even the tyranny of the waxen thread and made their tailors tailor them to their own free fancy. Now it has all come back again, and a good thing it has. You can do wonders at the good shops now, by way of dressing, if you have courage. In one shop we have seen fifteen varying styles in golf shoes all in a single showcase: some white, some white and black, some russet, but most of them brown, and dis tinguished from one another by other details. Some had the seams outside, some inside; and some had very broad toes, others tended to be pointed; while some were capless, others fea tured this reinforcement. Anyway, there they were, color and all—a shoe exactly to your character for the asking. It was the same with shirts, personality plus in color, cut, and fabric. And to think we have to stick to white because of our ill luck with that first vest! But probably the suspenders rack roused our imagination really to run riot. Wide braces, narrow braces, silken and lisle, and besides the first class workmanship, color, color, color. And which braces would we select, please? Well, let’s see now—have you anything in white? (We hoped they didn’t have white braces, then we were going to screw up our courage and buy what we really wanted, but they had ’em after all). There was a black pair of braces relieved with rows of diminutive dots in old rose. We liked them. Then there was another pair, black too, with white ladder stripes. We liked them. Then there was a pair pairing WARNER, BARNES A COMPANY, LTD. LONDON — MANILA — ILOILO — CEBU — BACOLOD SHIPPING DEPARTMENT IMPORTERS & EXPORTERS MACHINERY DEPARTMENT Nippon Yusen Kaisha Cunard-White Star.. Ltd. Bibby Line General Managers of Agents For: Sugar Machinery, Diesel Engines, Conden COMMONWEALTH INSURANCE COMPANY sing Plants. Mining Machinery and Steels, Shipbuilders and Engineers. ILOILO WAREHOUSING AGRICULTURAL DEPARTMENT INSURANCE DEPARTMENT CORPORATION All Classes of Fertilizer Transacting: RAMONA MILLING COMPANY Fire Automobile and Miscellaneous — IMPORT DEPARTMENT Special representatives of Sperry Flour Fidelity and Surety Bonds IMPERIAL AIRWAYS, LTD. Sugar Bags Manila Office: SORIANO BUILDING, Plaza Cervantes Cable Address: “WARNER” Standard Codes LV RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CH AM HER OE COMMERCE 'JOURNAL 6 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1938 white with blue, a very chaste white and a very alluringblue if you see what we mean, and this blue was crossed with rows of white stars. We liked these braces too, but inhibition still asserted its thrall and our purchase was the white pair. Such cravenness, no wonder the younger generation takes no stock in ours!. Younger men outfit themselves at such a shop every day, and get a real kick out of defending their own taste; it is getting so they have almost as much fun at this business of dressing as femmes themselves do, and nearly as much liberty of choice. Take even underwear. In our youth it was short and thin of summers, long and thick of winters. But only in winter could you have the one-piece outfit, a concession almost from the pulpit itself, for sake of more warmth; in summer when warmth was not a factor, it was almost in the Book of Common Prayer that your undershirt be one piece, your drawers another. (Many said under-drawers, and you come upon the redundancy yet, though we be lieve no over-drawers were ever claimed to have been made). Well, while we were deciding to buy white braces, in came a younger man in flannels with purple tie—came in too, quite as if he owned the world and could sell it to you all tied up with a purple cord, possibly relieved with yellow. He was returning some underwear he had taken on approval, and he bravely said he didn’t like the style. He took some more on approval, his mirror would tell him what to do about it. And there you are, taste even down to underwear! There you have the psychic of an age in which 40,000 persons a year die. in motor accidents in America alone, besides all the many thousands that are injured and mussed up. Think if it happened to you, and your trous ers were torn and there for the gaze of vulgar onlookers and the hospital crew picking you up was your plain cot ton underwear! Would your face be red? A youngergeneration face, yes. But our blushes would be for any underwear that was not very plain and very white. Af ter our courageous friend had gone out with a selection of a spiderweb gray undershirt paired with some bullion yellow drawers, we quietly eased over to the underwear counter and whispered for some whites, a furtiveness that clung to us until we had the package safe home. Thank goodness and perhaps Hollywood for a generation that is as conscious of color as it is unconscious of pru dery. It should really get somewhere when all of us old sters die off and leave empty the executive desks where our performance has been as questionable as our taste, and more so our courage, in what the well dressed man should wear. • In the dark Victorian age that spanned our youth, you got the facts of life from the Institute of the Hired Man whose soiled groves lay back of the barn, or maybe you got them in barracks. Souls were recognized Sun days and prayermeeting nights. Little was known about them (is more known now?), but they did require perio dical saving at Revival Meeting, a process by no means infallible during intervening periods when the eloquence of the revivalist had ridden away on a mustang. Despite all this however, we have come to the point where we could be brave in a bathing suit—if we could swim and had excuse for it—and what riots of cut and color are these enticing raiments. But shorts, for example, that we should all wear. Though here too you have wild chances of expressing your personality, we never can. We are conscious of our knees. In our adolescence, when you were about 10 years old and could keep up your older brother’s pants when they were cut down for you, you grew out of knees—it was never manly to show them again, and the inhibition somehow sticks. Then socks. If not for inhibitions, what couldn’t we do with today’s socks. But we are conscious of our ankles, so the blaze of color in the socks display must be foregone, we limit our choice to white wool socks. White! Forever white! White and its purity, nonsense! White and its coward ice, we say! White and its white liveredness! skirts—but those You see, when we were young the body was not a very clean proposition. You never mentioned it as such, and you only dealt with it hygienically Satur day nights: body was not a polite word and where men and women and girls and boys were together it was never used. It gets out of men’s clothes into women’s to say it, but this bashful obsession about the body—legs and arms were limbs in those sallow days, and boys believed girls shed their feet when they let down their mey Island bathing suits of the nineties with bloomers below the knees, arms beyond the elbows, and the blouse well down over the bloomers’ more essential half, were not a concession to style. Girls felt they had to dress that way, which indeed was a very bold way, because the body was not quite nice and should ever be covered from view. Such was the generation that produced the World War and the Versailles treaty, and now flounders along producing endless chains of depressions by way of ef ficiency. At bottom, it was a generation too conscious of its deficiencies even to clothe itself as its judgment willed. Could any generation be worse, or do worse? Be lieve it or not, the better dressed generations coming on, our children and their children, are better genera tions in fact, yea de facto and de jure. Thanks for the white underwear. Genuine MANILA long - filler cigars Have steadily grown in popularity among discriminating cigar sntokers. Try them and be convinced! Manufactured under the strictest Government sanitary regulatons. Wrapped in cellophane for your protection. List of distributors furnished upon request to C. A. BOND Philippine Tobacco Agent 220 W 42nd St., New York City or Collector of Internal Revenue, Manila, P. I. IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PI,EASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1938 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL 7 Halfway in 1938 • Sugar prices low while tonnage moved is high: spending the tax surplus offsets lowered market returns. The Philippines are hard hit in the commodity markets that absorb the bulk of their surplus farm pro ducts. From the current report of the American trade commissioner at Manila it appears that during the first quarter of last year Manila hemp exports were invoiced at £12,598,499 and in the same quarter this year at £5,723,693, the difference being nearly £7,000,000. Ma nila hemp is the commonwealth’s basic crop second to sugar. It enjoys a worldwide demand. Sugar sells only in the United States, under preferential terms, and this biggest money crop of the commonwealth sells currently in New York at hardly more than production cost. Sugar exports moved to market early this year, the hunch, a correct one, being that the market would sag. This made export totals high for the first quarter, but the satisfaction it entailed was comparative only. . The commonwealth’s quota in the American sugar market is about a million short tons a year. It will continue to be filled year by year, hence all the advantages of employ ment in the industry will continue little changed, but planters’ and mills’ net incomes and the luxury trade rising from their demands will be limited by the low market; and according to our best information, they will therefore be limited for a long time. Secretary Henry Wallace of Agriculture in Roosevelt’s cabinet is a free trader in principle (and so is Cordell Hull of the state de partment) , the influence of the administration will be to keep sugar normally low and not to be too tender toward domestic sugar appeals for a better market. The value of sugar invoiced for export during the first quarter of last year from the commonwealth was £38,239,291, as against £41,089,756 in the same period this year, but a much heavier tonnage is involved in this year’s figures as compared with last year’s. At the end of May this year, practically the whole year’s quota had been shipped. Sugar is encountering bad market weather, with the season ahead quite unpromising. Com monwealth sugar will have to take up its belt a notch or two. The commissioner says March exports rose 42% over February’s and 19% over March’s last year. This was sugar, and partly a revival of buying in Japan (of other commodities) so that no reliable forecast can tell how long it will last. Eighty-one per cent of March’s ex ports went to the United States. Japan’s purchases upped 200% from February, were still 3% below March’s last year: “in the first quarter of this year they were 27% behind last year and made up only 5.7 % of total exports compared with 7.4% in 1937.” Japan’s delinquency as a buyer from the commonwealth will continue during the affaire Chiang Kai-Shek, a tempting lottery if lotteries tempt you much.” Some men who see things in Japan surmise that money is tight there. Some ship captains say they have seen ships dock at Japan and not unload, payment for their cargoes not being forthcoming. Happily, the United States buys four-fifths of all the surplus the commonwealth has to sell, measured in values, and always at fair prices if not high ones. It would be a sorry trade to look to other markets; this will be even truer when Lord Halifax succeeds in giving back to Germany her prewar colonies, for then all Europe will be buying empire and interested here mainly in clamber ing over the tariff wall with goods to sell and running freighters to and from the Islands on gold collecting er rands. Commonwealth commerce is not heavily de pressed by the recession in the United States and the low commodity market, because tax returns from Washington are an offset that will outlast the fiscal-calendar year. There is always the possibility that within that time Wal lace’s wizardry will work and markets will rise: sugar as already analyzed, a moderating exception. During the first quarter of this year export invoices summed £73,683,269 as against £77,881,728 in the first quarter last year. This shows that quantity frequently makes up what price takes off. The people, their own masters, are under the necessity to produce, and so under all circumstances, while a nationwide transportation sys tem constantly and rapidly improving and extending brings more and more families in practical touch with cash markets. EXPORTS, DETAILED STATEMENT OF, SHOWING COUNTRIES OF DESTINATIONS, QUANTITIES, AND VALUE OF DOMESTIC MERCHANDISE Articles and Countries of Destination ABACA United States Great Britain Belgium ............ Germany .......... Other Countries Total ..^.................. COPRA United States Denmark .......... Germany .......... Sweden ............ Netherlands Other Countries YEAR 1937 Quantity Value YEAR 1936 Quantity Value K los 40.674.525 46,899,165 4.913,023 4,861,282 45.686,362 22,305,041 P13.702.086 11,350,747 1.184,908 1,378.502 9.828,413 5,834,717 Kilos 37,841,368 40,223,941 4,676,222 3,694.058 58.139,402 22.549,227 P10,673,421 7,536,139 946,763 842,396 9,489,950 4,690,628 165.339,398 P43.279.373 167,124,218 P34,177,197 4G.297.953 17,658,170 24,918,012 14.082.5G3 2,489.200 5,083,043 2,837.601 844,817 1,183,642 604.206 114,372 116,720 51,752,000 23.827,681 20,410.550 2,910,061 5.325,000 4,042,353 110,528,941 P 5,800,358 108,267,545 P 3,659,079 COCONUT OIL United States .................. 1G0.292.461 Germany ............................ 1,021,086 Canada ................................ 786,676 China .................................. 269,045 British E. Indies ............ 226.045 Siam .................................... 74.018 Other Countries .............. 98,132 P40.342.461 150.023.888 P26.273.827 290,880 1,079.069 167,766 124,483 3.339.015 652,213 60,078 328.267 70,963 67.054 159.008 40.186 17.656 61,670 11,090 24,190 3,028,454 471,722 Total .............................. 162,767.818 P40.926.802 158,909,371 P27.677.767 SUGAR United States ...................... 860.007.653 Pl 15.221.047 899.615 427 P123.854.367 Hawaii ............................ 3.820 286 2.900 260 Guam .............................. 314.872 40.856 53,979 9.510 Hongkong .......................... 2.718,785 150,204 166,061 10.507 Total ............................. CIGARS United States . Great Britain Italy .................. China ................ Hongkong ........ Other Countries Total LEAF TOBACCO United States , Great Britain .. Italy .................. Hongkong ........ Japan ................ Other Countries 871,045,130 P115,412,387 899.838,367 P123.874.644 Number 185.723.185 1,327,310 2,846,846 1,359.580 5.603.485 624,616 237,264 6.897.709 P 5,537.466 45,297 62,499 24,160 199,074 46.733 14,305 215,185 Number 163.419.228 1,159,380 1,434.500 2.500 5,539,745 616,045 354,250 5.808.430 4,956.994 38.441 27,663 104 217.374 46.468 19.724 185.890 204,619,993 P 6,144.719 178,334,078 P 5,492,653 Kilos 35.518 2.759 172,712 4,572,249 216.859 133.889 1.012.308 1,831.505 3.000 60,812 1,226.256 70,749 39.841 426,529 638.416 Kilos 25,061 1,191 1,617,370 1.045.948 187,867 172.575 623.437 9.769.023 1,721 359,749 402,287 55.469 46,683 247.698 3,406,536 8.075 799 P2.485.753 14,442,474 P4.532.606 8 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1938 Sewing Machine Business • Juan and Maria may be the signers for a machine, but whole families share the obligation: a profound lesson. Business as carried on by the Singer Sewing Machine company in this commonwealth is an illuminat ing study in sociology as well as in economics. The Philippine agency of the Singer company is one of its largest, perhaps its very largest, in volume of business done year after year. In India, of course, a very large country, there are a number of agencies—none surpas sing or equaling the Philippine agency. This is the. rule throughout the world, since the Singer company’s activities are coextensive with the world. In no single country of South America, for example, or in Mexico whose population pars that of this commonwealth, does a Singer agency do the volume of business the Singer agency does here. Average imports into this commonwealth are 8,354 machines a year, covering the period of four years end ing with 1936. Last year was an extraordinary one, new mining activities and communities creating many new payrolls and commodity prices aver aging high; and therefore, whatever may have been the imports, sales were un usually high, while this year commodity prices are low, mining payrolls are lower than during 1937, or have been folded up altogether, and the sewing machine busi ness is back at its normal pace. That is to say, 1938 so far is a good year for Singer—the typical story. More than 95''< of the business ;s with poor families, the little industrial business done is chiefly in the Manila district. The company has dotted the commonwealth with 368 stores, each identified by the Singer sign and each a headquarters for agents. The most northern of these stores is in Aparri, the most southern in Jolo; stores are many in central and southeastern Luzon and the Bisayas, and more scattered and not far from the coast in Mindanao. In Palawan and Mindoro, where malaria reigns, stores are very few. The most popular sewing machine in the common wealth is a standard household machine retailing on the lease plan at P185, $92.50. On such a sale the company delivers the machine on payment of PIO, $5. The con tract calls for monthly payments of P5, $2.50. Con tracts (still in Spanish, though the company believes English would now be better) are brief and clear, on a single sheet of paper, all on one side. Purchasers have someone else sign with them, usually a relative. A husband signs with his wife, a sister signs with a sister, a mother signs with her daughter, or a daughter with her mother. That completes the formalities, and the machine goes possibly a hundred kilometers away from the store that sells it. Just where it is to go is in the agreement, and if it is moved to another point before all payments are made it is agreed that the company will be notified. The claim is limited to the machine itself, no other col lateral stands behind the peasants’ word. Losses are nil, the lowest in the world not excepting the United States, and repossessions immaterial. Two factors count in this. First, in nearly every case the machine is of some economic advantage to the family that buys it. Second, commonly an elder mem ber of the family makes the purchase, and Filipinos who venerate then* elders also venerate their elders’ posses sions. Death of the purchaser therefore makes no dif ference, the living comply with the agreement and it is unnecessary to write out a new one. Ownership of a sewing machine also elevates a village family socially, therefore its members make every effort to keep it and the ordinary vicissitudes of such effort never reach the company’s attention in any way. Challenging to the imagination are the implications of the fact that elders’ debts among Philippine peas ants are assumed by their juniors. This is native in Malayan culture, as it prevails here, and is a great point of honor. The nominal buyer of a machine is not, of course, the one who always pays for it. Signing the agreement is indeed usually a mere fiduciary service to the family exe cuted by two of its members. The agree ment in fact involves the entire family, from its members’ viewpoint, and that le gally it can not go so far is a point of no consequence whatever. (The peasants of the commonwealth live by their own an cient laws, and regard statute laws that folk make in Manila and write into books only as they must. In all matters of contract, it is best to go by the people’s own laws). For illustration of this paper by specific example we traced the history of a sewing machine in the family of a clerk whose pay is P100 a month. He has an aunt, who is mute, who thought she might make herself more useful if she had a sewing machine. It was talked over, accordingly she bought a machine and someone signed with her for it. She made some of the payments her self, the clerk’s mother made some for her, and other members of the family made some. The aunt now makes the clerk’s shirts, he buying the material—also dresses for his children and things for his wife. There is of course no charge, but if you think to send Auntie rice once in a while, or a chicken for Sunday dinner, this is what you should do. When we asked what would have happened if when a hundred pesos was still owed on the machine the clerk’s aunt had died, he said the payments would have been made by the one who inhe rited the machine—the one to whom the aunt gave it. “They would not only pay for it,” he said, “they would keep it always, and have much pride in it too, in memory of her. That is what ice do, sir, that is onr way.” The Singer company began operating in the Philippines in 1872 but had no extensive business here until the (Please turn to page 13) June, 1938 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL 9 Do You Think Justly of Us? • Below are listed a few of the reasons why men of worldwide business experience rate this common wealth tops. Halfway in 1938 is a subject at which we may pause to try to bring to the consciousness of the commercial world a view of this commonwealth more just to its de serts than the view, mostly sheer ignorance, commonly prevailing. Without research, not wishing to write a book on the subject, we proceed at random. First, per sonal liberty is highly prized in the Philippines and is practically unhampered. Every newcomer arrives with whatever impedimenta he chooses to bring along; boldly, for instance, he steps ashore with his camera, that needs no registering or police permit, and other such personal belongings save firearms. There is a national tradition of hospitality to the stranger, the commonwealth citizen takes pride in up holding it. If goods are brought along, stow them in bond with the customs until, when sold by sample, you release them to purchasers. If they are foreign goods, be aware that the commonwealth tariff is one of the lowest barriers to actual free trade existing anywhere. If they are from the United States, American goods directly shipped, don’t bother to stow them in bond; this is American territory and trade with the homeland is on the free federal basis prevail ing among the states themselves. Have no qualms about climate, you will find it admirable; nor about mysterious maladies peculiar to the tropics, for they are absent and (as Dr. Victor G. Heiser, the man who organized the drive against them, says in his Odyssey) you have come to a land where rheumatism, arthritis and similarly really dangerous ailments for mature people, some of them winter diseases, count for but little. Asiatic epi demics will not assail you, because the United States pu blic health service is unsleeping and tireless and will not admit them. If you have wife and children, by all means bring them along and seize the opportunity for the children to learn their modern languages. Expect no high taxes, you will not find them. When you earn net more than $2,000 a year excluding liberal exemptions, income tax will begin at 37c ; when your in dividual net income rises as high as $1,100,001 a year the rate will be 39% (compared to England’s base of 27-1/2%). Want to go that high? Well, go to it then —opportunities abound, and some of the boys have ac tually made it. Corporation income is taxed 6%, may reach 107' this year. Compare with rates elsewhere, and be happy. Little, very little, goes to the serving of the public debt—because there is practically no such debt to service. Most revenue goes directly into ser vices broadening and bettering your market: schools, railways, public