Show FOREIGN TRADE AND prosperity during the first four months ot of the current year the foreign trade of 0 the united states has shown a decline in vale vale ot of 21 21 per cent as compared with the corresponding period of 0 1929 exports and imports have fallen off ot in practically the same proportion part ot of this Is due to the general decline in price levels hut but tho the main cause Is the slackened blackened rats rate ot of nd activity we have been exporting less because the rest ot of the world has been suffering buttering from trade depression and we have been importing lose less because we have been having tho the same sort ot of trouble lo for those who havo have assumed that the united states enjoys a special kind ol of immunity from the economic afflicting other parts of f the globe the trade data of the 0 past four months should provo prove on enlightening light it t I 1 Is true that what we export am amounts to only 6 or 7 per cent of our national income but this does not prove that our foreign trade has relatively little effect on our prosperity in the first place a variation of only 15 11 per cent in our industrial activity dotor nine 1 whether whet lier wo we aro are to enjoy a boom 0 or r suffer from depression and tho the state of 0 our foreign trade WAY may lava have a great deal to do with determining this variation agan many of our basis industries uro are wholly dependent on foreign outlets for their well being we export tor for example about halt the cotton and over a fourth of the wheat produced in this country cotton exports during tho the first tour four months of 1930 show a loss of about 28 per cent from the preceding year the loss of buying power which results from this athla slump in exports will inevitably make itself felt n all those industries which supply the wants of the cotton growers the tha foreign trade of the united states as well as aa tho the domestic trade is clearly in need of a revival and recovery in tho the ono one can hardly come without improvement in the other the trade depression is world ade and no benign providence is going to set things right hero here and ignore the rest of it the world now york world dem 0 cratic |