information and assistance as to foreign collections, shipping arrangements, credit information, translations, selection of agents and representatives, etc.; holds monthly and annual conferences for discussion of international trade problems; publishes monthly and weekly bulletins of trade information and expert opinion; and contributes to the promotion of general American foreign trade interests, as evidenced by its part in the formation of the National Foreign Trade Council.

(c) The American Exporters and Importers Association was formed in 1907 for the promotion of foreign commerce and the solution of related business problems. It has given attention, among other things, to the adjustment of relations between exporting interests and manufacturers and of freight rate difficulties affecting competition in overseas markets.

(d) The Tanners Council of the United States of America is perhaps the best American example of an association representing a single industry which has been especially influential in the export field. It was formed upon the entrance of the United States into the World War to assist the government in controlling the production of leather and regulating trade in tanning materials. It has become the one permanent national organization of the tanning industry. It employs an expert staff and maintains a Foreign Trade Bureau. This Bureau coöperates with the government agencies, bringing the results of government work promptly to the attention of the tanning interests and suggesting ways in which the government may serve those trade interests. It serves the tanners also by conducting independent investigations, opening connections with foreign markets, furnishing the latest information from all sources, and publishing handbooks of the industry and a journal, American Leather, in English, Spanish, and French for distribution abroad through consuls, chambers of commerce, banks, leather associations, and customers.

Banks as Trade Promoters. Not only are banks an essential factor in the conduct of international dealings, but they have also played an important part in promoting the development of foreign commerce in the great active trading nations of our time. The exact nature of their services has varied in different countries, reaching perhaps the widest range in Imperial Germany. In the United States certain metropolitan banks have been keenly alive to foreign trade possibilities, effective in awakening intelligent interest in the subject, prompt to utilize the provisions of Federal Reserve legislation favorable to overseas trade and investment, and liberal and resourceful in developing special services for clients and others looking to the foreign field.

One of these banks, for example, (a) maintains a foreign trade department with a staff of experts for the intensive study of commerce and industry in various countries and of American products which are actual or potential exports; (b) conducts branch banks in numerous foreign centers, each with a special trade representative to watch and report upon trade conditions, regulations, and practices as well as business opportunities within his district; (c) disseminates, through published bulletins, correspondence, and interviews, timely information on such subjects as general economic conditions, credit standing of American and foreign firms, customs regulations abroad, demand for particular commodities, technical problems as to documentation, packing, organizing export departments; and (d) in many ways assists in bringing seller and buyer together and contributes to the success of American ventures in international trading. It has also given many young men training for banking and commercial service.

Concluding Comments. From the foregoing sections it is apparent that there is no dearth of private organization and activity in behalf of American foreign trade. The agencies characterized above by no means exhaust the list; but they are

either commanding institutions or outstanding types. The survey suggests the multiplicity of forces engaged and the vast amount of work being done. It suggests also overlapping and duplication of effort because of lack of coördination.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

A. Consult bibliography of Chapter XV.

B. Commercial Organizations of the United States, issued by Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce.

C. Annual Reports of Chambers of Commerce; Official Reports of National Foreign Trade Conventions, 1914 to date; Publications of Philadelphia Commercial Museum, National Foreign Trade Council, National Association of Manufacturers, American Manufacturers Export Association, Tanners Council of the United States, metropolitan banks; Cyclopedia of American Government, "Chambers of Commerce," "Boards of Trade," etc.; Encyc. Brit. "Trade Organizations"; Readers' Guide to Periodical Literature.

D. Snow, German Foreign Trade Organization, Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce, Misc. Series, No. 57; WOLFE, Commercial Organizations in Switzerland, Ibid., Special Agents Series, No. 101; WOLFE, Commercial Organizations in United Kingdom, Ibid., No. 102; WOLFE, Theory and Practice of International Commerce, 507-522; FRIEDMAN, International Commerce and Reconstruction, 213-217 (Germany), 161–169 (England), 248–252 (France); LANGSTON AND WHITNEY, Banking Practice, Ch. 25; HAUSER, Germany's Commercial Grip on the World; SNOW, Factors in Trade Building; NOTZ AND HARVEY, American Foreign Trade; DE HAAS, Foreign Trade Organization, Chs. 5-8.