corporations trying to found new indus tries, roads and bridges, and the new universal military training and the army—a small affair considered neces sary for national defense and decided upon reluctantly, under pressure of outside circumstances beyond the com monwealth’s control. Let’s go back a bit to debt. Finland, an honest country (the commonwealth’s population is five times Finland’s, by the way), has a just fame in the news papers for paying her debt to the United States. Give this commonwealth its due, on the same grounds; it bor rowed, from the United States, too, of course, for about the same purpose: better implementation of its econo mics. And it has regularly repaid, sometimes in advance of due dates, and now has a superavit in its sinking fund. The Philippines was doing this long before Finland began doing it—in fact, long before the Finnish debt began. But while the homeside newspapers give Finland columns of praise, fully justified, every time she makes a debt remittance, when this commonwealth does the same thing it doesn’t rate a stick of public notice. Be just to this commonwealth, it’s niggardly to do business with a country and not meet its good deport ment halfway. You are safe here, either in the cities or the farthest most isolated provincial points. A constabulary service blankets the archi pelago, while the attitude of the people is one of spontaneous friendship. Nor will minor exceptions to general experience abrogate the rule. The national character is inquisitive and eclectic, mightily attractive. There are assaults and killings, but for per sonal affronts such as insults in public places or cross ings in romance; they are among the people, who settle such offenses in the direct old biblical way instead of parading loss of face in courts of public justice. There is of course one precaution to be observed: sow no gratuitous insults, this is a commonwealth and its citizens comprise an old proud race—the only one that ever mastered the Pacific prior to the 16th century, which it did with fleets of dugouts! Bring here such money as you choose to bring, it will be secure in any of the banks; and what is more im portant, when you wish to ship it away, go right ahead— a dollar will cost you two pesos plus nominal exchange and you can export on these terms as much money as you can lay lawful hand on. Now tell us frankly, isn’t such a country not only somewhat rare in the world today, but, in probability, a first rate one in which to do busi ness or experiment in industry? If you think so, then for heaven’s sake pass the word along. And try your luck yourself. —W. R. 10 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1938 The American Chamber of Commerce OF THE Philippine Islands DIRECTORS: P. A. Meyer, President (on leave) H. M. Cavender, Vice-President (acting president) John L. Headinyton, Treasurer J. C. Rockwell E. M. Grimm Verne E. Miller S. F. Gaches E. Schradieck ALTERNATE DIRECTORS: E. D. Gundelfinger L. K. Cotterman K. B. Day H. Dean Hellis SECRETARY: C. G. Clifford COMMITTEES EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE: P. A. Meyer, Chairman H. M. Cavender RELIEF COMMITTEE: C. G. Clifford, Chairman MANUFACTURING COMMITTEE: K. B. Day. Chairman A. W. Ralston D. P. O'Brien H. P. Strickler LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE: E. E. Selph, Chairman Judge F. B. Ingersoll C. G. Clifford FINANCE COMMITTEE: Verne E. Miller, Chairman E. J. Deymek FOREIGN TRADE COMMITTEE: H. B. Pond, Chairman E. D. Gundelfinger PUBLICATIONS COMMITTEE: P. A. Meyer, Chairman (on leave) H. M. Cavender (acting chairman) C. M. Hoskins Roy C. Bennett BANKING COMMITTEE: E. J. LeJeune, Chairman J. R. Llyod RECEPTION & ENTERTAINMENT COMMITTEE: E. Schradieck, Chairman E. D. Gundelfinger INVESTMENT COMMITTEE: P. A. Meyer, Chairman J. C. Rockwell S. F. Gaches SHIPPING COMMITTEE: H. M. Cavender, Chairman E. M. Grimm Chester F. Sharp HALFWAY IN 1938 Business is sketchy but on the whole quite good. If anyone said the Commonwealth is suffering a depression or a recession, he would be laughed out of court. Yet business is obviously moderated by current American conditions, commodity prices being low. Business is affected by the China campaigns, too; while the Chinese boycott of Japanese goods benefits American imports very materially, that Japan buys so little Manila hemp and lesser supplies of Philippine logs curtails sales of textiles and staple tinned goods. Business will improve when commodity markets rise, or when peace comes in China and Japan goes back to work. The table shows the banks to be full of money, and either credit is curtailed as compared with last year or demands for money have declined. The standard bank interest rate of 8% on loans and overdrafts will not yield as long as the tax on deposits remains in force. The gov ernment’s position is contradictory on this point; on the one hand it wants lower interest rates, on the other it stands in the way of them. If business came to a crisis, the government should take this tax out of the waySince the data in the table were first published by the government, later data show a considerable decline| of circulation. Maybe the current balance of trade is not so good—fewer pesos wanted for buying exports, more dollars wanted for buying imports—but the trend may be but temporary. A year ago in mid April, bank deposits summed P228,518,563 and this year at the same period $230,518,563, up 2 million. But bank payments for use of money have greatly changed during this period, very little is paid on deposits now, so it is evident that money is not now used as actively as it was a year ago. Maybe this is as it should be. A year ago, money was being used actively in mining stock speculations— people were losing it right and left. They may now pre fer to leave it banked, even for nothing more than safety. Anyway, loans as compared with last year are down 3 millions, and one cause for this must be banks’ reluctance to accept mining shares as collateral. Cats and dogs of mongrel breeds could be hocked last year, but what the stock is and what dividend it normally pays makes a difference this year. Probably you can get a legitimate business loan easier now than you might have a year ago- The banks are not coining money, exactly; on the other hand, they have a cold-eyed desire for paper sound ly secured. There is considerable cutting up about releasing the Pl 13,000,000 from Washington derived from the coconut oil excise tax. If this halts public works on a big scale, it’s a bad time to do so and the business of the country will feel it keenly. The whole situation is in hands of theorists, some of them gloomy perennially about the country’s probity and economic capacity. For President Quezon, this should make a nice little inside fight which ever way it turns out. It is also certain that in the end, when wounds have to be bound up, nobody will be to blame. If Washington thinks hard times are coming on here, and therefore believes the treasury here should be kept running over while its own is flat, it can bottle this re venue up and bring on hard times. Then it can say, it was right all the time. Barring such pedantry, the busi ness year will be fairly good—may even be very good in deed. For the time being, President Quezon has can(Please turn to page 11) Combined Data from All Banks in the Commonwealth: Mid-April Item Year (Time about Mid-April) Total loans, discounts .1932 .1937 J 938 and overdrafts Pl 12,478,119 P182,223,075 P185,384,203 Total investments 44,967,964 59,474,927 54,630,920 Total cash on hand 13,920,826 41,286,559 63,751,593 Total demand deposits 49,454,078 120,857,918 118,100,702 Total savings deposits (no report) 50,321,112 54,416,033 Total time deposits 68,119,766 57,806,861 58,001,828 Total capital of domestic banks (no report) 24,663,300 24,663,300 Total surplus, reserves, and undivided profits (no report) 34,692,284 26,199,997 JAMES M. ROBB ATTORNEY-AT-LAW property—wills—general practise Kneedler Building Tel. 2-16-44 IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1938 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL 11 Manila’s Local Meat Supply Science and invention have pool-, ed their efforts during more than ten years in the Philippines, to bet ter Manila’s local meat supply. The invention part of this is the elec tric refrigerator, many stalls in the city markets have provided re frigerators for keeping and dis playing their meat. The old days are quite gone, now the fresh clean meat is well exhibited and much as it should be. The science part is a longei' more discursive story. It runs from the College of Agriculture through many of the public schools to hundreds of families as far north as llokos, as far south as Tayabas and Batangas, raising porkers for Manila. Science in cattle raising leaves Luzon and extends all ovei’ the archipelago. It is not limited to breeding, either, but grasses are introduced and put under experi mentation in hope of seeding pasturage that will, add weight and fat to grazing steers. The quest is only measurably successful, but the point where good beef is produced has been reached. Then too, science is in charge at the slaughterhouse on calle Azcarraga. Every carcass is inspected, and the City sends the rejected ones to its crematory to be de stroyed. They are not even sold to soapers, as they once were, the City will not take the risk that turning them over to a contractor involves. Bad meat is burned up, that’s all there is to it, and the owner of it loses all, es caping only the payment of the killing fee. But the slaughterhouse, at time of writing (May 18) is in a bad way. It should be painted. Its copings should all be repaired, also its floor of granite blocks and its drains. The masonry at the bases of the structural beams should be repaired and made to standard size. The offices should be repaired and painted. Sanitary provisions should be provided for personnel. Neighbor ing streets should be asphalted, and an ajustable chute should be provided for the unloading of hogs from trucks. In our knowledge extending over 20 years the slaughter house has never been more run-down than it is today. This reflects on others than on Superintendent Manuel A. Aguila, who keeps the place clean and, as nearly as may be, odorless. But the physical condition of the plant is disgraceful, an imposition on all employees concerned with it and on livestock men who have to patronize it. Manila’s annual consumption of local meat varies little from year to year. It was 12,248,459 kilos in 1935, 12,401,625 kilos in 1936, and 12,407,467 kilos last year— rather a remarkable comparison that shows a prevalence of hard times among the city’s masses because the po pulation is growing very materially. This deduction can’t be conclusive however until checked with the con sumption of fish, fresh and tinned and salted, since fish is the public’s favorite meat. The average year’s kill at the slaughterhouse is 183,462 animals: 138,957 hogs, 31,865 cattle, and 12,640 carabaos whose meat is darker, coarser, and stronger than beef. The total average dressed weight of all these animals is 11,772,160 kilos. Carabaos dress an average of 142.66 kilos, cattle 116 kilos, hogs 43.33 kilos. Varia(Please turn to page 13) Halfway In. (Continued from page 10) celled release of more than 20 millions of public works, funds while the argument goes ceaselessly and remorse lessly on, behind curtains. There are two schools, of course. One says, nurse ’em along; the other, burn ’em with experience—every tub on its own bottom. The country is so remarkably productive that over long pe riods it makes small difference which view prevails. SPRING STEEL The Commonwealth’s economy rests on spring steel. It can never be long depressed, since it springs back to the common norm. Nor can it be much expanded, for long, since from this extreme too it inevitably recoils. Since no one has ever taken the pains to describe this basic phenomenon of Philippine life, now is a good time for it. It is the peasants, cotters and cottagers, cotters if tenants, cottagers if independent on their own hold ings. They are the bulk of the people, proud of their honest traditions, living by customs of their own and • shunning all else with prudent instinct. All they reach out for is education. When they can sell their surplus, it is well; when they can’t make shift to do this, they still live. Always they live by the traditional standard. With more wealth they add something to their clothes, travel about a bit, etc., but their house and food remain what they were. They are consistently busy, without over working themselves, and they are never extravagant. This describes with considerable accuracy fifteen million Filipinos, if not more, and perhaps it should be added that the rule of elder authority prevails. This explains why extreme booms and depressions are absent from the country’s economic history. They have no place in the people’s economy. While the people adhere to these virtues ways, fear not. Nothing drastic will happen. —W. R. IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE' JOURNAL 12 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1938 MANILA HOTEL (Aristocrat of the Orient) A Step Toward Self Sufficiency—Eggs Situated on a reserve property of some three hectares, with Burham Green as a background: facing the historic Luneta on the south; gorgeous Manila Bay on the west, the old Spanish city on the north, and Modern Manila on the east. .. the location is incomparable; a setting hardly to be found in other world ports. PREFERRED by world travelers because of its luxurious appointments and culinary excel lence, the Manila Hotel enjoys the patronage of the elite, both local and foreign. Special Features The suites in the air-conditioned annex are de luxe, period and modern in style, furnishings and decoration: Spanish.. .Louis XVI... Old Eng lish. . .Filipino:. .Chinese.. .Modernistic... Neo Classic. .. American Colonial... Ultra-Modern. Other Attractions . Air-conditioned Grand Banquet Hall and Ballroom, Dao Room, and Oak Room for private parties. . Continental Bar . 19th Hole Bar . Cocktail Lounge . Open-air Dancing Pavilion . Swimming Pool . Palm Court Terrace. MANILA HOTEL (Aristocrat of the Orient) When the poorest cottagers in the provinces offer you hospitality, as in this Commonwealth they in variably do on the slightest hint, one dish you are sure of having set before you is eggs. This has al ways been true, with the eggs in such instances usually fresh, yet it is only in the past few years that here in town (and in other port ci ties such as Iloilo and Cebu) have many of the eggs sold at the mar kets come from the provinces. Theretofore the market egg and that at the grocery came from China and were strong of taste and odor and never fresh. As late as 1930 the Islands sent China a million dollars gold, for eggs on which the duty was $50,000. Two things have changed all this, better poultry flocks and better means of reaching the city markets. Fast steamships now enable Cebu to help supply Manila’s markets with eggs and chickens, and chickens have there fore become a considerable Cebu provincial industry. Busses and faster trains from the provinces of Luzon render the peasants a similar service, getting chickens to Manila comfortably and bringing in the eggs thorough ly fresh. So the picture has altogether changed from what it was ten years ago, and now the Islands do not send China as much as $125,000 a year for eggs. Chicken breeding at the Alabang Stock Farm of the Bureau of Agriculture has also popularized imported breeds of chickens, led by white leghorns and cantonese, and a new breed or two have been evolved in the Islands. Chicken breeding is given the attention it deserves at the College of Agriculture at Los Banos, but perhaps as great a factor as any other is the chicken raising classes in the public schools. A constant stimulant has been the annual Philippine Exposition (carnival) at Manila. Here both patented and homemade equipment for hatching, brood ing and feeding chicks has won the peasants’ attention, and countless publications on the feeding and care of chickens have been freely distributed—a work of the gov ernment. So at last the Commonwealth supplies itself its own eggs with exception of a small supply of bakers eggs still coming from China. Consumption of eggs has mounted accordingly, the customer at any good eating place down to the restaurant serving a 60-centavo lunch is always sure of fresh wholesome eggs and goes in for them more and more. Housewives who enjoy going to market are pleased with the honest arrangements about eggs. The market women classify them by size, the provinces they come from, and their freshness; and as you buy every egg counted into your sack is candled before your eyes, with the privilege reserved to you of claiming replacements if any should prove stale. This egg selling is one particu lar thing in which Manila’s public markets are far ad vanced. Supplementing provincial supplies are numerous chicken farms in the nearest environments of town, San Juan del Monte, San Francisco del Monte, San Felipe Neri, Pasay, and Santa Ana as well as Mandaluyong. Proprietors here who commonly breed American chickens IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OE COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1938 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL 13 and bring feed for them from California, to go with what is best here, supply clubs, hotels, apartments and such special cus tomers large fresh eggs of which the most squeamish patrons could not complain. It is rapid transportation that enables this to happen in the tropics. The farms have refrigerators where the eggs are chilled as soon as they arc gathered, and they reach you in dozen lot cartons proudly bearing the farm name. Sewing Machine. . . (Continued from page 8) American period began. The character credit that now underlies nearly all its transactions, as this pa|x?r has described, has been worked out through forty years of prosperous experience. There is no gamble in it, either—the company knows it will be paid: the only discount for cash in lieu of 1’5 payments a month is 20'4. These remarks apply to one of the largest businesses in the commonwealth, carried on with its poorest citizens. Manila’s Local. . . (Continued from page 11) tions year to year in these average weights are negligible. Besides these animals (carabaos, cattle, and hogs) a few sheep and goats are slaughtered, and some 12,000 suckling pigs whose fate is to be roasted on the spit either at the markets or for home parties, and picnics, never complete if roast suckling pig is absent, the Islands’ lechov, probably as productive of chronic and acute gastric maladies as any single factor in the pop ular diet. No one should ever dare eat reddish pork, though suckling pig it may be, a caution that will be wasted on Fili pinos until their health officers and scien tists associate the practice with their high mortality rate. Even at the markets where the charcoal fires emit intense even heat, suckling pig is seldom roasted well. But it is eagerly devoured just the same. Gastric maladies, especially of children, come on in June and July and are commonly blamed to the rains where it might be more worth while to trace them to their more logical source, May’s long festivals and roast suck ling pig. NO PIECES-OF-EIGHT? When American forces under Major Gen eral Wesley Merritt occupied Manila Aug ust 13, 1898, Jose Luis Maury was the Islands’ general treasurer from whom on August 24 the funds at the treasury were seized. Not taken up as revenue, these funds were held for whatever disposition Congress should wish to make of them. In all this there can be little present in terest, but the physical character of some of the items listed is amusing. Four-peso gold pieces summed $4,200. Spanish-Filipino and Mexican silver coins summed $129,632.21. There were 162 sacks of copper coins said to contain $50 each. These were supplemented by 1,928 boxes of like coins said to contain $150 each. Among items at the mint, receipted for to the director, Jose Pereyra y Pereyra, were 30 sacks of Mexican dollars each con taining $1,000, and 29 sacks of half-pesos Gold bars and small pieces of gold summed S3 806 08. About $4,000 in three items, bagged, were taken over under receipt at the Avuntamiento, and almost $25,000 at the internal revenue office, while the civil gov ernor, Jose Bueren, .Tuan de Mer, Conde de Gra. and Eugemo Caurino, official pay master at the governor’s office, turned over $956.02 in fondos locales. Banknotes were not. then in popular cir culation. They were of the Banco-EsnanolFilipino (now the Bank of t.he Philinnine Islands), then the sole bank of issue. Silver was the popular currency, and sacks a common means of carrying it about. Bank notes at the treasury summed less than $200,000; there were also two checks, sum ming just over $170,000. The tradition that a quantity of quick silver was found at the mint is apocryphal. There is no record of it, and since the smallest items of what really was found are carefully listed, it simply was not there. IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OE COMMERCE JOURNAL 14 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1938 Young Men Worth Knowing By J. M. Robb Texas University, Otis Art Furniture, Los Angeles Art Center and is a member of the Institute of American Decorators and the Los Angeles Art Association. Editor’s Note: Manila is not a stat ic community. While the old cliche that the backbone of any community is its old, solid residents is probably quite true, and is as true of Manila as of any other city, nevertheless this city is fortunate enough DURRELL MORRISON When we heard that Gonzalo Puyat & Sons Inc. had opened an Interior Decor ating department, we went over with our note book to get a story. We saw Mr. Durrell Morrison, who is to head the new department, and whom they have given a free hand to develop it along lines of similar departments in the States. Mr. Morrison is from Hollywood and we plied him with questions about the Movie Ca pital and found that he had worked on the interiors of several movie people’s homes, including Zazu Pitts, Dolores Cos tello Barrymore, Walter Wanger, Gene Markey, etc. He also did the Blossom Room of the Roosevelt Hotel, The Terrace to possess a number of younger business and professional men who are contribut ing in no small part to its development. Two of these men, Durrell Morrison and S'. S'. Schier, we introduce in this issue. Others like them will be introduced to our readers in succeeding issues. Room of the Hotel Miramar, and the Sun set Towers Apartments. From Mr. Morrison we learned that the large majority of stars’ homes are fur nished in excellent taste and simplicity, and that many of the stars are connois seurs of furniture. It shattered our illu sions of Hollywood grandeur, as we had the idea that the stars vied with each other in making their castles more gaudy and splendid than the others. Mr. Morrison says the reason for this is that the lives of the stars are very hectic and they have come to realize that they need a restful environment when they get home from the bustle and rush of the set. They know that they must prepare for the next day’s grind and that harmony and simplicity in decoration provide a relaxing, tranquil influence. We were surprised to learn from Mr. Morrison that interior decoration has be come a science. Its application is an art which can be measured in dollars and cents. Large hotels and apartments know that decoration and arrangement are extremely important factors in attracting and keep ing guests. They have made studies of the blending of colors, lighting methods, pro portions, balance, and designs. And this research has paid them dividends. Mr. Morrison has had considerable ex perience in Interior decorating. Before he went into business for himself in Holly wood he was connected with W. & J. Sloane, a fimi well known in the decorating field throughout the world. He studied at S. S. (SAMMY) SCHIER We have known Sammy for a long time now, and we have never been able to figure out how he finds time to attend to his many and variegated activities. He runs S. S. Schier & Co., an advertising agency with offices in the Araneta Bldg, on the corner of San Vicente and Pinpin. When work begins to slacken up, he sees to his Yacht Agencies, Co., which can deliver you a yacht or motor ship for any price from about $900.00 up, and any marine gadget to go with it. Just to keep from getting lazy, he puts in about two or three hours a day writing articles and stories about the Phil ippines for publication here and in the States. Lest our readers get the impression from all of this that Sammy is one of those terterrifically go-getting, hard-driving, and tiresome individuals, we hasten to assure them that he is nothing of the sort. Energy he has, of course, and in abundance, but he doesn’t wear it on his sleeve. Although his day is well taken up, he seems always to have time to dally in conversation with anyone. A firm believer in the adage that “all work and no play,” etc., Sam is an ardent (Please turn to page 16) IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OI: COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1938 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL 15 Hong Kong is Anglo-Saxon, Macao is Latin—Both Are Chinese By Walter Robb Since all Philippine cities were founded as Catholic mission and are hardly more different from one another than peas, it is beguiling to a Manilan to take a voyage up the China coast as far as Shanghai and remark the differences between Shanghai, Macao, and Hong Kong. He comes upon Hong Kong first, the tradesmen’s entrance to Ch'na, decked out in commendable blocks and streets solidly built along the harbor and over the moun tains, and at night blazing with lights whose brilliance is sheer deception. You would swear there was gayety and urban abandon back of these lights. But there isn’t; there are only clerks, with their families, reading and smoking and prepar ing for early bedtime. A day’s work is ahead, thank goodness; downtown at 9 and back up topside at 4, or even at 5, should you stop by the Gloucester Lounge for a spot. Tennis, of course, and squash and bad minton, a deal of walking and of course the races . . . it is up to a man to keep fit. No, the routine British life goes on behind those flashing lights of Hong Kong—not a bit what such lights against an Oriental sky should proclaim. Chinese Laugh More. In Hong Kong, where there are Chinese, there are chatter and jocularity along with incessant industry; swift and skillful move ment of crafstmen at their tasks, or of coolies, unskilled men, at work. The color of the place is limited t>o this. By 1 o’clock in the morning even the ferries to Kowloon have stopped running. Your quest for adventure has been vain, and you must rent a sailboat to take you back to your hotel. Next day what you do discover in Hong Kong is the first-rate shops—trafficking in British goods. All the woolens of every sort you need, get them here. All the time there are hundreds of travelers in Hong Kong finding enjoyment merely in shopping. In the good hotels are good meals and be verages. The subtlety of silver values is behind this, a mercantile alchemy that touches the little gold you carry into verit able fortune. For the week end you get to Macao, the old-time tradesmen’s entrance into China that Hong Kong made useless. It is only 40 miles from Hong Kong, but most Hong Kong folk have never been there—they dis courage you from going to Macao, assur ing you it will bore you. Macao Is on the Loose. Far from it! Macao, who, since she can’t trade, must be on the loose, is the end product of Christian effort in the Orient and could bore no one. As your boat labors to the dock the silhouettes lined up in the darkness ashore make you shudder with excitement. The shadows descend upon you as soon as you reach the street; every wickedness is offered you at once. You shake off the shadows, clamber into a rick sha and have- a patrolman note his number. It is worth your life, you think, that these hard-boiled policemen are about, and that their authority seems to be respected. This Macao, that.seems to be all under world, blazes like Hong Kong with lights, but the lure of Macao’s lights means what it says. You are free to do anything in Macao, where the public opium factory dis tills its product for your open pleasure. CYet you find that the Portuguese, Macao being a Portuguese colony, live out their bves in Macao without ever visiting this factory or beholding Chinese smoke opium. Even in the case of the Portuguese, there is +his difference between what they do and what the Orient does). Meticulous as to Religion. Macao taxes opium, taxes feminine ami ability, taxes all vice and lets it all run riot; only there must be no crime, no as saults and murders. Tawdry with opium flanking one side, motley indulgence an other, stands a church; and Macao, clean and colorful, outwardly immaculate, exploits to the traveler her meticulous attention to religion. When you stay longer in Macao than three days you should tell the police you are there. No passport is required. Macao shows her discreet politeness in her public Now, all wave bands have separate fullsized dials: Only one clear, casy-to-rcad dial is visible at a time. A flick of the lever gives you a complete new dial for each for foreign short amateur). Sounds like as practical and simple lights! for standard broadcast, wave, one for police magic—but it’s really as switching on the ZENITH MODEL 9S232 9 Waive AC Wave band: 16-555 meters. World Wide Re ception. Short Wave Split Second Relocator. "Robot Dial.” Operates Dynamic Speaker Voice-Music-High Fidelity Control. Sensitivity and AC Switch Control. Built-in Antenna Circuit for Doublet Connection. Improved Spinner Tuning. Bass Compensation. Gramophone Terminals. Electric Target Tun ing. May be used with External Speaker and Hard-of-Hearing Aid. Height: 24 inches. AT BECK’S RADIO DEPT. 89-91 Escolta Cebu-Baguio-Manila-Paracale Tune in on Zenith Program every Monday and Thursday. 6-6:30 p.m. Station KZIB. PHILIPPINE TRUST COMPANY sells drafts and cable or radio transfers for the payment of money any where in the United States, the principal cities of Europe, China and Japan. It receives checking accounts in Pesos, Savings Accounts in Pesos or United States Dollars, Fixed Deposits and Trust Accounts. FIDELITY AND SURETY COMPANY OF THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS executes and covers BONDS INSURANCE Court, Custom*, Firearm, etc. Fire, Life, Marine, etc. Plaza Goiti and Escolta Tel. 2-12-5S P. O. Box 150 IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL 16 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June. 1938 administration; she asks no questions. But probably her police are equal to any emer gency—any, that is, that affects Macao. The interest another jurisdiction may have in you is not Macao’s—the ancient right of sanctuary persists here. You will not, in contrast, be in Hong Kong three hours without presenting your self to police headquarters, exhibiting your passport, filing an autobiography and leav ing a photograph with it. Hong Kong Fears Air Raids. Another contrast between Macao and Hong Kong relates to Japan’s current cam paigns in China. Though Macao is on the mainland and from her customs gate you can drive 80 miles into China and through three cities of considerable size, Macao has practically no trade with China (deepdraft ships can’t get into Maaco’s harbor!), and Macao feels no anxiety that Japan will attack her. But, though Hong Kong is on an island and is British territory (only her suburb Kowloon is on the mainland), Hong Kong exists upon her entrepot com merce with China and lives in hourly ap prehension of bombing raids by the Ja panese. Macao, without a newspaper—though they do say there is one that comes out once a week—hardly knows that China and Japan arc at war. Hong Kong, 40 miles away, thinks of nothing else and scans the extra editions while she sips her tea—because there is so much special work at the office with the goods that must be got to Canton and slipped up the way to Hankow. When you leave Hong Kong and reach Shanghai again all is different. You feel here: “What on earth is done about child ren?” Older folk manage what passes for adult enjoyment, but the parks and provi sions for the normal life of children you never come upon. However, Shanghai is in ruins—you will not judge her now. But you know at once that she is not like Hong Kong or Macao. And of the three cities, which is most like your home city of Manila? The jolliest, the gaudiest and the oldest—old Macao! Men Worth . . . (Continued from p<i<jc 14) yachtsman during his off hours. At this time of the year, Saturday afternoons and Sundays will find him out on the waters of Manila Bay, enthusiastically racing his “Star” boat in the annual series of the yacht club. He is no stranger to Manila’s night spots. In the Philippines since 1927, Sammy Schier has acquired a considerable fund of information about the Philippines. He adds constantly to this store of knowledge by periodic trips to the hinterland, and puts down what he knows in very readable ar ticles. Many of these have appeared in the Sunday Tribune magazine section, (the last series was on the Bontoc Igorote tribes) and Schier is sending others to Brown & Bigelow to place for him in the States. An expert amateur photographer, he illus trates these stories with his own photo graphs. U. S. FAR EASTERN TRADE Our data are from the Manila Tribune of Sunday, February 6, United Press wire less from Washington. Because there has been inquiry for them, we print them: In 1937 Japan was America’s third best customer, America’s exports to Japan upped 41r/< from 1936. Asia for the first time outranked Europe as a supplier to America. Also, exports from the United States to Asia upped to $579,749,000 from $398,885,000 during 1936. Major exports for the two years: Country 1936 1937 To China ....... $ 46,819.000 $ 49,697,000 To Japan ........... 204,348,000 288,378,000 To Common wealth ............ 60,350,000 85,031,000 United States imports from Asia during the same years— Country From China . . From Japan .. From Common wealth ........ 1936 $ 74,232,000 171,744,000 101,679,000 1937 $103,616,000 204,202,000 126,207,000 Total American imports from Asia dur ing 1937 summed $796,541,000 compared to $707,728,000 during 1936. In December, America sold Japan goods worth $16,532,000, compared to $16,433,000 in December, 1936. She sold China goods worth $1,787,000 in December, compared to $4,748,000 in December, 1936. In December, America bought from China goods worth $4,992,000 compared to $4.548,000 in December, 1936. She bought goods worth $11,839,000 in December from Japan, compared to $16,451,000 in Decem ber, 1936. Summary for 1937— Country Exports to U. S. China . . . S103.616.000 Japan ... 204.202.000 Common wealth 126.207.000 Imports 1937 to U. S. Total S 49.697.000 $154,313,000 85,031.000 492.580.000 288.378.000 211.238,000 IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL ’Baguio Potpourri /?Modem 2nqmei fiot Modem Tuell K*f * ■ I IX f" & ■■ A builds engines for every gas and liquid |0|\ uV/' 11\\ r\ ^uel—each t^le most economical in its class—each the product of thirty years of engineering experience in design and manufacture and each built to perform a specific duty for a particular industry. Today, the Waukesha Motor Company manufactures forty-two different models of engines burn ing artificial or natural gas, high or low octane petrols, paraffine, alcohol and the generally available modem high-speed diesel-oil fuels, to serve the' power needsof thirty-four different industries. The ratings range from20to 325H.P. Fuel oil power finds its widest application in the economical and depend able performance of the Waukesha-Hesselman Spark Ignition Engine. The outstanding difference between this engine and a compression ignition Diesel engine is the fact that it is a low compression solid injection fuel oil engine using battery or magneto ignition. Easy to start, even under adverse weather conditions. The Hesselman cycle is readily underffil stood by anyone familiar with petrol engine “^^1111 ■ I operation. Waukesha-Hesselman Power Units are 1 1 built in sizes varying from 20 to 325 H.P. *■ * t# * I I Ask for special booklets “What Is That Hesselman | Engine?” or (,iQue Es Un Motor Hesselman?” PETROL DIESEL H FUEL ft Il J J ej Waukesha Gasoline (Petrol) and Gas Engine Power Units range from 20 to 325 H. P. Write the home office for complete information and specifications • WAUKESHA MOTOR CO. Waukesha, Wisconsin, U. S. A. 21-3:38 Cables: "Motor-Waukesha" June, 1938 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL 17 Kilometer 73 • They found Ore at Kilometer 73, on the road to Suyoc, but they didn't find enough of it. Now they're 'way down south, on an island near Su rigao, and it looks like it was a good move. From the Kilometer 73 marker on the road from Ba guio to Suyoc, to Macapilid Island in Surigao province is a long jump, but it is not too far to go in search of gold. Not if you find it, that is. This is the jump that the Kilometer 73 company made when they shut down their Baguio development last year, and it looks like they have found enough gold to make the transfer well worth while. Kilometer 73 was organized in September, 1936, right in the middle of the feverish 1936 boom, and the original intention was to explore and develop lode claims at Kilometer 73. To this end, the company sold some 684 shares of non-par stock, at P500.00 each. Of these shares, P77,500.00 worth were fully paid, and the re mainder were disposed of on a 50 c/o down-payment basis. (Total authorized capital is and was 1,440 shares of non-par stock, of which 529 shares are held in the treas ury). Work was immediately started on the claims at Ki lometer 73, and was conti nued until about the middle of last year. Some ore bo dies were found, but they were very low grade, and carried no promise of a large tonnage operation. In March of last year, Devel opments, Inc. was hired to inspect the properties, and reported unfavorably. This report was confirmed by a mining engineer—Mr. G. L. Thompson—brought out from the States. Inasmuch as the company had by then invested about P74,748.42 in prospecting and incidental expenses, it was decided that the claims had best be abandoned. The company carries the Kilometer 73 claims on its balance sheet (as of December .31, 1937) at a nominal figure of P919.60, and buildings at P2,059.05. The P74,748.42 spent on the property is carried as a deferred charge, to be written off gradually over a period of time. Arrangements were then made with the Lacandola Mining Company whereby Kilometer 73 undertook to ex plore and develop the former’s claims on Masapelid Is land, Surigao. G. L. Thompson stayed on as superin tendent in charge of this project. Work was com menced on August 29th, 1937, and has proceeded apace. Practically all of the equipment (Diesel-Compressor unit, blacksmith-shop equipment, Assay Office equip MINE FACTORS Mr. L. J. Harvey, former president of Mine Factors, Inc., left Manila for an indefinite stay in England late last month. Mr. Harvey’s departure was unannounced, and came as a surprise to his friends and associates here. It is thought that Mr. Harvey felt the need of rest and quiet contempla tion in the English countryside. The company has been reorganized since Mr. Harvey’s departure, and the JOURNAL wishes to point out that Mine Factors still has as much ore as it had, while Mr. Harvey was here. We wish to remind those who may have read our Mine Factors story of last month, that we did not intimate in that article that the future of this organization depended in any way upon Mr. Harvey’s continued presence in the Philippines, or upon the price of the stock upon the local stock exchange. jr ment, drill equipment, blower and ventilation pipe, pumps, etc.) was moved down to the island from Kilo meter 73. Transportation is by the company’s own launch and lighter. Development.work so far done seems to indicate a definite possibility that a producing mine will result. We reproduce most of a report of April 13, 1938, of Mr. Thompson to the President and Directors of the company, which tells the story of the property up to that date. The report is believed to be very conser vative, in view of more recent reports from the mine. Encouraged by these results, the company decided to issue a call to subscribers for the balance of their sub scriptions. This call, of course, applies only to those subscribers who had paid only 50% of their subscrip tions, and asks for payment of the remainder in five installments of P50.00 each, commencing on May 20th, 1938. The call was issued on April 20th, 1938, by the Board of Directors. Since the report made by Mr. Thompson dated April 13th, 1938, the 600 Winze has been sunk to a depth of ninety-five feet below the drift and drift ing on the vein at this level shows good ore to the northeast but is faulted to the southwest by the large fault found on the upper level. The Winze was in good ore for its en tire depth and there is good hope that the northeast drift will continue in ore for several hundred feet as the No. 11 Tunnel on the vein 90 feet above this drift showed a strong vein with some good values almost to the swamp separating this working from Layong. The Layong Workings show a strong vein with ex ceptionally high values especially at the drift from the bottom of the 150 foot shaft sunk at this point. A Winze 40 feet deep below this level was sunk on good ore with widths of ten to eleven feet. The shaft is being carried down another one hundred feet with every expectation that the ore will be equally as good as on the second level, in view of the showing in the winze. About 5,000 feet of underground working has been accomplished to-date and the management believes that in a short time this property will be ready to take its place as a highly successful producer.' 18 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1938 The Observation Post By Eric S+aight There are two topics paramount in business and eco nomic circles—gold and taxation. In different ways these two subjects are universally important but there is no question that the United States is in the spotlight. It is possible to hark back four thousand years in his tory in the matter of currency manipulation. There is merely a variation in degree and not in principle. Cause and effect are always clearly defined—the former being debt and the latter debasement or inflation. For whatever reason, from wars to plain extravagance, debt has al ways invoked a tendency to seek the easiest way out, and, where nations have been concerned, effect has only too frequently been the creation of new money out ot whole cloth. History redounds in such instances, one of the earliest being the decree of Solon of Athens in. 594 B.C. when, specifically in order to reduce all debts by one quarter, that predecessor of modern devaluationists reduced the metallic contents of Athenian coins by twen ty-five per cent and decreed that all creditors must ac cept payment in the new and lighter coins at face value. As the world progressed, and international com merce increased, the system of banking credits gradually evolved. But here again the difference was only one of degree. Wars, pestilence, unwise spending and other factors periodically took their toll and, through the ages, country after country joined the ranks of the inflators. The lesson was always the same but the years have not changed human nature, and if this be doubted one has only to consider the record in the United States since 1933. Yet, in one sense, the picture has altered, and that is that no one nation, let alone the richest, can play ducks and drakes with its own monetary structure with out vitally affecting the rest of the civilized world. Fur thermore, such actions are in the nature of a two-edged sword, for, by the same token, in our present system no one nation can be commercially aloof and independent. The recent price decline in the United States was almost certainly responsible for price declines elsewhere, and now, particularly in commodities, falling prices outside American boundaries are one of the most serious men aces to her internal economic structure. In the last sixty days we have seen recognition of this fact but there is a difference between recognizing a condition’s existence and facing the issue squarely. In previous articles the writer has discussed the artificial ity of the American price structure and the basis on which that structure was built but he believes that the time is rapidly approaching, if it has not already arrived, when a vital decision must be made. Sooner or later the functioning of any system, biological or economic, must depend on the free flow of its blood-stream, and in the economic system as it stands today, and has stood for hundreds of years, there is no substitute for gold. Gold is still the standard of value throughout the world and is, in the last analysis, the regulator of the values of pa per currencies. The latter are promises to pay by gov ernments and central banks. The further removed they are from gold the less confidence they command. Let there be threats of war or an ebbing of the business tide due to any circumstance and the individual today, when ever permitted, rushes to the acquisition of the mental itself, as he has done through the centuries. That urge is fundamental, for it is inspired by the one universal standard by which it is alone possible to judge the value of this world’s goods. In the early days of the New Deal certain eminent gentlemen built a new theory around this ancient fact. They decided that gold could be successfully relegated to a mere symbol; that its possession, or at least the free dom to possess it by individuals meant less than its exist ence in large quantities and endeavoured to create a new and permanent price level by a stroke of the pen. The fate of this price level has already been decided, and the answer to its collapse is, in a word, lack of confidence. In the background was the constant thought that, should the business tide turn downward again for any reason, the old refuge, gold, was no longer available to the indi vidual. The brakes provided by a free flow of the pre cious metal had been removed and in their place was an untried and doubtful theory. The actual amount of gold obtainable with a unit of currency is not as important. The old gold dollar con tained 23.22 grains of fine gold; its present content (if (Please turn to page 26) GUELDNER TANGYES DIESEL-ENGINES ELEKTROMEKANO-GENERATORS For Electrical and Industrial Power Plants. FRICK REFRIGERATION MACHINERY Estimates gladly furnished by E L M A C, INC. ELECTRICAL AND MACHINERY COMPANY P. 0. Box 625 MANILA 627 RIZAL AVE. IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1938 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL 19 The Stock Market (May 14+h to June 4th 1938) Those raise-the-price-of-gold ru mors again. Latest rise looks more healthy than other fitful spurts, as buyers left highly spe culative and non-dividend-paying stocks severely alone this time. Hongkong still doing most of the trading here. The market moved steadily lower in diminishing volume during the first three weeks of the period under review. A moderate selling wave was touched off dur ing the first week with the removal of pegged prices by the Manila Stock Exchange. Reaction to the lifting of the pegs was calm, although Consolidated Mines, which had been selling for less than half as