E. WALKER, ALLEN, "Organization under the Webb-Pomerene Law," Annals, 94: 130-133; TOSDAL, H. R., "Foreign Trade Organization in Europe since the War," Ibid., pp. 100-107; DAVIS, O. K., "The National Foreign Trade Council," Ibid., pp. 118-122; FITZGERALD, J. E., "American Chambers of Commerce in Foreign Countries," Ibid., pp. 122126; FAHEY, J. H., "The International Chamber of Commerce," Ibid., pp. 126-130; SNOW, C. D., "The Foreign Trade Work of the Chamber of Commerce of United States," Ibid., pp. 114-118; "Chamber of Commerce of U. S.," Am. Econ. Rev., 2: 776-777 and 4: 701-712; MIDDLETON, P. H., "British Service for Trade Promotion," Proc. Am. Acad. Political Science, 9: 147-159; "Activities of Banks," Fed. Res. Bul., November, 1922, p. 1299.

SUGGESTIVE QUESTIONS AND TOPICS

1. Why are private agencies necessary to supplement Government trade-promoting activities? DE HAAS, 55-56.

2. Classify the private and semi-public trade associations in Germany and point out the relation of each to the development of foreign trade. SNOW, German Foreign Trade Organization, 67-92; TOSDAL, "Foreign Trade Organization in Europe," Annals, 94: 100-107; HAUSER, 72-96; Selling in Foreign Markets, Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce, Misc. Series, No. 81, pp. 369–385.

3. Outline the British service for trade promotion and information. Proceedings, Am. Acad. of Pol. Sci., 9: 147-158; WILLOUGHBY, Reorganization of Adm. Branch, 190-194; Univ. Jour. of Business, 1: 69–81.

4. To what extent have "trusts" been a factor in promoting American export trade? JONES, Trust Problem. (See index under "export trade.")

5. Prepare a report on the Webb-Pomerene law; its purpose, its provisions, its working. HOLT, Federal Trade Commission, 14-16, 30-31, 61-63; Federal Trade Commission Report on Coöperation in American Export Trade; Jour. Pol. Econ., 25:313-338; "Webb Law, Its Scope and Operation," Ibid., July, 1919; JONES, E., "The Webb-Pomerene Act," Ibid., November, 1920; Annals, 94: 130–132; VEDDER, American Methods in Foreign Trade, 16-22; NOTZ AND HARVEY, American Foreign Trade.

6. Write a review of the proceedings of a recent National Foreign Trade Convention held under auspices of the National Foreign Trade Council; or a meeting of the International Chamber of Commerce; or of some other important body which emphasizes foreign trade.

7. Prepare a report on training for foreign trade. For bibliography, see TOSDAL, Problems in Export Sales Management, pp. 391–392.

CHAPTER XVII

PUBLIC NAVIGATION PROMOTING INSTITUTIONS

General. In previous chapters reference has been made to certain public trade-promoting institutions which are to be found, with variations to meet local conditions, in the national administration of all civilized governments. Likewise there are certain administrative and executive offices in modern states which have for their primary purpose the regulation and development of shipping interests. In the United States most of these offices or institutions are a part either of the Department of Commerce or of the Treasury Department. Under the former may be mentioned the Bureau of Navigation, the Steamboat-inspection Service, the Bureau of Lighthouses, and the Coast and Geodetic Survey; and in connection with the Treasury Department, in addition to important services rendered shipping interests by customs officials and treasury agents, some reference should be made to the part played in this field by the United States Public Health Service and the Coast Guard.

Bureau of Navigation. -The Bureau of Navigation was established under the Treasury Department in 1884 and was transferred to the Department of Commerce and Labor upon the organization of the latter in 1903. When this department was divided in 1913, the Bureau of Navigation became a part of the Department of Commerce. It has general supervision over the merchant marine and merchant seamen of the United States, except in so far as special lines of work are assigned to the Steamboat-inspection Service and the Public Health Service; but, for the actual enforcement of