much on the Inter national as it was pegged at on the Manila Exchange, naturally hit the toboggan on the Manila. The spread which had existed between prices of othei* stocks on the Manila and on the International likewise narrowed, as was to be expected. Investment buying was in evidence throughout the period, however. Benguet Consolidated rose gradually from P9.20 to P10.00, as investors were reluctantly forced upward. Announcement of planned increases in daily tonnage of both Balatoc and Benguet of course helped a lot. Some of the buying appeared to be by in siders, in anticipation of dividend declarations. This theory is borne out by the fact that dividend announce ments in late May and the first days of June were im mediately preceded and followed by fairly important selling, in certain stocks. Brokers have been advising clients that there is little possibility that the new measure increasing the tax on mine production would go through. Highly favorable production figures released by several producers assisted to put the public in an optimistic frame of mind. These things did not, however, entirely account for the upward spurt which set in during the second week in June. This rise was stimulated by an announcement which came over the Manila Stock Exchange ticker one morning that rumors were rife in London that the New Deal would again resort to increasing the gold price, in a desperate (Please turn to page 27) Market Graph for 1936, 1937, 1938, prepared exclusively for the Journal by Clifford A. Greenman, Securities Service Corp. 20 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1938 Culled from the News CONSOLIDATED MINES, INC.: Held its annual stockholders’ meeting at the American Chamber of Com merce this month. The meeting last ed about five minutes, during which time the meeting was called to order, We are pleased to announce that we have been appointed SOLE DISTRIBUTORS of HENDY MINING AND MILLING MACHINERY Manufactured by JOSHUA HENDY IRON WORKS --------------------- ------------------- T------------- ------------------San Francisco, California Your inquiries will be given our most careful attention KOPPEL (PHILIPPINES) INCORPORATED ILOILO MANILA CEBU the annual report and balance sheet approved, directors reelected, and a motion for adjournment approved. The directors, R. P. Flood, president, Courtney Whitney, chairman of the board, Victoriano Elicaho, M. C. Grey and B. W. Guysi will guide the affairs of the company for another year. Persistent rumors that Consolida ted had shut down its Tumbaga plant were emphatically denied by Mr. Flood. He stated that the mill is treating from 50 to 60 tons of ore per day, as it has been doing for some six months past. Mr. Flood also denied rumors that any deal is pend ing with Baguio G'old Mining Com pany, whereby the latter should take over development of the Gold River property. Work has been suspended at Gold River, Mr. Flood stated, pending study of a recent geological report. PARACALE MINING: A 100ton plant ordered through the Edivard. J. Nell Co. of Manila has arrived from the United States, and has been shipped to the claims at Mambulao. Foundations have been under con struction since May 15. LEPANTO: The San Francisco Mining Exchange announced early this month that it had approved the application of the Lepanto Consoli dated Mining Company to list its shares for trading on the San Fran cisco Exchange. The application covers 10 and 1/2 million shares out standing. Lepanto operates a copper project, and our operatives informed us that an advantageous contract is pending for the sale of its ore to Japanese interests. MINERAL RESOURCES: Con tinues to have its troubles. Opera tions were suspended at the mill for 14 days during May. During the early part of the month, the new water supply was not completed, and the mill was down for six days due to lack of water. The drought broke towards the middle of May, accord ing to a statement of V. E. Lednicky, consulting engineer of the company, (Please turn to page 28) IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1938 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL 21 What the Diggers Are Doing MINING BOOM CONTINUES: We are in the midst of a mining boom of no mean proportions, figured on a straight mining production basis. Whether or not the current stock market prices reflect this fact accur ately, or are still too high, is beside the point. We are speaking now of production. May operations of 27 gold pro ducers resulted in another all-time high. Excluding Mindanao Mother Lode, Tambis, and Ambassador, total output was P5,325,217.22, only P4,000.00 under the all-time high of April. The three companies men tioned were unreported as we went to press, but their production figures were sure to boost the total well over the P5,400,000.00 mark. Total output of gold for the year to date is now well over P25.000,000.00, around P5,000,000.00 more than the same time a year ago. As the year wears on, and new producers keep coming in, gold production fig ures for the Philippines will reach very respectable vgures indeed, as compared with other important pro ducing areas, although, of course, total production is now so high that there will not be any great percentage of increase. ATOK AND BIG WEDGE: That high grade ore owned by Big Wedge and extracted by Atok continues to pay and pay and pay. Both of these companies declared dividends this month of 10% each from their re spective share of the gravy. A study of their balance sheets shows that the dividends will still leave both com panies in a strong financial position, even discounting the fact that a part, at least, of Big Wedge’s assets are in jeopardy as a result of litigation. Atok is deliberately conserving its capital, we hear, with a view to possi ble investment in other properties. PAN-PHILIPPINES: Has dis continued work on its Paracale pro ject, for the time being. All of its energies are now concentrated on Treasure Island, and the Nayak prop erty of Quartz Hill. Payments on the option on the Paracale property are being kept up, however, and it is far from abandoned. Our operatives inform us that Pan Philippines is heavily interested in Quartz Hill, which, in turn, has the operat ing contract on the Nayak claims, JOUR NAL readers will recall reading a short time ago that it is hoped the Nayak pro perties will support a mill larger than the 25-ton unit originally contemplated. Be (Please turn to page 29) IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION T1IE AMERICAN CHAMBER OE COMMERCE JOURNAL 22 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1938 How Things Look to Clifford A. Greenman Business enters the second summer of the current major depression facing the certainty of further curtailment in indus trial production schedules over the near term. Present indications are that new low levels in aggregate business volumes will be reached during July and August. The mere prospect of a moderate further decline in industrial activity below the low levels of recent months is, however, of less importance from a security market stand point than the complete absence as yet of any indication of the forces which might be expected to promote a broad upturn later in the year. All things considered, the stock market has withstood a barrage of generally bad news comparatively well in recent weeks. Prices have merely drifted in the past fort night in about the same pattern that was traced by the reaction witnessed in the second half of April. The rails are again close to their 1938 lows, but both the in dustrials and utilities still have some dis tance to go before former resistance levels are pierced. With business news over the next several months likely to provide little encourage ment to speculative sentiment, intermittent weakness in stock prices is quite conceivable. Even though we may be passing through the final stages of the depression and of the bear market, no incentive for the assump tion of increased speculative risks has yet appeared. An important effect of the tax law enact ed recently is that prime-grade corporate bonds must sell at a greater discount un der tax-exempt Government ^onds of com parable coupon rates and maturities in or der to provide the same yield after taxes. The present discrepancy suggests an ulti mate widening of the spread, either through a decline in prices of best-grade corporate issues or a further advance in Govern ments. This may not take place immedia tely—the discrepancy has already persist ed for some time—but it is a factor to watch in realigning portfolios of highest quality bonds. The prime bond market as a whole promises to continue stable for some time, since there is no sign as yet of any firming of money rates. Prospects for medium- and low-grade bond issues have changed little. The dis couraging outlook has been reflected in a renewed downtrend of bond prices, follow ing the spurt from the beginning of April to mid-May. The advance had been large ly technical in nature, reflecting the feel ing that prices of many issues had been driven down to reasonable levels, rather than any signs of a turn-about in business and profits trends. With even the beginnings of recovery not yet in sign, and some months at least of continuing retrenchment definitely in pros pect, final judgment as to which stock groups will offer the greatest potential ities for price appreciation in the next major recovery period must be reserved. The groups in the following tabulations must, therefore, be considered as strictly tentative. (Please turn to page 30) TABACALERA VICE PRESIDENTE ‘Beals them all IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PL EASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE ‘JOURNAL June, 1938 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL 23 MAY 1938 GOLD PRODUCTION Il’s the Quick, Personal Way of Communication Keep in touch with Your out-of-town FRIENDS by LONG DISTANCE TELEPHONE PERHAPS you have a friend or relative that you have not seen for a long time—someone out-of-town whose voice would mean so much to you. The telephone can bring that voice to you— no matter how widely separated you may be—quickly and clearly. Consult the front pages of your telephone book for rates and places reached by Long Distance Telephone. PHILIPPINE LONG DISTANCE TELEPHONE COMPANY IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL 24 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1938 Look at Manila! Marks are homes and Manila Companies. Throughout the city homes are providing a higher stan dard of living. .. business men making more profits... and industry itself setting new records for economical production. All of this aided by the controlled tempera ture and humidity that CARRIER air conditioning makes possible. Since that day in 1911 when Willis II. Carrier pronounced, his Psychrometic Formulae, thus giving to the world the scientific basis of air conditioning, he and his associates have been constantly engaged in its research, develop ment and applications. From that guidance and coopera tion have resulted thousands of Installations of CAR IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION RIER equipment for the benefit of industrial processes) and the health and comfort of human beings. What CARRIER has done in the United States, is typical of what CARRIER is doing everywhere, Manila is no ex ception—in homes—in more than 200 industries—in every type of business—throughout 99 countries of the .world. The EDWARD J. NELL COMPANY No. 1 T. Pinpin, ManiLa Phone 2-29-75 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL ttrtwel To fait-Yows 1MDUSIR1AL IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL 26 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1938 The Observation. . . (Continued from page 18) it were available) is only 13.7 grains, and if the full legal limit of devaluation were imposed the content would be exactly half the old figure, but the main point is that, at the present time, the Government holds all the gold, regardless of official dollar content. It is only necessary to add the fact that, due to spending policies, govern ment credit is steadily becoming more in question, to find the explanation for lack of confidence. As this article is written there is talk of an early de valuation to the full legal limit; in other words, of in creasing the dollar value of gold to $41.34 per ounce. It is held in some quarters that such additional devalua tion would serve as a fresh spur to the general price level by again cheapening the dollar in terms of tangible things. It is quite possible that such a move would find markets, both security and commodity, in technical shape to show a temporary response, but it seems far more, true that the gesture would be fruitless in the broader sense, unless accompanied by assurances that the end of monetary manipulation had been reached and that a return, even under abridged conditions, to orthodox prin ciples was in sight. On the other hand, if such assur ances were forthcoming, and if some measure of a free gold market was established, it seems a fair assumption than an important reversal, not only of the domestic, but of the world price level, would result. Only less important than the matter of the world’s economic bloodstream is the question of taxation. A levy upon the income of its citizens is the only means by which a government can exist and function properly. This levy must of necessity be either high or low in pro portion to existing conditions. Just as for many centu ries governments have had it in their power to arbitra rily create money by currency debasement, or inflation so they have been in a position to range from the intelligent enforcement of reasonable contributions to the national income to downright confiscation. The power of taxa tion backed by government forces is a great one, and the temptation to misuse that power has time and time again led to national disaster. The old adage of killing the goose that lays the golden egg is as true now as when it first saw the light of day, yet governments continue along shortsighted paths, encouraged in the last two de cades by the incursion of communism, and the falacious principle of redistribution of wealth. Taxation, on a basis of “ability to pay” is a reason able principle, but only when that taxation extends throughout the social structure. No better example of this can be found than in Great Britain today. Great Britain’s public expenditures, aside from the matter of re-armament, are today the greatest in her history. Per capita taxes are highest since the darkest periods of the Great War, yet the Government is solvent. This is due to one thing, and one thing only—that is the true appli cation of the principle, “tax on ability to pay” as opposed to confiscation of wealth. Failure to realise this principle can only result, as it has already resulted in the United States, in stifling of private enterprise. Fortunately, there is a growing real isation of this matter in America, and this was clearly brought to light in the recent battle over the revised tax bill. In that bill, which was only passed after a bitter Administration fight, certain important modifications were made which, while far from satisfactory from the standpoint of the practical economist, nevertheless show (Please turn to page 39) DU PONT DYNAMITE CAPS FUSE Stocks in Manila for Immediate Shipment Indent Orders Accepted for Future Delivery SMITH, BELL & Co.,Ltd. Agents Cebu — MANILA — Iloilo CHECK STARTING WEAR WITH The Asiatic Petroleum Co. (P. I.) Ltd. CEBU MANILA ILOILO IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE, JOURNAL June, 1938 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL 27 The Stock. . . (Continued from page 19) effort to alleviate the “recession”. All news services deny sponsorship of the story, which seems to have come from a private London source, and was slapped onto the ticker for what it was worth. Economists write that there is some pos sibility that the Roosevelt administration will again resort to this shot in the arm, should the present trend toward a panic depression in the United States continue. The possibility, however, is said to be ex ceedingly remote at the present time, Wash ington being amply supplied with other means of stimulating business artificially. Devaluation of European currencies is considered a more likely possibility, and is said to be indicated by the current strong demand for gold in Europe at advancing prices, either to finance war purchases, or for hoarding. Exchange gamblers are said to have made a killing out of the recent devaluation of the French franc, and we read that they are poised to cash in on further devaluation steps which they believe imminent. Should devaluation occur, the effect should be favorable to gold, we are told. In any event, Manila buyers are making commitments on a straight value-received basis. Gold rumors did not affect this trend in the least. Dividend-payers with good production reports are being pur chased, almost to the total exclusion of other issues on the board. Benguet, Balatoc, Big Wedge, Atok, Baguio Gold, Demonstaation, I. X. L. are accounting for most of recent rises, with other Marsman and Soriano stocks participating to a smaller extent. Trading volume (an extremely import ant factor) increased tremendously during the last week under review, running to over 6 million shares, valued at Pl,254,884.00 at the Manila, and 3,014,140 shares worth Pl 85,818.00 at the International. Just two weeks before, both Exchanges were report ing lowest volume since January 11th. Brokers are greatly concerned over pro posed amendments to the Philippine In come Tax law, which would 1. increase the basic rate on non-resident aliens’ in come from sources within the Philippines from 3% to 10%, this 10'1 to be applied to non-resident aliens’ speculative profits, (capital gains), and, 2. Limit deductible losses in any one year to P2,000. A communication from a member of the board of directors of the Manila Stock Ex change to the board re these amendments points out that at the present time Hong kong and South China are the largest traders in Philippine securities. The rela tionship between Hongkong and Manila is stated to be very similar to the relation ship between London and New York. The letter points out that, after the U. S. securities Act was passed, and certain objectionable features of Federal taxation became law, volume of trading in London on U. S. securities increased tremendously, until now there is actually a larger volume of trading in U. S. securities in the Lon don market than in New York. The rea son for this is said to be the fact that there is no tax on capital gains in London, as well as lower margin requirements in London. Now, there is no income tax in Hong kong. Machinery already exists there for trading in Philippine securities, without using the facilities of any local stock ex EVERYTHING YOU WANT IN MINE HOISTS........... Air or Electric. Single or Double-Drum Over 180 Sizes and Types to Choose From II BROADWAY, NEW YORK, N. SAN FRANCISCO. y Ingersoll-Rand 350 BRANNAN ST, change or brokerage house. Anticipated result of passage of the 10% capital gains tax on non-resident aliens: loss of Hong kong and South China business by local brokers, and loss of any revenue from speculators in these places by the Philip pine government. The limitation of deductible losses to P2,000.00 is also an imitation of a New Deal measure. As applied here, with danger of losses from mining investments extremely high, the provision could in many cases result in a confiscatory tax, the letter points out. IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL 28 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1938 Culled from. . . (Continued from page 20) but on May 18th, it was discovered that the power plant needed overhauling and further repairs, and the plant was stopped again, for 8 days. Mr. Lcdnicky stated that from May 28th on, the mill operated at full capacity, and said that in his opinion it would continue to do so. From May 26 to 31, production averaged around Pl,700.00 per day, which insures a fair profit. Mineral Resources’ Labo mill will arrive shortly, and Mr. Lcdnicky stated that it should be in operation by September 1st. It has been decided to extract as much free gold as possible, and to stock the sulphide DAWSON WHISKY WITH ANY MINERAL, IS THE SAFEST AND MOST SUITABLE BEVERAGE IN THE EAST SPWM SCOTCH WHISKY jmith,belu(cqltd. SOLE Dl3TB.iauTCM tailings for treatment later. TWIN RIVERS: Russell R. Bryan, consulting metallurgist, has completed an examination of the Twin Rivers milling plant, at the junction of the Antamok and Balatoc rivers in the Baguio area. The plant treats tailings from the Baguio mines, and has always shown a good profit, but the metallurgist’s report indicates that a more profitable method of treatment might be evolved. Mr. Bryan’s recommendations would in volve further testing, and supervision by a mining expert with much experience in this field. Twin Rivers believes that it has found this man in the person of Mr. J. M. Morris, former mill superintendent at Benguet Consolidated. NALESBITAN MINING COMPANY: Is being formed to take over and operate the claims of the original Nalesbitan Ven ture association, at Labo, Camarines Norte. The company will be capitalized at Pl,000,000.00. Participants in the original Venture, will sell their rights to the new corporation for P400,000.00 in stock of the new company. It is understood that the Securities and Exchange Commission has consented to this transaction, due to the large amount of ore already blocked out. Mackay and McCormick, share brokers, have been obtaining subscriptions (condi tioned upon the company’s being granted a permit by the SEC) to approximately P600,000.00 worth of stock. It is under stood that the issue is being taken up in a steady, if not spectacular, fashion. Funds thus raised ■will be used to finance erection of a mill. Southwestern Engineering Company of the P. I., Inc. will build the mill—a 200 ton unit—on a basis of cost plus ten per cent. Engineers state that approximately 200,000 tons of ore have been blocked out to date, which insures a supply of ore suf ficient to run a mill for approximately three years. It is said that the ore is of sufficiently high grade that a yearly profit of P200,000.00 can be made. Original participants have been given first crack at the new issue. Subscriptions, of course, cannot be filled until the SEC grants the permit. RALSTON LEAVES: Mr. A. W. Rals ton, president of the Manila Machinery and Supply Company, Demonstration Gold Mines, Ltd., and of Benguet Exploration, left recently for a well-earned vacation abroad. During his absence, Mr. Newton D. Baldwin, of Macondray and Company, will fill in as head of Demonstration, and Mr. Conrado Garcia, vice-president of Ma nila Machinery and Supply, will be in charge of the affairs of that company, it was announced to the press. NEW MEN FOR SOUTHWESTERN ENGINEERING: Two men were added to the staff of the Southwestern Engineer ing Company of the P. I., Inc. last month. Ralph Parsons, a construction engineer with over 30 years’ experience, arrived by Clip per to act as assistant construction super intendent for Southwestern. Briggs Ken ney, of the parent office in Los Angeles, flew out on the Clippei’ to join the local staff. Kinney’s most interesting assign ment, in the course of a long career was a two-year chore in Russia supervising construction of lead, zinc, copper and gold mills for the Russian government. NEW FIRM OF CONSULTING ENG INEERS: A new firm of engineering con sultants to the mining industry, Bryan, Wisser and Payne, has recently been organized, with offices in the Regina Building. The firm is composed of R. R. Bryan, me tallurgist formerly with the Consolidated Mines, here, Edward Wisser, geologist, now in the United States, and John Payne, Jr., former chief geologist of the famous Pa tina mines in Bolivia. RARE. METALS? An interesting item appeared recently in the local press. It follows: Stockholders of Agusan Gold Mines, Inc., have received a notice signed by K. H. Hemady, president, informing them that rare metals have been found on the Agusan pro perties. He stated that in addition to platinum and gold, the rare metals osmium, iridium, and ruthenium, were found in ac cordance with an assay report made by Southwestern Engineering Company of P. I. The following is quoted from the assay certificate signed by L. L. Kirtley, chief assayer of the Southwestern Engineering Company: “Nos. 3, 5, 6, & 8 showed distinct spots of ruthenium in the lead buttons, iridium from all eight samples weighed 0.328 mg. with sample No. 1 contributing most of it. Osmium and other related platinum group metals, from all eight samples weighed 0.160 mg.” Osmium is a rare metallic element of the platinum group, found native as an alloy in platinum ore, and in iridosmine. It is hard, infusible, bluish or grayish white me tal, and the heaviest substance known. Its tetroxide is used in histological experiments to stain tissues. The price of this metal is P100.00 per ounce, and the supply is small. Iridium is so-called from the iridescence of some of its solutions. A rare metallic element, of the same group as platinum, which it much resembles, being silver-white, but harder and brittle, and indifferent to most corrosive agents. With the exception of osmium, it is the heaviest substance known, its specific gravity being 22.4. Iri dium usually occurs as a native alloy with osmium (iridosmine or osmiridium) which may occur alone or with platinum. Iri dium as an alloy with platinum is used in bushing the vents of heavy ordnance. It IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1938 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL 29 is also used for the points of gold pens. Price is P200.00 per ounce. Ruthenium is so-called from the “Ruthcnians”—a little Russian people as coming from Russia, the metal having been found in the Ural mountains. A rare element of the light platinum group, found associated with platinum ores, and isolated as a hard, brittle, steel-gray metal which is very in fusible. Price is P80.00 per ounce, and, as in the case with the other rare metals, there is but little of it in the world. Two sets of samples, containing these rare metals, in addition to gold and platinum, were sent to England and U. S. A., in or der to obtain an offer and to find out what quantity is required, Mr. Hemady stated. What the Diggers. . . (Continued from page 21) this as it may, Pan-Philippines is making a definite success of Treasure Island. All of the staff houses, power house, and mill building are completed, and the 100-ton initial unit has arrived and is being shipped to the property. Ore is high grade, averaging close to the Big Wedge ore and in places even exceeding it, and it is expected that production will commence on or before September 1st. HAUSSERMANNAnnouncement was recently made that Benguet and Balatoc will increase their production capacity enormously in the near future. We un derstand that preparations have gone for ward toward this end for a year or more. We wish to remind our readers, however, that any conclusion that the management of Benguet is doing this with 1946 in mind is gratuitous, even in view of the fact that Benguet and Balatoc are both greatly con cerned over the possible outcome of the famous Balatoc patent suit, now in the Supreme Court for decision. The Attorney General emphasized in his argument before the court in that case that, should the court hold for Balatoc, it “would mean turning over the mining industry of the Philippines to foreigners’’. Admitted ly, Filipinos are not as important in mining here as they might be, but it is unfortu nate that the Attorney General chose to re gard Americans as foreigners. For this, and other reasons, it is important to the entire industry that the court render an early decision. Should Balatoc lose, there will be nothing for them to do but to ap peal to the United States Supreme Court. However, if a decision is not rendered be fore November 15th next, there is some doubt, we are told, as to whether they can appeal at all, under the wording of the statutes. SANTA ROSA; The flotation unit of 200 tons has been placed in operation on the property of the Santa Rosa Mining Company, in Mambulao. Operations to date have been largely of an experimental nature, on a reduced scale, although pro duction for May was over P100,000.00. Tests on representative ore indicate that a recovery of 97% of the gold values can be effected by selective flotation, producing a shipping copper concentrate and a low grade pyrite concentrate. The pyrite con centrate will be re-ground to minus 325 mesh, and cyanided, together with the flo tation tailings. Construction of the cya nide section of the mill is expected to be completed by July 1. Santa Rosa’s claims are being operated under a management contract with the Union Management Company. MARSMAN; San Mauricio and United Paracale hung up new high monthly pro duction figures during May, although the other three Marsman-managed producers turned in figures lower than for April. Total output of the five Marsman gold operations was Pl ,353,232.54 from 56,95S tons of ore treated and 336,520 cubic yards of gravel dredged. This total is the second-best monthly figure for the Marsman group. Meanwhile, United Paracale stockholders approved the action of their directors in arranging for termination of the existing financial arrangement with Marsman and Company, managers. The directors were authorized to take necessary steps to in crease the capital stock of the company from Pl,000,000.00 to Pl,300,000.00, and to permit Marsman nominees to subscribe to 1,941,176 shares at par value. This ar No matter what type and size of tractor you need INTERNATIONAL HARVESTER Builds It It is Important That you get the right kind of service on your machine/ during its entire life. As distributor in the Philippines, we are equipped to give instant service to any International Harvester machine that may need it. Our service facilities keep pace with our customer’s requirements, ready for any emergency at any time. A large stock or repair parts is always on hand. And every International mechanic in our employ has been trained to give expert service on factory-standard methods—'not only the best service for your tractor but the most economical as well. INTERNATIONAL HARVESTER COMPANY OF PHILIPPINES MANILA ILOILO . BACOLOD . CEBU . DAVAO . LEGASPI . BAGUIO CAGAYAN, MIS. IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL 30 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1938 rangement will supersede the present one, by which Marsman and Company has been receiving a substantial management fee and other perquisites. ROYAL GEKKO MINING SYNDI CATE: This investment syndicate held a special meeting a few days ago at the Univ ersity Club, to discuss a “new type of enterprise”. The membership is very small, being composed of a fc.v well to-do Manila businessmen. Organized in the early days of the boom, its units have gone against the trend, and advanced consistent ly in price. Original memberships were P100.00, and nominal quotations give sellers as demanding P150.00. As a matter of fact, however, no units are available at tliis figure. SORIANO: The Soriano group of three mines turned in an all-time high monthly production figure during May. Total gold output was ove.- the million-peso mark for the second time, running to Pl,032,330.21. Masbate Consolidated and /. X. L. both beat their previous reco'rds, while Antamok gained substantially over April. NIELSON: Thiago Consolidated and Paracale Gumaus reported their first pro duction last month. Tinago started its history with P21,000.00 produced from S50 tons of ore treated during May, while Para cale Gumaus recovered P20,089.38 from 2,160 tons. with the East Mindanao Mining Company, whereby up to 12 tons daily of Mapaso’s ore will be milled at the East Mindanao plant. The ore is high-grade, running around P100.00 per ton. Under the arrange ment, Mapaso will receive 90% of the gold, and 85% of the silver extraction, less P8.00 to P8.50 per ton for treatment. In addition, it is estimated that it will cost Mapaso around P7.00 per ton to ship the ore to the East Mindanao mill. The purpose of this arrangement, from the point of view of Mapaso, is to obtain enough income to pay for all operating ex penses during the development stage of the mine, pending completion of plans to erect a mill on the Mapaso property. Felipe buencamino, Jr., managing director, an nounced that development work has been very satisfactory this year, and stated that geologists and engineers estimate ore re serves at around Pl,700,000.00. SURIGAO CONSOLIDATED: A strik ing increase in the value of the mill heads was reported by this company for May. During that month, P68,607.00 was extract ed from 2,080 tons of ore milled, and the tonnage was for an average extraction of P33.00, as compared, with P19.50 per ton for April. How Things. . . (Continued from page 22) The following groups of stocks are con sidered as offering “near term attraction” in the sense that these industries not only will make relatively good earnings show ings this year, but will also share fully in cyclical recovery. Holdings of selected stocks in these groups should, therefore, be retained in full under present conditions, and recommended issues should be utilized for switching from less desirable stocks. Chemicals Containers Oil Mail Order and General Chains Variety Chains Stocks in the following groups are still vulnerable to intermediate downswings in stock prices. In the aggregate, however, this second classification includes industrial groups for which the expectation of better than average cyclical expansion in earnings appear warranted. At levels nearer the lows of the recent broad trading range or at a time when reversal of depression trends appeal's closer at hand, selected stocks in these groups would likewise merit Aircraft Mfg. Autos and Trucks Auto Parts Auto Tires and Electrical Equipment Industrial Machinery Non-Ferrous Metals Office Equipment Paper and Paper Products Refractories Steel and Iron Main Office: 343 T. Pinpin Tel. No. 2-39-36 KUENZLE & STREIFF, INC. MANILA CEBU ILOILO ZAMBOANGA Branch Office: 11-48 Isaac Peral Tel. No. 2-17-62 Tel. 2-32-51= i Carmelo & Bauerm ann, Inc. I---------- Lithograph ers P r i n t e r s Bookbi nders Box Makers 2057 Azcarraga, Manila. IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1938 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL 31 Least Attractive Groups The following groups do not possess either the advantage of long term growth factors or that of stable volumes and earn ings. Advantage should be taken of the initial stages of recovery to release any re maining holdings in these groups with a view to the subsequent employment of the funds in more promising industrial stock groups. Apparel Restaurants Property Ownership and Management Coal Fertilizers Ice Refrigeration Leather Radio Shipping Silk Goods Sugar Electric Holding Companies Manufactured Gas Tractions DOWN NEW GUINEA WAY In Iloilo we came upon an Anzac from Australia who had been in New Guinea (Australian mandated terri tory) eleven years and has a planta tion of coconuts there comprising 800 acres. He seems to know a great deal about the placers on Edy creek that have become so famous, and says the placers in the whole Balolo river val ley will yield for fifty years. How ever, this is a concentration at the southeastern part of the territory and the greater portion of New Gui nea is a plantation project where ve terans are given land (if they have means to work it) and pay no taxes during the first ten years. New Britain, another island in the territory, is much larger than Luzon. But New Britain is very rugged and little explored. Raval, capital of the territory, is on this island, while the shipping point to the placers on New Guinea is Salamura. The placers are eight days away from the coast by hiking, less than an hour by plane. The ridge to be crossed rises 12,000 feet and the Balolo valley is at an elevation of some 5,000 to 6,000 feet. The descent, once the ridge is topped, is precipitous; it is the climb that eats up time in getting in. There is no law in the territory,; only a strict set of rules typical of the rules British character usually works out for the just administration of colonial territory. Infraction of the rule against concubinagie with the Polynesian women brings a sen tence of five years’ imprisonment. The district officei’ is judge and jury, there is no appeal. Each district of ficer has a number of lieutenants, over subdivisions of his jurisdiction, with powers similar to his, but his is the appellate authority. An interesting footnote to this is the extreme difficulty with which Australian women get themselves ad mitted to the territory, so that few are there. Men on going there must deposit funds enough to take them back to their Australian homes—a precaution against failure. These are some of the circumstances under which the Edy creek strikes have ex erted their attraction, and the plan tations of coconuts are being found ed. The administration also regulates the preparation of copra, the smok ing process is used for drying and uniform high quality brings the co pra a premium in London’s market. Labor gets a fixed reward and there is no deviation from it. Cash pay is six shillings a month. Rice is furnished, however, also two sticks of trade tobacco a week, a new clay pipe a month (or newspaper for ciga rettes, a sheet a week), a loin cloth a month, and a tin of fish a week. Men are called boys, ■ and our informant says they work well as soon as they try new bosses out. If a new boss’s grit is good, they knuckle down to him; if it fails, he will never get on with them and had just as well pack up for Australia. Death is the penalty for murder and some other crimes, of Polyne sians. Hanging is the method of ex ecution, and the district officers have this done publicly in the criminal’s own village. Often the method is to stand the victim on an oil can, string him up by the neck.to the limb of a tree overhead, and kick the can out from under him. The gendarmes are natives, their officers these Brit ish district officers and their lieuten ants. There is a code of quick rough jus tice for whites, another for browns— both summarily enforced. SOLINGEN “•Tree” Brand CUTLERY “Twin” Brand E. Viegelmann 460 Dasmarinas, Manila, P. I. Tel.: 2-26-64 WHEN IT RAINS IT POURS For many years Attorney Alva J. Hill and associates clung vainly to hopes of a profitable copper strike in claims they held in the jurisdiction of San Remigio, Antique, Panay island, finally giving up and selling the property to a company headed by M. Galatas, Botica Boie’s Iloilo manager. The new owners had the luck to strike a pocket from which they have sold 25,000 tons of highgrade copper ore at a net profit of P9 a ton. Their risk was P22,000 including the Pl0,000 payment to Hill et al., and their gain has been more than P100,000 in dividends distributed aside from a surplus for future ef fort. When Mr. Galatas was seen in Ilo ilo two weeks ago, he said there is still 25,000 tons of this copper to be mined when the world price offers a sufficient net profit. Meantime still more luck has turned up. According to samples in Iloilo and the reports of an Italian engineer geologist, F. Parboni, employed at the project, two molybdenum deposits have been found, one in iron, the other in copper, and the latter is re ported large and rich enough to war rant installing a 30-ton concentration plant. Molybdenum is a semipre cious industrial metal whose price current is about 46 cents a lb. due to its high fusing point. It is used as a flux, or conditioning agent, in high grade steels. The known supply is scattered and limited, hence the enor mous price. Further work will be done at San Remigio before the con centration plant is decided upon, Mr. Galatas says. The largest known molybdenum deposit now being worked is that at Climax, Colorado, property of the Climax company whose dollar-par stock usually sells at some fifty times par value. The deposit averages */% of 1% in molybdenum. But Milton Sutherland, while i',n America last year, examined another deposit sim ilarly promising, possibly better, in Nevada sixty miles from Goldfield. Here the surface averaged % of 1%, and the tunnel Vs of There re mained 600 feet of tunneling to do, where surface samples were averag ing 1% molybdenum.' The Climax company is said to be watching this deposit very closely. So wealthy is its own property that the diggings have become a town bearing its name, Climax. IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL 32 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1938 Creosote Is An i Antidote M Ants’ White ants simply will not asso ciate with creosote or anything that has creosote in it. Talcing Advantage of this knowledge it will pay you to use nothing but CREOSOTED LUMBER Rot is another problem that causes large losses. Again creosoted lumber brings a great sav ing. Actual use of this has pro ven that it will prolong the life of lumber for many more years. We have ample stocks for all pur poses, including piles and ties. ATLANTIC, GULF & PACIFIC COMPANY He May Be Good, But even though the fellow who does not advertise probably knows his business, no* body else does. Steady advertising in the MANILA DAILY BULLETIN pays regular dividends. IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL Canadian Pacific Gross DisplaceTonnaye merit 7'o n n aye EMPRESS EMPRESS OF OF JAPAN ....................... CANADA .................... 26,000 21,500 39,000 32,250 EMPRESS OF RUSSIA ....................... ................. 16,800 25,200 EMPRESS OF ASIA 16,900 25,350 Maintaining a fortnightly service from the Philippines to the Pacific Coast. When necessary, connection can be made at Honolulu direct to San Francisco or Los Angelos. At Victoria connection can be made for Seattle and points in the U. S. A. At Vancouver the Empresses dock at the new C. P. R. Pier which adjoins the Canadian Pacific Railway Station. Ask us about the neu: low first class, intermediate class and coach class fares to points in Canada, and the U.S.A. Canadian Pacific Telephones 2-36-56 and 2-36-57 Cable Address “GACANPAC” 14 David, Manila CHEVROLET TRUCKS develop maximum pulling power where you need it most— at low speeds Chevrolet offers a complete line of motor trucks for every requirement. See the 1938 Chevrolet Trucks with factory built, closed bodies al the Chevrolet show, rooms— You do not have to wait for high speeds to get full power from your Chevrolet Engine. You get the efficiency and economy of Chevrolet’s Valve-in-Lead Motor to solve your hauling problems at lowest costs. ^CHEVROLET Pacific Commercial Company Distributor—Chevrolet Motor Cars and Trucks IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION Uli. AMERICAN CHAMBER OF (.OMMERt.E JOCRNAL June, 1938 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL 33 Growing Asiatic Immigration Chinese immigrants during the past two years were 10,655, emi grants 2,000. Nonimfnigrants; were 28,354, departing 20,272. Limited to the period covered, 1936-1937, the Commonwealth’s Chinese population grew by 8,655 by, way of immigra tion. 8,082 by nonimmigrant accre tions, a total of 16,737. Women in the total are 2,581 and men 14,156. Applied to Chinese, the term im migrants embraces children and wives of Chinese legally, resident in the Commonwealth, merchants, students, and scientists—all under the sixth section of the U. S. immigration act of 1917. Japanese immigrants during the past two years were 6,644 emigrants 3,460. Nonimmigrants were 3,448, departing 3,059. In the period co vered, the Commonwealth’s Japanese population grew by 3,184 by way of immigration, 389 by nonimmigration accretions, a total of 3,573. Women in the total are 707. Limited to im Aliens Coming from and going to Foreign Countries Year 1937 ation A R R 1: V E D D E P A RTE I) RftCC ality atl°n’ Immigrants Non-Immigrants Emigrants Non-Emigrants Male Female Tote! Male Female Total Male Female Total Male Female Total Chinese 3.367 1.803 5.170 13,401 1,671 15.072 1.636 192 1828 6,985 701 7,686 Dutch & Flemish 50 19 69 71 32 103 1 85 22 146 East Indians 57 16 73 22 131 50 29 107 English 182 279 328 821 37 63 351 1.058 30 22 52 39 27 5 6 11 84 182 Germans 72 51 123 163 239 3 10 208 87 295 13 16 1 18 3 21 35 39 37 42 15 T7 Japanese 1'3.057 1.113 4.17D 1.513. . 506 2.019 1.403 532 1.935 1.021 380 Portuguese '“TF -------2T 39 23 20 43 - -------2T 46 Russians 39 61 100 38 84 122 15 55 Scandinavians 6 7 (Scotch 6 2 8 1 1 1 Spanish 85 163 180 110 290 10 16 .35 184 126 Syrians 2 2 Turkish 17 2 19 8 9 2 Other Peoples 198 89 287 287 165 442 14 R 22 328 187 511 Total 7.232 3,388 10.620 16.371 3.045 19.416 3.166 7R9 3.955 9,839 2.071 11.910 Year 1936 Race or Nationality ARRIVED DEPARTED Immigrants Non-Emigrants Emigrants Non-Emigrants Male Female Total Male Female Total Male Female Total Male Female Total Chinese 4.405 1,080 5.485 11.820 1.412 13,232 143 29 172 11,549 1.037 12.586 Dutch & Flemish 22 3 25 107 131 6 5 11 109 27 1.36 East Indians 111 28 139 176 60 238 46 50 155 23 English 47 83 449 343 792 20 13 33 426 307 733 French 7 3 10 50 42 92 1 1 52 30 82 Germans 12 30 126 59 185 2 5 7 129 68 197 Iris 7 7 18 22 2 2 2 Japanese 11 1.7'7 757 2.474 —1.329 13 - 1 IZfl T.017 . 508 1 1.525. 23 1.28* 7 373. 1 659 Portuguese ------ T 2 10 10 20 — ■ 1 ( ------- - 12 Russians ii 8 23 74 97 15 62 2 3 25 8 33 38 8 46 5 6 25 8 33 25 31 Spanish Syrians Turkish 40 28 68 179 132 311 22 14 36 144 93 237 J ,.4 z z z — 1 z 1 Other Peoples 49 23 72 145 99 244 15 9 24 17.' 99 374 Total 6.458 1.987 8.445 14.516 2.688 17,204 1.275 587 1.862 14.152 2.154 16.306 migrants alone, the Commonwealth’s population of Japanese women rose during the period by 581. No other immigrations are im portant numerically. Total immigration during the pe riod sums 19,065, emigration 5,817, the difference being 13,248. Of these 13,248 persons, 8,655 were Chinese and 3,184 were Japanese, a total of 11,839 leaving 1,409 distributed among all other nationalities of im migrants. These data exclude non immigrants sojourners in all cases. Yet by one means or another, prob ably thousands of the nonimmigrants will make shift to remain in the Commonwealth more or less perman ently. Thanks are due the Depart ment of Labor for the statistics ar ranged in our own tables accompany ing this comment. 1 Immigration from neighboring Asiatic countries poses a problem for the Commonwealth. If limitation or an approach to exclusion is desired, the strength of the Commonwealth: alone is not enough to enforce such a policy. It would depend on retention of American sovereignty, some kind of continued political association with the union of the United States. If this were arranged, Chinese exclu sion as now applied—it is seen that it is not entirely affective, though it does operate as a tangible restraint— would continue! under the power of the United States and the increasing self-resourcefulness of the Common wealth to give it better effect. Japanese immigration would be a subject of diplomacy between Wash ington and Tokio effecting a gentle men’s agreement such as the Lan sing-Ishii agreement of twenty years, ago that worked very well. While Japanese are not subject to exclu sion, their immigration can be con trolled within certain limits because it is not impossible to bring Tokio to see that true or not, considerable Ja panese immigration into the Com monwealth is looked upon with an xious aversion both here and in Washington. Moreover, Philippine farming is now practically closed to all foreigners by better enforcement of the public land laws, and com merce and industry alone have places for far fewer immigrants. Nor does Japan, while America is here, wish to jeopardize her commerce here by an arbitrary attitude about immigra tion or any other subject. The Commonwealth could not go so far, and also, when definitely separ/ ated from the United States would probably find that country lukewarm on the subject—one that is notorious ly delicate and fraught with possibi lities of conflict. While new Pacific islands interests of the United Sta tes are destined to extend the Com monwealth vicarious protection in the large, details such as immigra tion will hardly fall within this scope. Nor upon, separation will the Com monwealth be able to count upon a treaty of any kind, involving the United States, unless America’s tra ditional diplomacy has gone haywire entirely and she is now willing to en tangle herself with foreign compacts. When the Commonwealth thinks of complete separation from the mother country, immigration, that might easily develop to an inundation should be the first afterthought. 34 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1938 Marsman Building Corporation gets contract to build residence of American High Commissioner Marsman Building Corporation, a Marsman subsidiary, was this month awarded the contract by the United States government for the building of the official residence of the Amer ican High Commissioner to the Phil ippines. The Marsman company landed the contract with a low bid of P440.794, competing against a field of three other builders, including the Santa Clara Lumber Company of Manila. The building, which Rep. Albert J. Engel of Michigan, described in Con gress as a “pretty good sized barn’’, will cover a large part of the 17.14acre of filled-in land on Dewey Bou levard. It will be three stories in height, and will contain 47 rooms, of which 27 will be used as offices for the Commissioner and his staff. The history of this project is in teresting, dating as it does back to the approval of the Tydings-McDuffie Act on March 24, 1934, providing for the independence of the Philip pines, and the evacuation of Malacanang by the Governor-General. At that time, a committee, composed of Colonel F. W. Manley, Commander J. E. Kiernan, A. D. Williams, E. D. Hester and C. TV. Franks was ap pointed to select a site for the Resi dence. After considering five pos sible sites, the committee chose the rectangular area of Manila Bay south of the Armv and Navy Club and the Elks Club. The Philippine Legislature then passed Act No. 4269, which provided for the dredging and filling-in of the area by the Philippine Govern ment. Costs of the seawall, land scaping, roads and drainage are borne by the United States, and it is estimated that these costs will not exceed three pesos per square meter. In 1935, Congress, in the Second Deficiency Appropriation Act, pro vided $750,000 for the construction of buildings (including a summer Residence at Baguio) for the High Commissioner, including acquisition of land, construction of buildings, and purchase of furnishings and equipment. Plans for the Manila Residence were drawn up by Mr. Juan Arellano, as Supervising Archi tect of the Bureau of Public Works here, in cooperation with Captain W. M. Allison, of the Quartermaster Corps, who had been designated as Constructing Quartermaster. These plans did not receive the im mediate approval of the State and War Departments at Washington. The Supervising Architect of the Treasury Department was called in, and he prepared sketches of floor plans which were sent back here for inspection by Messrs. Arellano and Allison. The plans were generally satisfactory, and were finally ap proved. Pedro Siochi and Company, Inc. submitted the low bid to the Bureau of Public Works for the construction of the seawall and boat landing ($40,800). Construction was com menced on December 31, 1936, and was supervised by Captain W. M. Allison and La Monte Clark, Cons truction Superintendent. Filling operations were commenced in Feb ruary, and completed in July, 1937. Settlement of the fill has been less than expected, and the site is now considered ready for construction activities. The whole project of the two Resi dences of the High Commissioner To Lovers of Rural Life MANDALOYON ESTATE WATCH FOR ANNOUNCE MENT ON THE MANDA LOYON IDEAL HOME Provides an ideal setting, Both serene and beautiful, Far removed from confusion, Yet only a stone’s throw from everything important Lots Sold as Low as from P0.60 to P2.00 per Square Meter ORTIGAS, MADRIGAL Y CIA. S. en C. FILIPINAS BUILDING MANILA TELEPHONE 2-17-62 Tune in on our regular Tuesday Night Program over Station KZRM from 9:00 to 9:30 P.M. IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CH AMEER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1938 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL 35 (Manila and Baguio) came in for a lot of Congressional criticism during the recent visit of Commissioner Mc Nutt to the United States. Some of this was directed at Mr. McNutt himself, although he had nothing whatever to do with the initiation of the project, selection of the sites or plans for the buildings. In fact, it is probable that he and his family will never occupy either building. Never theless, Mr. McNutt defended the outlay (comparatively large in view of Washington’s traditional niggard liness in the matter of residences for American representatives abroad) in these words: “The point must be considered that you are making pro vision for an office which represents American sovereignty in an Oriental community. So far as I am concern ed, I \vould be more comfortable in a smaller house out on Manila Bay, but we must think of the prestige of the High Commissioner.” The Manila Residence is expected to be (completed iabout January 1, 1940. REAL ESTATE By P. D. Carman BOULEVARD HEIGHTS Sta. Cruz . . . . Sampaloc............. May transfers were in excess of any May totals since 1918 with the exceptions of 1935 and 1937. The Janua ry-May total is how ever much lower than that of last year: 1938 P 5,763,601 1937 12,295,709 Sales City of Manila 1938 A i»il May P 96,364 P 311,502 129,551 92,499 Tondo ................... 57,217 325,325 Binondo ................ 99,325 553,768 San Nicolas . . . 23,840 32,866 Ermita................. 110,500 155,600 Malate.................. 180,701 78,721 Paco...................... 59,006 12,650 Sta. Ana.............. 50,303 27,044 Quiapo.................. 42,321 47,793 San Miguel .... 55.690 130,122 Intramuros .... 37,000 2,800 Sta. Mesa .... 4,000 — Pandacan .... 1,020 - P946,868 Pl,770,690 HOW TO SPELL IT A friend inquired of us the correct spell ing for Malacanan, whether it might not be Malacanang with a “g” ending. We LA UEBANA BUILDING AND LOAN ASSOCIATION LOANS for the construction of buildings, and mortgages at moderate rates INVESTMENTS in shares of stock giving 6% dividends annually. Wei also issue savings shares from one peso-up monthly • PATERNO BLDG. SANTA CRUZ, MANILA referred the inquiry to Dr. Eulogio B. Rodriguez at the National library, who re turned this information: D. Agustin de la Cavada spells the name without the "g” in his geographical and statistical history of the Islands. This fol lows Clemente Cobarrubias in his Protocolo of 1825, Rodriguez San Pedro in his Legislacion Ultramarina, Governor General Ma nuel Crespo in a proclamation of 1856, the Cedulario for 1855 to 1857, and the his torical committee now marking such edi fices, who placed a marker on the palace about October 1935, using the term Mala canan Palace. Tagalogs in our office say there should be the “g” at the end, but they agree with us that the origin may be the vulgate may Iakan dian, translating into the great (or powerful) are (or live) there. This could easily shorten into Malakanyan, and this is the form that may be most nearly correct philologically, since there is no “c” in Tagalog and the "c” in Malacanan is reminiscent of Spanish. P. 0. BOX 138 TEL. 2-18-55 PURE PREPARED k PA NT OuLPM Whether your paint ing job is an in terior or exterior one, FULLER & CO. have a superior paint pro duct to suit your re quirements. FULLER PAINTS NORTON & HARRISON CO. KNEEDLER BUILDING MANILA, P. I. IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION T1IE AMERICAS’ CI1 AM HER OE COMMERCE JOURNAL 36 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1938 RICE REVIEW MAY, 1938 By Dr. V. Buencamino Manager, National Rice & Corn Corporation RICE Under pressure of heavy receipts of cheap rice from the Cagayan Valley coupled with the com paratively heavy liquidation b y p r o d u c ers by reason of th e payment of land taxes and the opening of the school year, the market suffered a little setback amounting to 5<‘ per sack. As a whole, however, the position is highly satisfactory. In the face of such adverse factors prices should have receded substan tially, but sellers showed persistent firm ness, displaying no anxiety to sell at re duced rates. Manifested arrivals by water during the month of May amounted to 35,061 cavanes compared with 20,616 in the pro ceeding month. Receipts by rail also reg istered a moderate increase, being 123,904 against 107,883 in the preceding month. Arrivals, however, by rail during the first five months of 1938 totaled 783,975 cavanes compared with 869,617 cavanes in 1937. We interpret this as a reflection of the reduced crop for 1937-1938 which was more pronounced in the Central Luzon provinces. With stocks running low in the principal centers of consumption and the approach of the planting- season, the trade generally anticipates an improvement in price. While complaints have been received from quarters representing the consuming ele ment protesting against the alleged ex cessive prices of rice, we are of the belief that prices would likely register some more advances. The National Rice and Corn Corporation has consistently adhered to its policy, announced early in the year, of not interfering with the normal course of the rice business. Should at any time, how ever, prices reach a level considered pre judicial to public welfare, it will undertake the task of stabilizing the price within limits mutually beneficial to producers and consumers. Today, the Corporation be lieves that the upper limit has not been reached. The market opened firm with second class Macan selling at P6.35-1*6.45 but closed quietly at P6.30-P6.40. PALAY While an easy undertone prevailed >n provincial markets, holders showed little disposition to liquidate unless hard press ed for cash to meet urgent obligations. Despite the fact that palay quotations in Cabanatuan and other milling centers have suffered a slight recession, it is believed that they arc still above the parity of rice in Manila. Closing quotation in Cabana tuan range from P3.08 to P3.13 per sack of 44 kilos, gross. BY-PRODUCTS A healthy demand for by-products con tinued to be felt and notwithstanding the minor decline registered at the close, this level was nevertheless satisfactory. Tiki tiki No. 1 opened at P2.45 and closed at P2.25. Binlid and other by-products continued to command attractive prices. TOBACCO REVIEW MAY, 1938 By P. A. Meyer RAWLEAF: The harvest of the 1938 crop has been completed in Cagayan and Isabela. Unfor tunately, as far as can be judged by now, the qua lity of the crop leaves much to be desired. Compa rative figures of shipments abroad are as follows; Raivleaf, Stripped To bacco and Scraps Kilos Belgium............. 590 China................. 14,802 France ............... 48 Holland ............. 3,098 Hongkong .......... 33,012 Java ................. 330 Korea ............... 22,165 Straits Settlements ... 497 United States .. 110,616 May 1938 185,158 April 1938 469,676 May 1937 2.379,740 January-May 1938 4,668,981 January-May 1937 7,529,722 CIGARS: Shipments to the United States compare as follows: Cigars May 1928 13,428,682 April 1938 15,388,476 May 1937 11,647,068 January-May 1938 70,374,478 January-May 1937 59,167,097 ALHAMBRA CIGARS continue to be the recognized leaders in QUALITY cigars CORONAS dela ALHAMBRA THE FIELD IS WIDE OPEN Following is an edito rial bit of wisdom from Richard C. "Dick” Wilson of the United Press Asso ciations, reprinted from Manila’s MONDAY MAIL. Growth of the Philippines from an undeveloped, little known colony to a thriving nation standing on the threshhold of acquirR. C. “Dick” Wilson ing independence without having to resort to bloodshed, will unquestionably catch the attention of his torians writing in the next century. The policy of the United States in preparing the Philippines for an autonomous govern ment presents a weird spectacle in a cen tury when the policy of many strong na tions is in the opposite direction, if ManIN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1938 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OE COMMERCE JOURNAL Y7 churia, Ethiopia and Austria can be cited as examples. Filipinos are confronted with an oppor tunity comparable to that faced by the early American settlers. If Filipinos dis play the pioneer spirit which carved pros perous homesteads from Illinois timber lands; cotton fields amid the southern pines, and gold mines from Nevada’s mountains, they should create a great nation. Few countries of comparable dimensions can approach the Philippines in natural resour ces and potentialities. Few enjoy its cen tral location amidst approximately one-half of the world’s population. Manila should become the capital of De mocracy in the Eastern Hemisphere. Java was developed by the Dutch. The British rule Malaya and India. Indo-China has French rule. Siam and Japan are monar chies, while China lives under a dictator ship. The field is wide open, so to speak, for Filipinos to carve whatever they desire from their fertile islands. The field for commercial development is literally un limited. Even the dreaded crocodile has more value than just the leather from his tough hide. Epicures report crocodile eggs FOR THE STOMACHS SAKE SEVEN-UP LIKES YOU —just one of the many fine Isiuin Soft Drinks popular throughout the Islands ISUAN, INC. Tel: 5-73-06 We Deliver taste like plover’s, while crocodile steak is described as superior to venison. Java provides an excellent example of commercial development such as can be duplicated in the Philippines. Java pro duces 92% of the world’s cinchona; 79% cf the world’s kapok; 71% of the world’s pepper; 14',< of the world’s tea, and G% of the world’s coffee. It also ranks third in world production of sugar, and second only to British Malaya in production of rubber and tin. The sources which pro duce most of these products were introdu ced to Java from other countries: rubber from Brazil; sugar cane from the West Indies; tea from China; cinchona from the Andes; coffee from Arabia; cocoa from South America, etc. Science has demon strated that most of these products can be commercially profitable in the Philippines. President Quezon has created a liberal homestead program to make land available for all of these products. The Filipino himself will have to provide the Pioneer Spirit to "cash in” on the rich storehouse Nature has given him. The old adage “it pays to advertise” has been conclusively proved time and again. Possessed of products used throughout the world, the Philippines should accompany the development of its storehouse with a campaign of “telling the world” what it has for sale. By the written and spoken word, the islands should be made better acquaint ed to the buyers and sellers of every coun try. The World Almanac describes Manila Bay as the finest natural harbor in all Asia. If the Philippines “tell the world” long enough and loud enough, there can be no doubt the merchant ships of every flag will in time find their way into Manila Bay to carry away the fabulous list of pro ducts these islands can produce. —Monday Mail, 5-16-38 POSTHUMOUS HONOR A letter from Dr. Dean Newhouse, reg istrar, University of Washington, to Mr. and Mrs. B. H. Berkenkottcr read as fol lows : “I am happy to inform you that a degree of Bachelor in Science in Mining and Geo logy is to be granted to your son, Frank E. Berkenkotter. The University of Wash ington is happy to give this recognition of the fine work which was so near comple tion.” This is posthumous honor, that Frank’s young friends will all be glad to learn of. We knew this lad, whose heart was strong for the battle, whose word was the bond of a knight. Readers will recall that he suc cumbed to postoperative complications fol lowing amputation of a leg injured in bowl ing, and died March 21. IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MEN ! ION THE AMERICAN CHAMHER OE COMMERCE JOURNAL 38 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1958 Vigan, Laoag and Points North It is remarkable that one can motor over an unbroken road 600 kilometers north from Manila, and still more remarkable that a simitar trip is possible in the opposite di rection from the islands’ capital, through the southeastern provinces of this huge Luzon, of which we only begin to sense the real physical hugeness, and enjoy the grandeur, as engineers’ blueprints mate rialize in road and bridge appro priations and the actual roads— with bridges added every year. Bangui, the end of the road, is at the extreme northwest point of Luzon, whence a branch crossethe mountains to Aparri, the Cagayan river port and outlet of the Cagayan valley. We did not essay this trail. We simply saluted the justice of the peace at Bangui, drove around the plaza, got out of the car and let the ladies climb over the ruins of the old church while we ex plored the remains of what had been an appetizing lunch. We observed that a few eucalyptus trees skirted the plaza and were large and thriving, and then drove back to Laoag for merienda—dinner in Vigan an hour and a half later—a wonder trip of 250 kilometers of seagirt, valleybounded and mountain-sheltered travel completed in a day. Bangui is 150 kilometers North of Vigan, which is 450 kilometers from Manila; we had stopped overnight at Laoag, on the way up the coast. The way to begin such a trip is to glance into the census. One finds that La Union has an area of 350 square miles, a popula tion of 160,590, or 459 to the square mile; that Ilocos Sur has an area of 442 square miles, a population. of 217,406, or 492 to the square mile; and that Ilocos Norte has an area of 1,293 square miles, a popula tion of 219,129, or 169 to the square mile. But he also finds great towns, Laoag, for example, with 40,000 inhabitants; and in traveling through the three provinces he sees that the valleys are not extensive like those of central Luzon. They are com paratively narrow, coastal plains, and much of the total area is mountainous. Although 1,000 acres and more, of rice, is seen grow ing in a single field, it is divided among many owners. The farms are small, and quite commonly owned by the families work ing them. A greater industry is observed among the farmers than in the central Luzon provinces where tenant farming is more prevalent. In the Iloeano provinces at this time of year, the Christmas holi days, you see rice fields being prepared for tobacco. Elsewhere “catch” crops are being planted, or sugar cane is growing M<ibugabog Water Falls, Ilocos Norte and will be harvested in time to turn the land back into rice. The region is now producing 60,000 bales of maguey annually. This grows on the lower hillsides, the dunes built by the sea, some of which are still bare, some half wooded over with scrub, and where scrub is growing it may be removed for the planting of maguey. Men plod along the roads (which are frequently crowded with the traffic of well constructed carts drawn by trotting bulls), and have distaffs in their hands. They spin as they walk, and the women weave fine cloths of cotton, cotton-silk and silk. Wood carving is a household industry with some, brush making with others. When the embroidery houses of Manila extend their activities into this region they will find it a very productive one. The women appear particularly industrious; they are seen working in the fields and at road building and irrigation construction—draw ing the wages of men and doing a man’s work. The men toil too, about as much as they do elsewhere in the islands where their energy is confined by what is hardly more than a neighborhood cul ture, with no ambitions extending beyond the sound of the church tower bells. Yet from this very region thousands of topnotch workmen were recruited for the sugar plantations in Hawaii, where good hard money rewards their toil. Educators in the region say they have remarked the fact that young men who have gone through school, especially well up into high school, don’t go back to the fields when they can no longer afford to study, or when repeated failures have taught them or their supporting rela tives that further study would be useless. They have then learned to wear white clothes and esteem bodily cleanliness. They therefore proceed to make the wearing of white clothes an occupation, colored with the oc casional excitement of political campaigns wherein they may be petty leaders, depended upon to harangue their less favored bre thren and bring out the vote. Their number is legion, the schools through out the three provinces are all overcrowded. The grazing lands are considerable. Car goes of beef animals are regularly shipped to Manila in coast schooners, and carabaos and horses are sold into the provinces south, Pangasinan, Tarlac, Pampanga, Bulacan, Nueva Ecija. They are also sold in Manila. The many coves form safe harbors for schooners, which are moored close to the shore at high tide. Planks are laid across from shore to shipside, and they and the chute into the hold are banked over with rice straw. Thus deceived, the animals are loaded without difficulty, and in a good breeze the run to Manila or another con venient market is not a long one. What is seen along the long enchanting road from Manila to Bangui, is valleys June, 1938 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL 39 strung like a chain of emeralds along a coral coast. Towns brush by at intervals, brown thatched towns with old Roman red brick churches and whitewashed conventos, and high detached campaniles that were once, no doubt, fortifications against ma rauding Moros and the depredations of wild tribes from the hills. In folds of the hills, watchtowers are occasionally seen towers with turret tops where fire might be kept burning, whence torch signals could be flashed, and cannons fired upon fleets of Moro vintas endeavoring a landing in an adjacent cove—where forbidding coral reefs give way to shelving sandy slopes. It is an old country, old and picturesque, with great edifices of the missionary church, the pride in bygone times of the devoted priests who built them, crumbling now, many of them, beneath the burden of the encroaching jungle—soon to be one with the forgotten glories of a great and gal lant age; and were we to search in their old records, though many of these disap peared during the sanguinary 90’s, we should see where more than one missionary expe dition left this little port, or that one, for the missions in old Japan. Old pictures in the repaired churches and convents frequently depict martyrdom suffered by * the early fathers. The arts they taught the people, the industries they established, remain after their memories are forgotten. Father Juan Davila intro duces cacao from Mexico. Another intro duces coffee, still another makes a device for stripping hemp which persists in com mon use to this day. One in the country we are traversing instructs in the retting of fibers in running water. All are build ers—churches, convents, roads. The road to Bangui from Manila embraces many sections of old Spanish roads and cause ways, and many old Spanish bridges, cen turies old and still as good as when first constructed. It is, this entire trip, not only highly diverting as an excursion into the provinces, but an interesting study of past and present, and how the new has been imposed upon the best of the old under Spanish rule. Beyond Burgos, at the precipitous crest roadway of unsurpassed beauty, is Bojeador lighthouse, which should be visited for the magnificent view afforded from the tower —where on the one hand the coast sweeps ruggedly away to the eastward and on the other the eye ranges out to sea and a limitless horizon. The best plan for the trip is that of easy stages: the charm of motor travel in the Philippines is half lost if trips are made hurriedly. Start from Manila at a comfortable hour and reach George Ste wart’s hotel at Bauang in the afternoon. Tell George you want fried chicken and stewed apples for supper. Your bed will be clean and comfortable, the soundness of your sleep enhanced by the muffled rum ble of the sea some hundreds of yards away. Make Vigan the next day, lunching by the roadside any place. Here you will make pleasant arrangements for the stay at Laoag the next night, and the day fol lowing this, motor on to Bangui and back through Laoag to Vigan, again having roadside lunches. Now double back to Ma nila, with your choice of numerous side trips including one to Baguio over the Naguilian road. The Observation, . . (Continued from page 26) an encouraging trend of thought. Not the least of these modifications related to the matter of capital gains and losses. The whole principle of a tax on capital gains has long been in dispute. Once again citing Great Britain as an example, in that country no such tax exists because it is realised that any blanketing of investment or speculative capital must eventually do more harm than good. However, the elimination of this form of taxation at this time in the United States is too much to expect, and it is suf ficiently gratifying to witness some loosening of the prohibitory penalties against the creation of capital gains. Such gains are (Please turn to page 41) An open secret already- the wonderful definition ob tained in all those pictures which the Zeiss Ikon 1 KO FLEX II lakes. In fact it’s particularly easy with this camera to watch objects during expo sure even and to set the desirable sharp focus by pressure on a lever, for it boasts as ground glass screen a collecting lens matted on the underside. Add to this the help of a magnifier for fine focussing, a frame finder for sports photography; and that you yourself can appear on the picture as well, you have the built-in self-release to thank. For other useful facts please apply to Sole Agents MANILA BOTICA BOIE CEBU ILOILO LEGASri THE MANILA WINE MERCHANTS, INC. The Largest Wholesale and Iletail Liquor Dealers in the Philippines Head Office: Branch Office: 174 Juan Luna 37-39 Alhamb Tels . 4-90-57 Tel. 2-17-61 4-90-58 IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL 40 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1938 SUGAR MARKET REPORT FOR MAY By Warner, Barnes & Co., Ltd. Throughout May, the New York sugar market has been dull with a steadily de clining tendency. At the beginning of the month, parcels afloat changed hands at 2.85c but a drop of ten points was register ed during the second week and, in spite of a momentary steadiness when the majority of the distressed sugar appeared to have been disposed of, a new low of 2.65(* was reached by the end of the month. This de cline was caused by the continued absence of any indication from Washington that steps would be taken to remedy the oversupply, refiners in consequence being per fectly contented to cover their requirements by picking up afloats. This situation was aggravated by poor demand for refined sugar, and a general reduction in the price of refined sugar to 4.50<* in the middle of the month did nothing to stimulate with drawals. Quotations on the Exchange have fluc tuated as follows during the month: — High Low Rates July .......... 1.96c 1.74c 1.80C September . 2.00c1 1.79c 1.84 c January .. 2.00C 1.82c 1.87c March .... 2.03c1 1.86<‘ 1.91<J May .......... 1.98c1 1.87c1 1.94< Latest statistics of world stocks were 6,224,000 tons, compared with 5,213,000 tons last year and 6,036,000 tons in 1936. Sales of Philippine sugar during the month amounted to 68,630 long tons at prices ranging from 2.65<* to 2.87(1, while resales amounted to 18,000 tons at 2.65<‘ to 2.85c. The local export market was practically lifeless throughout the period at 1*6.40 per picul and followed the decline in New York to a clos:ng price of P6.00. The market for domestic consumption sugar also moved into lower levels. Buyers were quoted early in the month at P4.00 per picul for mill-run centrifugals but re duced their prices to P3.80, showing very little interest and covering their require ments only from day to day. Exports to the United States during the month amounted to 73,355 tons centrifugals and 5,508 tons refined. Total shipments from November 1st, 1’937 to May 31st, 1933 were as follows :— Centrifugals ............ 597,990 tons Refined ..................... 23,133 ” Total .......... 621,123 tons “SOMETHING ROTTEN IN DAVAO” Under this head Winifred Willis as a pinch-hitting wit takes a back page of New Yorker for May 14 in stride. New Yorker at 35 centavos the copy, and it comes ou1 weekly, is in our judgment a modern won der of the world. But Miss Willis, let us not desert her at Davao as everybody seems to have deserted Colonel Luther R. Stevens Miss Willis is anxious about that fleet o 22 foreign vessels that began getting American newspaper attention April 12 when it was said that Stevens was going to Davao to inspect and report. Thereafter, however, though many other details were reported of the incident, among them the lugubrious commentary of the customs collector that it might all have been a phantom, “a mirage caused by yellow fog,” that Miss Willis puts down as a darb (as we do too!), not another word w’as filed about Colonel Stevens. This omission is just what Miss Willis needed for a sensational finish. But get hold of the magazine yourself, please, and cheer Miss Willis to the flag. The only postscript we contribute is that Colonel Stevens is going away to school: one of the most competent officers that ever wore the Khaki & Red, he deserves this prelude to promotion. MARSMAN & CO. Baguio Agents On the Way !! For a real thirst-quencher The drink that can be had wherever you may be—whether in the city —in the province or motoring for pleasure— —Look for the sign— a product of the SAM MIGUEL BREWERY IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1938 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL 41 FOREIGN EXCHANGE By Leon Ancheta Manager, Foreign Dept., P.N.B. Foreign trade returns corres ponding to the first four months of 1938 reveal strik ingly the outstand ing cause for the continued sustain ed strength of the dollar since the beginning of the year. The supply of exchange represented by exports which amounted to P95,000,000 was short by P15,000,000 compared with the demand for exchange represented by imports which totalled Pl 10,000,000. In addition, the de mand for foreign exchange to settle in visible imports comprised by freight, capital charges and other services must also be met. There is a notable change in the situa tion as regards balance of payments from that of last year. During 1937 for the same period exports and imports totalled P107,000,000 and P73.000.000 respectively which show a decrease of P12.000.000 in ex ports and an increase of P37.000.000 in im ports during 1938. To maintain the same ratio of position in foreign exchange as that of last year for the same period, ex cluding settlements of invisible imports, the country was short approximately P50,000,000 in its exports. During May, bank figures showed markedly reduced volume in bills covering importations from abroad and the dollar thereby reacted slightly although its under tone remained strong. T.T. and D.D. transfers on New York were quoting at 3/4% premium. As, due to the continued scarcity of supply from trade channels, coverage can generally be obtained only from the Philippine Treasury by the pur chase- of demand draft on New York at 1/2% premium, the margin of profit of banks represented only from 2-1/2% to 3% per annum. As the month advanced, some sellers bid for business by reducing the rate of 5/8% premium for T.T. and D.D. on New York. Other banks were reluctant at first to quote at the lower rate which can yield a profit of only 1% or less for T.T. but were subsequently forced to meet the reduced rate in order not to lose their business. The dollar thus, settled at a slightly lower level than was generally expected. Offerings of bills covering exports fell far short of the requirements of buyers. Exporters thereby demanded the most favorable rates and bids for bills ruled strong at par for 60-day bills and 1/4% premium for sight. In the foreign exchange market, chief interest and excitement centered on the French franc due to its impending further devaluation. England and America mind ful of serious developments that may ensue if the chaotic conditions in French economy and finance were not straightened out, cooperated to bring about the inevitable devaluation of the French franc in as order ly manner as possible and without serious or violent repercussions on the other world’s exchanges. With a closing rate of 498-9/16 quoted last month, the pound sterling opened steady at 498-13/16, reaching a high of 499-1/2 near the close of the first week, the chief cause being fresh rumors of pos sible devaluation of the dollar. Concur rently, the crisis in the French franc was reaching its climax, with the French Fin ance Minister announcing that the French franc had been offic:ally fixed at 179 pet pound sterling. England and America fol lowed with a statement that there would be no adjustment or devaluation contem plated in their respective currencies. The announcement of the devaluation of the French franc had only a moderate in fluence on the pound sterling which moved to 498-7/8 the next day and was fairly steady around this level up to the near end of the first fortnight. During the second fortnight, other fac tors chiefly the Czecho-German tension operated to influence the pound sterling reaching a low of 493-7/8 and closing at 494-15/16. Opening at 306-1/2, the French franc broke down sharply to 280 with the announ cement of its devaluation, or a drop of 26 1/2 oi- P.53 per hundred francs. The rates moved within very narrow range, there after, until the second fortnight when it reached a low of 276-3/8 closing at 377-7/8, in sympathy with the weakness of the pound sterling. In the London market, the lowest rate was 178.81 still below the pegged price of 179 pei- pound sterling. The Yen moved in sympathy with the pound sterling, quoting steady at 29-1/16 at the opening and moving slightly down to 29 at the close of the first fortnight. Thereafter, it moved at wider range reach ing a low of 28-3/4 and closing at 28-7/8. The Shanghai exchange encountered its greatest set-back so far since the advent of the Sino-Japanese War. Opening at 26-9/16, it moved steadily downward, reaching its lowest at 22-1/2 at the close. The continued victories of the Japanese army in China were ascribed as the chief cause for the sharp fall of this exchange. Hongkong was generally fairly steady. Opening at 31-3/16, it reached a low of 30-3/4 and closed at 30-7/8. This is due to heavy demand for Hongkong dollars brought about by the prevailing troubles in China. EVERETT TRAVEL SERVICE Authorized agents-all lines STEAMSHIP-AIR-RAIL RESERVATIONS AND TICKETS ITINERARIES PLANNED TOURS-CRUISES ARRANGED HOTEL RESERVATIONS TRAVELERS CHEQUESINSURANCE LETTERS OF CREDIT NO BOOKING FEE CHARGED. Soutl iern Is lonJ C puises Cebu—Dumaguete—Zamboanga Cotabato—Jolo Twelve days through the Sulu Sea NINETY PESOS Sailing Every Thursday New m/s. Legazpi—s. s. Kinau EVERETT STEAMSHIP CORP. 223 Dasmarinas Manila, P. I. Phone 4-98-91 U.S. Dollars High Low COUNTER RATES Sterling Francs Yen Shanghai Hongkong High Low High Low High Low High Low High Low May 1938 ......... 201.75—201.50 1/11-11/16—1/11-15/16 6.40—5.80 59 —58.60 55.95—44.70 63.50—62.45 May 1937 ................... 200.00—199.75 2/O-1/8 -2/0-3/16 9.15—9.05 58.10— 58 60.20—59.90 61.90—61.35 The Observation... (Continued from page 39) recognition is given to the time element, and it is now possible recognition is given to the time element, and it is row possible to carry over what are termed short-term capital losses as off sets to gains incurred in the ensuing year. In other words, in creasing attention is being given to a most vital factor, and that is that no capital system can survive if the employment of that capital is made too precarious. This is one lesson that is obviously being learned, and this writer again ventures the prediction that the coming year will see still further changes in the right direction. IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL 42 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1938 Kenneth B. Day UNDERWOOD SUNDSTRAND ADDING MACHINES COPRA AND ITS PRODUCTS by KENNETH B. DAY AND LEO SCHNURMACHER Leo Schnurmaciier May was a very lethargic month. All over the world prices of commodities gen erally were dropping slowly and copra pro ducts were no exception. Prices already were so low that considerable selling re sistance developed against additional de clines, but world conditions were bad and gradually prices reverted to April lows, which were the low points of the year. COPRA—The production of copra in May as unexpectedly heavy and receipts in Manila and Cebu were not only far greater than those for April but were particular ly large as contrasted with May, 1937. In were 69% greater ONLY 10 numeral KEYS on the remarkably, simple Sundstrand Keyboard. Any one can do your figuring quickly and accurately. Ask for a Demonstration UNDERWOOD ELLIOTFISHER SALES AGENCY 30-32 Escolta Manila Sole Distributors SMITH BELL & CO., LTD. Cebu — Manila — Iloilo Manila May receipts and in Cebu 24% greater than those of May, 1937. At the close of the month pros pects for an excellent 1938 copra crop were of the best, with unexpected calamities and a price for copra low enough to curtail pro duction the only uncertain factors. The trees were in good condition with rainfall satisfactory and the nuts were setting in nicely. As reported a month ago, at the close of April the copra market was consider ably steadier than it had been in the mid dle of the month with buyers bidding P6.00 fox- Manila resecada and sellers holding off, hoping for bettei- prices. This condi tion continued with practically no trading until about the 10th of the month when sellers who had been holding for P6.50 and buyers, who were only quoting P6.00, met on a common ground of P6.25 and a considerable selling wave developed in the Manila district. Thereafter there was anothei- period of quiet with buyers still in terested at P6.00 until along toward the 20th of the month when the market com menced to weaken owing to the impossibil ity of selling oil in world markets, and prices declined to a point where at the end of the month buyers were hesitant about paying even P5.25. During this period large sellers were not interested and while LUZON BROKERAGE Derham Building MANILA Port Area CO., INC. P. O. Box 591 Tel. 2-24-21 Licensed Customs Brokers Heavy Trucking Foreign Freights Contractors Forwarders Warehousemen business was done on a certain amount of the way down, the large part of the sell ing of the month occurred between the 10th and 15th. At the very end of the month sellers had made up their minds that co pra would not improve and were getting ready to do a little selling at between P5.25 and P5.50. In Cebu, which is largely an export mar ket, the condition was considerably differ ent and local prices were sustained at higher levels due to the fact that Cebu merchants had oversold themselves earlier in the year and were in a position to cover up at better than Manila equivalents. Cebu prices, therefore, ranged nearly 50<* higher than those of Manila, but toward the end of the month it was felt that most out side commitments had been covered and that sellers would have to be prepared to do business at lower levels. During the entire month provincial prices were considerably higher than equivalents at large centers, but the spread was be coming smaller as the month ended. In the Cebu district the demand was very largely for sundried copra, which was the quality in demand in foreign markets, par ticularly in Europe. The European market was the best out side copra buyer, but at the same time was disappointing in that instead of remaining steady as had been anticipated in April it began to ease off, and from a high of £11/6/— for sundried in Northern Euro pean ports dropped to a low of £9/15/—, a substantial drop. This drop was count eracted very slightly by an additional de crease in the copra freight rate to Europe, which was dropped from 66/6d to 62/— as of May 26th. This decline in Europe was stimulated by heavy offerings from the Dutch East Indies and Straits Settle ments, combined with the critical political situation in Europe, which made business precarious. On the Pacific Coast copra declined from a high of 1.95<* to a low of 1.67-1/2<J with some business done all the way down. (Please turn to page 44) IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1938 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL 43 SHIPPING REVIEW By H. M. CAVENDER General Agent—Dollar Steamship Lines We can take scant comfort in studying the export movement for April—it amount ed to 261,559 revenue tons or 70,000 tons less than in March. The figures are an improvement over those for April 19:17 — 222,745 revenue tons. This slump as com pared to March is mainly in the major commodities list. The carriers arc looking for business and find ing it increasingly difficult to book their allotments. New comers in the carrying trade are facing a discouraging situation. The price of sugar slowly dropped and the shipments for April were 101,207 tons only—96,647 tons of centrifugal and 4560 tons of refined—all to the United States trade. This brings the total movement, for six months 1937-1938 season to 509,846 tons. The sugar refiners have shipped only 18,962 tons during the six months. The desiccated coconut mills are still working below capacity and the movement was 4553 tons (40 cu. ft). This is a slight increase over the March movement. The United States trade took 13,851 tons of coconut oil in bulk and China 112 tons in containers, a total of 13,963 tons. This is a falling off in the United States trade and in the total. Europe took none in either March or April. The copra trade in volume shows a slight gain, shipments to the United States were 19,660 tons— Europe 1300 tons—Japan 171 tons—total 21,131 tons. Cake and meal shipments were 2944 tons to the United States and 3900 tons to Europe—a total of 6844 tons. Hemp shipments show a slight gain of 700 bales over March. Shipments were made over the following destination range—to United States 13,782 bales, Canada 500 bales, China 2304 bales, Japan 33,020 bales, Europe 42,575 and miscel laneous destinations 4747 bales. The United States and Japan buying show slight increases. The total movement was 96,928 bales. The only ores taken by the United States were 494 tons of gold concentrates ship ped to Tacoma smelter for reduction. No chromite or manganese moved to the United States as there seems to be a surplus now on hand in that market. Japan was the only customer of moment—taking 64,450 tons of iron ore from the A G & P mines and 5855 tons from the Samar Mine, 168 tons of chromite, 550 tons of copper ore and 3700 tons of manganese. Europe took 50C tons chromite. The total movement was 75,717 tons. The shipments of lumber and logs amounted to 6,053,204 board feet. The United States got a little less than 2 million feet, Japan 3-1/2 million feet, Europe 666,000 feet, Australia, South Africa and China the remainder. Cigars amounting to 663 tons (40 cu. ft.) is normal but the tobacco shipments dropped to only 737 tons. Embroidery sh:pments were also normal—216 tons. The mango business is in full swing—Hongkong and Shanghai taking 273 tons. Increases are noted in alcohol, furniture, gums, rub ber, hides and cutch. Decreases are noted in junk metal, kapok, molasses, pineapples, rope, vegetable lard and margarine and in liquors. The transit cargo movement was 2696 tons, much of which was Shanghai distressed cargo. We note a movement of canned tuna fish from Zamboanga to the United States. From statistics compiled by the Associa ted Steamship Lines during the month of April there were exported from the Philip pine Islands the following:— (Next page, please) gj^"* in "SPEED" The flagship of the Fleet, the S. S. Corregidor—is the fastest ship in the Orient and rated by Lloyd’s register as one of the fastest in the World. g^~ in "AVAILABILITY" Thirteen well-equipped ships for passage and freight connect ing Thirty-One Ports of Call south of Manila with Maritima agents ready to serve. g|^ in "SERVICE" gj^~ in "ECONOMY" Moderate prices at the conven ience of all travellers. The varied connections on ‘‘thru tic kets” make the trip economical. The tourist ship—S.S. Basilan has elicited the enthusiastic praises of all travellers for the cuisine and luxurious comfort enjoyed. IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OE COMMERCE JOURNAL 44 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1938 You get comfort when you sail on these ships equipped with all the latest facilities including talking picture ma chines to bring you your fa vorite screen stars; masonite dance floors; roomy, air-con ditioned cabins; and magnifi cent bars! Wholesome appe tizing meals are served and the traditional Elizalde ser vice will make your days on the high seas... Tops! Write to Elizalde & Co., Ine. for your reservations! Let the Elizalde Tourist Bureau plan a delightful two-week trip of beautiful sceneries and complete relaxation for you on the luxury ships “LANAO” and “BISAYAS.” total of 94 sailing (Average 2782 tons per vessel of which 28,332 tons were carried in American bottoms with 10 sailings (Average 2833 ions per vessel). With carried In American Mile 01 Which bollomt ■ilh To Toni Silllngi Toni tailinga China & Japan 95,906 49 776 5 Pacific Coast Local 24,666 16 12,222 6 Pacific Coast Overland Pacific Coast 733 8 337 4 Intercoastal Atlantic & Gulf 1,146 7 102 3 Ports 123,908 31 14,359 7 European Ports All other 12,744 15 47 1 ports 2,456 26 481 3 A Grand Total of 261,559 tons with a Copra and. . . (Continued from page 42) During the second half of the month two successive sales of copra were made to Mexico at the Coast equivalents of 1.95<J and 1.90<! respectively, which figures were unattractive to Pacific Coast buyers. In view of the general uncertainty, however, Pacific Coast mills did not buy heavily dur ing May. Shipments for the month totalled 20,000 tons with the proportion destined for Eu rope larger than for several months past. Copra stocks on hand at the end of the month were approximately double those available at the same period in 1937. Statistics for the month follow: Arrivals—Manila, 411,902 Sacks Cebu, 389,064 ” Shipments— Metric Tons Pacific Coast ........................... 8,777 Atlantic Coast ......................... 1,524 Gulf Ports ............................... 3,054 Europe .................................... 6,629 China and Japan ................... 164 Other Countries ....................... 145 Total ............................. 20,293 Stocks on hand— Beginning End of of Month Month Tons Tons Mamila ............. . 29,581 34,117 Cebu ............... . 31,227 33,346 COCONUT OIL—At the beginning of the month oil was being offered in New York at 3-1/4 cents c.i.f. and on the Coast at 3-1/8 cents f.o.b. with not much interest on the part of buyers in either position. As the month wore on some little business was done at these prices, but large con sumers were not interested because they were very ,well covered for their imme diate and near future requirements. The Coast demand was from small refiners, but lagged off before the middle of the month to occasional transactions at 3 cents f.o.b. During the last half of the month, buyers reduced their ideas and by the end of the 223 Dasmariiias Line VESSEL N D L SCHARNHORST SEA PEIPING HAL KOLMERLAND D S S L P. GARFIELD HEAL MEERKERK Manila Hongkong Batavia ♦Haiphong Jun 28 Jul 5 Jul 10 Jul 10 Jul IS G & S GLENAFARIC Jul 19 N D L POTSDAM Jul 26 D S S L P. ADAMS Aug 7 HAL DUISBURG Aug 7 HEAL SEROOSKERK Aug 15 N Y K HAKOZAKI M. M M ATHOS II P & O RAJPUTANA B F ANTENOR L T C. VERDE E A L J 8 CHILE P & O RANCHI P & O NALDERA B F HECTOR N Y K SUWA M. CONN. STR. Jul 2 „ Jul 7 „ Jul 9 Jun 29 Jul 16 CONN. STR. Jul 16 Jun 25 „ Jul 23 ,, Jul 27 „ Jul 30 M M M. JOFFRE CONN. STR. Jun 23 M M J. LABORDE „ Jul 21 W L TRITON Jul 15 C R DESIRADE »Jul 11 C R C. ST. JACQUES *Aug 8 N L R D M M. VAN ST. A. CONN. STR. Legend— DSSL —Dollar Steamship Line P&O —'Peninsular & Oriental BF —Blue Funnel Line NYK —Nippon Yusen Kaisha MM —Mcssageries Maritimes LT —Lloyd Triestino NDL —Norddeutscher Lloyd CR —Chargeurs Reunis EALJS—East Asiatic Line—Japan Service month oil was being offered without suc cess in New York at 3 cents c.i.f. and buy ers’ ideas on the Coast were not over 2-5/8 cents f.o.b. for prompt shipment with the possibility of 1/8 cent better for early 1939 deliveries. The volume of business done during May was relatively small and the outlook for substantial consumption of coco nut oil during the second half of 1938 was anything but promising. Shipments during May totalled 12,500 tons, which is considered light. Statistics for the month follow: Shipments— Metric Tons Pacific Coast ........................... 1,515 Atlantic Coast ......................... 9,335 Gulf Ports ............................... 1,264 Europe .................................... 320 China and Japan ................... 113 Other Countries ..................... 23 Total ............................. 12,570 Stocks on hand— Beginning of Month Tons End of Month Tons Manila and Cebu 17,425 15,802 COPRA CAKE AND ME AL—'The co pra cake market, which was very dull dur ing the last half of April, showed signs of improving shortly after the middle of May, and advanced to a. point where business could be done at as high as $33.00 (Please turn to page 46) IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1938 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL 45 SAILINGS MANILA TO EUROPE VIA SUEZ Court esy - EVERETT TRAVEL SERVICE Tel. 4-98-91 Leave LeaVe I’enang Colombo Bomb Saigon sinK„])ol.c oBeinwan ’Bangkok fMadras Jul 2 Jul 12 Jul IS Jul 16 Jul 20 Jul 3 Jul 7 e Leave Arrive Leave ly Aden Suez Port Said •Dibouti •j~Massou:i _____________ •. Leave Malta Arrive Arrive Arrive "^,\rl.jv Genoa Marseilles South- ()I1d< hampton 'o 1 ‘ Jul 19 Jul 22 Jul Jul Jul Jul 28 Jul 14 Jul 30 Auk 2 Auk 7 Auk 8 Jul 15 Jul 31 Auk 3 Auk 7 Auk 9 Jul 18 Jul 21 Auk 8 ’Auk 8 Auk 12 Auk 13 Auk 14 Jul 25 Auk IS Auk 19 Auk 23 Jul 24 Jul 30 Aug 13 Aug 13 Aug 20 Jul 30 Jul| 31 Aug 16 Aug 22 Aug 4 Aug 20 Auk 19 Aug 27 Aug 25 Aug 16 Auk 11 Sep 4 Auk 30 Sep 8 Auk 17 Aug 12 Sep 4 Aug 31 Sep 9 ♦Sep 5 Sep 9 Auk 29 Auk 15 Auk 21 • Aug 24 Sep 10 Sep 13 Sep 5 Sep 17 Sep 14 Sep 28 Aug 22 Sep 14 Sep 22 Jul 7 Jul 12 Jul 14 Jul 15 Jul 6 Jul 20 Jul 9 Jul 13 Jul 19 Jul 16 Jul 20 Jul 23 Jul 8 Jul 12 Jul 24 Jul 26 Jul 21 Jul 25 Jul 25 •Jul 26 Jul 29 Jul 30 Jul 28 Aug 1 Aug 1 Jul 18 Jul 24 Jul 24 Aug 2 Aug 3 Jul 30 Aug 3 •Aug 5 •Aug 6 Auk 1 Aug 9 Aug 3 Aug 5 ’Aug 11 Auk 12 Jul 29 Aug 4 •Aug 6 Jul 23 Jul 1 Jul 2 Jul 6 Jul 9 Jul 29 Jul 30 Aug 3 Aug 6 Aug 3 Aug 5 Aug 9 Aug 4 Aug 5 Aug 10 Jul 14 Aug 11 Aug 15 Aug 13 Aug 13 Jul 18 Aug 15 Aug 21 Auk 22 Aug 14 Jul 18 Aug 15 Aug 21 Auk 23 Jul 20 Auk 17 Aug 27 Aug 25 Jun 28 Jun 30 Jul 5 Jul 26 Jul 28 Aug 2 Jul 20 Jul 27 Jul 19 Jul 22 Jul 28 Aug 16 Aug 19 Aug 25 •Jul 12 •Aug 9 •Aug 7 •Sep 4 Jul 15 Aug 12 Aug 7 Aug 11 s-r 8 Jul 16 Aug 13 Aug 8. Aug 12 Sep 9 Jul 20 Aug 17 Aug 18 Sep 15 Auk 27 Auk 24 Jul 15 «Jul 16 Jul 20 Jul 29 Jul 30 Aug 3 Aug 9 ♦Aug 10 HEAL —Holland East Asia Line NLRDM—Netherland Line Royal Dutch Mail RL —Rotterdam Lloyd HAL —Hamburg Amerika Line SEA —Swedish East Asiatic Line G&S —Glen & Shire Line EALBS —East Asiatic Line—Bangkok Service WL —iWilhelmsen Line MMIC —Messageries Line—Indo-China Service Notes a Also calls Gibraltar and TanKier. b Gibraltar c Hamburg d .. Tourane, Nantes and Bordeaux, e Jaffa and Haifa. f Antwerp and Amsterdam g Sabang. Ville Franche and Aliiers. h Also calls Sabang, Gibraltar, Tangier and Lisbon. i ,, Cebu and Antwerp. j ,, ,. Port Sudan, Algiers and Antwerp, k Malacca and Port Swettenham. m ,, ,. Antwerp n „ Tourane and Pondicherry Roosevelt Steamship Agency, Inc. REPRESENTING Kerr Steamship Co., Inc.—New York Silver Line, Ltd.—London Prince Line, Ltd.—London Pacific Java Bengal Line—Amsterdam Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha—Kobe Operating the Following Services: Silver Java Pacific Line (Philippines to U. S. Pacific Coast and Gulf Ports, also to Java, Straits Settlements, Bombay, Persian Gulf and Calcutta) “K” Line Round the World Service (Philippines to U. S. Atlantic Ports via Suez) “K” Line Express Service to Atlantic Ports (Philippines to U. S. Atlantic Ports via Panama) Chaco Bldg. Tel. 2-15-21 MANILA Far East—Europe RAPID LUXURY LINERS S.S. “Conte Biancamano” S.S. “Conte Rosso” S.S. “Conte Verde” M/S “Victoria” Via Singapore— Colombo—Bombay—Massowah— Suez—Port Said Regular fortnightly sailings from Manila or Hongkong for Venice, Trieste, Naples or Genoa and monthly to Hongkong and Shanghai Through Tickets to the U. S. and Round the World at Reduced Fares. For passage and further particulars apply to F. E. ZUELLIG, Inc., Agents CEBU MANILA ILOILO 55-63 Rosario Passage Tel. 2-31-16 Freight Tel. 2-31-15 IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL 46 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1938 SAILINGS MANILA to U. S. TRANSPACIFIC 223 Dasmarinas, Manila Courtesy— EVERETT TRAVEL SERVICE f 4-96-76 [ 4-98-91 For Rates _ . See Llne Table VESSEL Leave Leave Hong- Shangkong hai Dairen Leave •Naga- Kobe Yoko- Honolulu Arrive Victoria ’Portland Van couver Arrive Arrive Seattle San. Fran. Los N. York Angeles W. Orleans KL GRANVILLE 16 SL S1LVERBELLE 6 NYK TATSUTA MARU 9 NYK TAIYO MARU 14 BF IXION 4 DSSL P. COOLIDGE Jun 22 Jun 26 Jun 25 Conn. Str. Conn. Str. Jun 14 Jun 25 Jun 30 Jun 21 Jun 13 Jun 21 Jun 27 Jul 4 Jun 23 Jul 1 Jun 15 Jun- 24 Jun 30 Jul 5 Jul 13 'Aug 2 ’Jun 28 Jul 23 Jul 18 Jul 22 Jul 17 Jun 30 Jul 3 Jul 14 Jul 14 Jul 16 Jul 18 Jul 21 6 CPR E. of RUSSIA 8 CPR E. of JAPAN 16 CPR E. of ASIA 4 DSSL P. COOLIDGE 7 DSSL P. CLEVELAND Jul 4 Jul 18 Aug 1 Jun 26 Jul 12 Jul 8 Jul 10 ’Jul 12 Jul 22 Jul 24 Aug 5 Aug 7’Aug 9 Jul 16 Jul 14 Jul 27 Aug 11 Jul 4 Jul 20 Jul 16 Jul 29 Aug 13 Jul 5 Jul 21 Aug 4 Jul 13 Jul 29 Jul 25 Aug 9 Aug 22 Jul 25 Aug 9 Aug 22 Jul 18 Jul 22 15 DSSL P. WILSON 6 AML P. JACKSON 9 AML P. JEFFERSON 20 NYK CHICHIBU MARU 21 NYK TATSUTA MARU Jul 26 Jul 30 Jul 5 Jul 19 Conn. Str. Conn. Str. Aug 3 Aug 4 Aug 12 Jul 10 Jul 12 Jul 24 Jul 24 Jul 26 Aug 7 Jul 13 Jul 15 Jul 23 Aug 9 Aug 11 Aug 19 Jul 25 Aug 8 Aug 18 Aug 21 Jul 29 Jul 31 Aug 25 Aug 27 13 KL CORNEVILLE 25 BF 2 ML ANNA MAERSK 17 ML NIEL MAERSK Jul 22 Jul 26 Conn. Str.Jul 14 Jun 24 Jun 27 Jul 24 Jul 27 Jul 21 Jul 4 Aug 3 Jul 27 Jul 30 Jul 8 Jul 12 Aug 7 Aug 11 Aug 23 Aug 17 Aug 13 Aug 15 Jul 26 Aug 12 Aug 26 Sep 13 1 SL BENGALEN 12 SL DJAMBI 14 SL MANOERAN Jun 23 Jul 13 Jul 26 •Jul 13 •Aug 16 •Aug 29 Jul 18 Jul 23 Aug 10 Aug 5 Aug 22 Aug 17 Legend— CPR—Canadian Pacific DSSL—Dollar Line AML—American Mail Line NYK—Nippon Yusen Kaisha FL—Fern Line BL—Barber Line KL- -Klaueness Line BF—Blue Funnel ML—Maersk Line SL—Silver Line • “Fernglen” 3270 to $290 t “Niel Maersk & Gertrude Maersk” $266 Copra and. . . (Continued from page 44) c.i.f. Scandinavian ports with the local equivalent around P43.00 f.o.b. These pri ces did not last for long, nor was there a great deal of business done and by the end of the month the prices had dropped back to $31.50 with buyers not interested except in very late positions. At the very end of the month it was reported that the copra cake freight rate would not be in creased prior to January 1st, 1939, thus giving the mills here an added lease on life of three months. The Pacific Coast meal market was practically dead. There were a few scattering bids in at as high as $26.00 c.i.f. Coast, but, as usually happens at this time of year, there was no appreciable demand for Philippine copra meal in the Pacific Coast market. Shipments of cake and meal totalled nearly 11,000 tons, of which nearly 8,000 tons was in the form of cake to Europe, chiefly to Scandinavian ports. Neither buyers nor sellers were very active in May, sellers being in a comfort able position and buyers preferring to wait unt:l their needs should be more apparent. Statistics for the month follow: Shipments— Stocks on hand 1 Beginning End of Pacific Coast .. ... 2,925 Metric Tons in Manila and 1 of Month Month Europe ............ 7,976 ” Cebu ............... 8,669 Tons 6,211 Tons 10,901 Metric Tons (Please turn to page 48) Luzon Stevedoring Co., Inc. Lightering, Marine Contractors Towboats, Launches, Waterboats Shipbuilders and Provisions SIMMIE & GRILK Phone 2-16-61 Port Area IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PLEASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1938 THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL 47 PRINCIPAL EXPORTS April 1938 April 1937 Commodities _______________________________________________________ Quantity Value % Quantity Value % Quantity Monthly average for 12 months previous to April 1938 Coconut (Low grade cordage fibre) (Number) ................................ Oil ............................................ Copra Meal ... Cordage ............ Desiccated & Shredded Coconut Embroideries Hats (Number) Hemp ................ Chromium Ore Leaf Tobacco ., Lumber (Cu. M.) . Maguey .. ............... Pearl Buttons—Grs. Sugar ..................... Other Products .... 113,598 16,190,376 17,613,796 29,295,606 5,067,917 508,497 2,513,551 23,208 10.287.261 195,072 815,649 4,555 525.104 45,257 84,121,876 P 7,274 — 473,228 2.3 2,395,477 11.7 2,335,510 11.4 205,574 1.0 166,133 0.8 662,111 3.2 727,759 3.6 30,834 0.1 1,507,901 7.4 7,221 — 225,200 1.1 122,366 0.6 55,829 0.3 35,287 0.2 9,715,949 47.6 1,802,758 8,8 274,000 17,712,408 6,643,963 8,637,038 9,043,812 1,463,631 5,050,125 24,787 16,765,407 3,896,142 171,833 12,861 1,407,314 66,962 98,313,515 P 44,647 0.1 546,768 1.9 1.919.928 6.7 1,854,826 6.5 443,010 1.5 549,456 1.9 1,410,981 4.9 631,229 1.8 39,268 0.1 4,989,103 17.5 87,260 0.3 58,760 0.2 398,493 1.4 199,235 0.7 44,813 0.1 13.496,664 47.3 1,960,655 6.9 238,622 17,619,976 13,487,294 23,591,224 9,966,792 623,331 3,305,196 69,211 12,374,796 9,498,667 792,505 11,497 1,048,645 66,442 79,168,414 Value % Total Domestic Products . . United States Products ........ Foreign Countries Products GRAND TOTAL P20,738,362 NOTE: All quantities are in kilos except where otherwise PRINCIPAL IMPORTS April 1938 indicated. P28,575,086 236,940 34,010 P28.846.036 99.1 0.8 0.1 P 31,352 526,639 2,988,686 2,856,067 537,875 247,649 971,384 671,346 82,017 3,033,716 220,946 228,767 366,684 139,937 42,854 9,855,324 4,232,402 ,033,644 182,079 36,981 P27,252,704 99.2 0.7 Automobile ........ ............. Automobile Accessories. Automobile Tires .......... Books and Other Printed Matter .......................... Breadstuff Except Wheat Flour ............................. Cacao & Manufactures Ex cept Candy .................. Cars & Carriages .......... Chemicals, Dyes, Drugs, Etc...................................... Coal .................................... Coffee Raw & Prepared . Cotton Cloths ................ Cotton, All Other ....... Dairy Products ......... Diamond & Other Precious ’ Stones Unset .............. Earthern Stone & ChinaEggs & Preparation of . Electrical Machinery ... Explosives ....................... .. Fertilizers ......................... Fibers, Vegetables and Ma nufactures of .............. Fish & Fish Products ., Fruits and Nuts ............ Gasoline ....................... Glass & Glassware .... India Rubber Goods .... Instrument & Apparatus not Electrical ............ Iron & Steel Except Ma chinery .......................... Leather Goods .... ........... Machinery & Parts of .. Meat Products ................ Oil, Crude .........’............ Oil, Illuminating .. ......... Oil, Lubricating ........... Other Oils, Animals Mi neral & Vegetables .. Paints, Pigments, Varnish Paper Goods Except Books Perfumery and Other Toilet Goods ................ Rice .......... .......................... Shoes & Other Footwear. Silk, Artificial ................ Silk, Natural ..................... Sugar & Molasses ...... Tobacco and Manufactures of ................................... Vegetables ....................... Wax ................................. Wheat Flour .................. Wood, Reed, Bamboo and Rattan .......... Woolen Goods Other Imports Grand Total Value P2.109.367 278,855 510,719 185.358 141,886 145,805 124,763 10,231 94,466 18,342 730,968 864,946 247,451 386,369 367,989 444,212 719,233 146,897 139,087 94,049 113,316 87,954 ,688,781 % 7.8 1.0 1.9 0.7 0.5 0.5 0.4 0.3 2.7 3.2 0.9 1.4 1.3 1.7 2.7 0.5 0.5 0.3 0.6 0.5 2.7 9.9 1.5 0.4 3.6 0.3 6.3 Monthly average for April 1937 12 months previous _______________ to April 1938 % CARRYING TRADE IMPORTS Value P 793,929 153,730 428,768 280.118 111,080 167,074 212,199 74,377 102,557 150,648 126,658 707,243 195,380 395,663 68,769 847,336 59,978 104,380 1,426,371 3.9 j.8 2.1 0. 8 1 5 9 8 9 2 6 2 6 8 7 2 2 8 6 5 9 2 6 1 0 0 0 7 6 6 1 0 4 Value P 715,024 228,365 301,690 246,447 112,466 167,885 73,965 112,336 Nationality of Vessels April 1938 Value 0.5 0.8 0.4 0.5 3.C 0.7 0.6 2.1 0.7 0.5 0.2 1.9 1.3 .2 0 7 641,655 316.064 99,773 743,885 149,650 98,621 1,616,144 0.7 0.5 7.1 P26.824.766 TRADE WITH THE UNITED STATES AND FOREIGN COUNTRIES April 1938 Monthly average for April 1937 12 months previous Ports to April 1938 Value % Value % Value % Iloilo ........ ‘.......... Cebu .................... Jolo ...................... Zamboanga .......... Jose Panganiban Total ................ P34.827.830 6,123,413 4,236,773 46,881 382,954 980,465 556,298 3,779 405,725 64.1 16.4 10.5 0.9 5.6 1.5 P47.563.118 0.8 478,281 0.9 P30.922.954 6,899,098 6,385,830 77,204 491,647 1,749,670 852,696 18,447 509,150 P47.906.696 1.1 NOTE: Values of Gold und Silver are not included. Chinese ...................... Dutch^ .k’.’.’ G*eek°n.................. Hondurian .................. Italian ........................ Japanese .................... Norwegian ................ Panaman Philippines ................ Swedish ....................... By Freight .............. American Aeroplane Mail ............................ TOTAL P6.733.911 8,422,636 787,826 11,282 1,375.838 5,725,096 785,135 201,423 356,992 4,219 208,150 Nationality of Vetaels American ... British ____ Chinese .... Dutch ........ German .... Greek ........ Italian ..... Japanese .. Norwegian Philippines Swedish .... By Freight American Mail ... Aeroplane TOTAL 21.6 31.6 4.0 8.0 2.1 6.2 21.5 2.9 0.8 1.3 0.8 EXPORTS Monthly average lor April 1937 12 months previous _______________ to April 1938 Value % Value % 1,244,414 8,600 2,608,370 586,220 1,364,398 90,071 118,820 2,466 483,233 6.3 13.3 6.9 .8 2. P4,378,379 7,895,288 63,701 944,669 1,309,670 58 1,804,640 1,930 1,482 22.042 2,074,901 1,607,170 426,640 26,149 116,095 21.8 39.2 0.2 4.6 6.5 6.6 0.1 10.3 2J Monthly average fbo April 1938 April 1937 12 months previous to April 1938 Value % Value % P2,307,075 11.2 6.637.257 32.1 36,600 0.1 1.476.258 7.1 960,566 4.7 1,010,965 4.9 P12.794.922 44.1 4,783,305 16.5 246,232 0.8 803,632 2.8 438.766 1.6 662,590 2.3 58,275 0.2 5,678,444 19.6 2,721,238 9.4 674,438 2.3 Value % 201,549 1.0 1*20,646,871 99.6 912 — 90,579 0.4 145,304 0.5 P7,015,071 6,266,662 161,193 1,090,222 1,036,564 754,902 92,895 167,620 6,411,054 3,671.772 145,319 911 361,399 1.4 P20.738.362 P29,004,135 93.3 P25,055,584 92.0 968 — 4,743 — 2,085,636 6.7 2,192,377 8.0 P31,090,739 P27,252,704 TRADE WITH THE UNITED STATES AND FOREIGN COUNTRIES Countries United States ........ United Kingdom Australia ................ Belgium .................. British East Indies Canada .................... China ........................ Denmark .................. Dutch East Indies French East Indies Germany .................. Hongkong ................ Italy .......................... Japanese-China .... Netherlands ............ Norway .................... Siam .......................... Spain ........................ Sweden .......... ......... Switzerland ..'........ Other Countries ..., TOTAL Monthly average for April 1938 April 1937 12 months previous _________________________________ to April 1938 Value %Value %Value % P38,306,959 80.7 828,299 1.7 325,326 0.7 9,289 — 227,546 0.5 519,061 1.1 213,452 0.4 595.727 1.3 119,234 0.2 769,106 1.6 158.298 0.3 32,267 — 572,294 1.2 520,862 1.1 40,305 — 3,133,048 6.6 7,389 — 466,368 0.9 32,933 — 49,031 0.1 88,996 0.2 41,146 — 89,663 0.2 427,569 0.9 P87.149.285 72.6 1,377,634 2.7 713.880 1.4 7,386 — 515,523 1.0 907,112 1.8 557,065 1.1 808,663 1.6 71,743 0.1 321,094 0.6 212,033 0.4 120,031 0.2 1,021,476 2.0 297,901 0.6 79,692 0.1 4,659,407 9.1 37,321 — 450,025 0.9 33,026 — 227,513 0.4 33,974 — 67,499 0.1 82,242 0.2 372,909 0.7 P86,079,786 73.2 1,350,483 2.8 531,000 1.1 18,300 — 400,340 0.8 536,171 1.1 384,399 0.8 746,970 1.6 124,963 0.3 698,978 1.2 299,817 0.6 126,248 0.3 1,066,727 2.2 374,877 0.8 174,264 0.4 4,382,132 9.2 29,166 — 772,045 1.6 72,508 0.1 49,709 0.1 60.727 0.1 174,010 0.4 128,952 0.3 424,136 0.9 ......................... P47.563.118 PSl.126,334 P47,906,696 included in this 1938 Export Figure. Importations by U. S. Army and Navy for consumption of armed forces THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL June, 1938 RAIL COMMODITY MOVEMENTS By LEON M. LAZAGA Traffic Manager, Manila Railroad Company FREIGHT REVENUE CAR LOADING The volume of commodities received in Manila during the month of May 1938, via the Manila Railroad Company are as follows: Rice, cavanes............................ 122,172 Sugar, piculs............................ 342,502 Copra, piculs............................ 187,597 Desiccated Coconuts, cases .. 28,021 Tobacco, bales.......................... 1,864 Lumber, board feet.................. 804,966 Timber, kilos...............................1,514,000 SUMMARY COMMODITIES NUMBER OF FREIGHT CARS FREIGHT TONNAGE 1938 1937 1938 | 1937 Kice ........ 589 7,800 8.073 131 91 1,542 8.891 438 302 13.652 Sugar Cane ................ 14 206 Copra ... 451 247 3.649 1.713 106 71 1,089 696 Molasses . 79 2.381 Hemp . . . 7 4 39 27 Tobacco . 13 80 92 Livestock 31 5 169 20 Minora! I’ 418 3.633 4.080 <1 Timber .. 171 127 3.810 2,880 Forest I’r< 8 68 Manufactui All Others including 261 225 3.064 3,227 L.C.L. 2.702 2.776 18.325 17,177 TOTAL ........ ~ 5.326 4?957 66.920 50.640 Increase or Decrease Cars "( 78) 40 136 ( 14) 204 35 ( 79) 3 3 26 80 44 7 36 ( 273) 376 4,761 ( 206) 1.936 393 ( 2.381) 12 ( 12) 149 ( 447) 930 57 ( 188) __ 1.148 6.280 The freight revenue car loading statistics for four weeks ending May 21, 1938, as compared with the same period of 1937 are given (right): ( 74)^ 369 Week ending April 30, 1.251 1 1,267 I 12,163 14,879 15.145 1 13,850 1 13.339 13.051 10,400 ( 16) 87 52 246 1 (1.687) 1,540 2,094 4.333 May 7, ., ,. 14. .. 21, 1,293 1.367 1.415 1.206 1,315 1,169 TOTAL . 5.326 | 4,957 1 56.920/ 1 50.640 I 369 |' 6,280 NOTE Figures in parenthesis indicate decrease. Copra and. . . (Continued from page 46) DESICCATED COCONUT—The desic cated coconut market was practically with out change during the month. Production was a trifle heavier than in April and business in the United States slightly bet ter with prices unchanged. Desiccated mills were not buying nuts heavily, which reflected itself in additional copra from desiccated districts available for Manila oil m 11s. In New York stocks of desiccated on hand were beginning to move a little, but the situation was still somewhat top heavy at the end of the month. Shipments of desiccated for May total led 2,412 tons. GENERAL—At the end of May general conditions in the copra and oil trade were most unsatisfactory. Copra was selling for definitely less than its true cost of production. Buyers of oil, although feel ing that present prices were eminently reasonable, were well stocked up and not anxious to take on additional commitments. Freight carriers of oil, copra, and cake were short of cargo and were soliciting trade. The whole situation was unpromis ing, and buyers and sellers alike were un certain as to what they will have to face during the months to come, although nearly everybody was agreed that prices are about as low as they can be expected to go. BUSINESS AND PROFESSIONAL DIRECTORY A Tip to the Thrifty The Malate Taxi Cab Co. offers you A Special Discount on your taxifare Obtain Coupons at The Malate Taxi Cab Co767 Dakota Tel. 5-69-66 i JI t CHINA BANKING CORPORATION MANILA, P. I. Domestic and Foreign Banking of Every Description P. O. Box 1394 • Telephone 2-20-70 J. A. STIVER Attorney-At-Law—Notary Public Certified Public Accountant Administration of Estates Receiverships Investments Collections Income Tax 121 Real, Intramuros Manila, P. I. Philippines Cold Stores Wholesale and Retail Dealers in American and Australian Refrigerated Produce STORES AND OFFICES Calle Echague Manila, P. I. AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL P. O. Box. 1638—Manila—180 David RATES Philippines .... P4.00 per year United States . . . $2.00 ” ” Foreign Countries . $3.00 ” ” IN RESPONDING TO ADVERTISEMENTS PI.EASE MENTION THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOURNAL That Home and Garden which you always dreamed of— SAN JUAN HEIGHTS is the best place for it. SAN JUAN HEIGHTS CO., INC. 680 Ave. Rizal P. O. Box 961 Tel. 215 01 MANILA /.v respoxdixg to advertisemex is pi.ease mextiox tiie American (hamper oi- commerce .iotrxai After seeing BAGUIO and the RICE TERRACES of IFUGAO... We invite YOU to TOUR the LAGUNA de BAY TOWNS! Starling from Manila, the motorist may make for Pasay, richest suburb of the city, before driving- directly to Pasig, capital of Uizal. From this point he may pay a side visit to Pateros, home of the duck industry and of manufacturers of the famous balut. Driving north to Anti polo, the tourist will not fail to notice the sylvan beauty of that mountain resort where thousands upon thousands of religious devotees make a yearly pilgrimage to consummate their vows to Our Lady of Peace and Good Voyage. From Antipolo the motorist may drive straight to Mabitac and see the “church with a hundred steps”. . Pakil with its unique swimming pool. . . Paete famous for its luscious lanzones. . . and then to Pagsanjan to revel in the singular beauty of the Pagsanjan Falls, and to experience the thrill of “shooting the rapids.” See also the thriving town of Santa Cruz, capital of Laguna, and Los Banos, where the College of Agriculture of the University of the Philippines, is located. From Los Banos, the tourist goes direct to Calamba, birthplace of the most venerated Filipino hero. Dr. Jose Jiizal, and where the world’s largest earthen jar is found.. . to Muntinlupa where a modern insular prison building is now under construction, and while in Las Pinas be sure to see the century-old bamboo or gan. . . returning to Manila after having spent a most enjoyable day seeing the beauty spots of the Laguna de Bay towns. SOCONYandMOBILOIL STANDARD-VACUUM OIL COMPANY Carmelo & Bauermann, Ine.