commerce is practically a net gain to the farmers and manufacturers of the United States. In addition to these advantages the United States has secured a valuable naval base, and, from anitarian standpoint, the satisfaction of uplifting a million people who under Spanish rule were but little better than serfs. The island does not owe a dollar and has never cost Uncle Sam a cent. When the Americans came they found $3.80 in gold in the treasury. On May 1, 1904, there was a balance of $379,883 in the treasury of current revenues and $605,070 of trust funds, or a total of $984,953 cash on hand. These constitute some of the signs of progress in the few years of American sovereignty. The large majority of the people are grateful for the blessings of good government, where free speech, a free press, an independent judiciary, a just tax system, an honest public service, a jury system, the writ of habeas corpus, free schools, and just laws have superseded the scourges of four centuries of oppression. Under such conditions it is not to be wondered at that the names of McKinley and Roosevelt mean to the people confidence and hope. Total commerce of the island of Porto Rico, 1893 to 1903, inclusive. Total commerce of the island of Porto Rico, 1893 to 1903, TRADE RELATIONS OF THE UNITED STATES WITH ITS NONCONTIGUOUS TERRITORY. [From Annual Review of Foreign Commerce of United States, 1903.] The trade relations with the noncontiguous territories of the United States have been, during the past year, for the first time fully and definitely recorded. The enactment by Congress in 1902, upon the recommendation of the Bureau of Statistics, of a law requiring persons engaged in commerce with the noncontiguous territories of the United States to present reports similar to those required in commerce with foreign countries, has enabled an ac curate measurement to be made of the quantity and value of merchandise being forwarded to and received from each of the territories in question. These reports show that the commerce with the noncontiguous territories, including in that term Alaska, Porto Rico, the Hawaiian and Philippine islands, Guam, and Tutuila of the Samoan group, aggregated $100,000,000 in the fiscal year 1903, including about $5,000,000 of gold produced from the mines of Alaska and received in the United States from that territory. To Alaska the total shipments of the year were $9,497,721, and from Alaska the receipts of merchandise were $10,228,069, and of domestic gold $4,719,579. This being the first year in which an official record of the shipments to and receipts from Alaska was made, no comparison can be had with official statistics of earlier years. From Alaska the principal articles of merchandise received were canned salmon, $8,410,931; other fish, $674,658, and furs and fur skins, $423,606; of the shipments to Alaska the principal items were iron and steel manufactures, $2,311,678; provisions, $969,773; wood and manufactures thereof, $692,814, and tin and manufactures thereof, $420,316. To the Hawaiian Islands the shipments of merchandise aggregated $10,840,472, against $13,509,148 in 1900, the latest year in which an official record is available. From the Hawaiian Islands the receipts of merchandise were $26,242,868 in value, against $24,730,060 in the preceding year. Sugar formed the principal item in the merchandise received from the Hawaiian Islands, being $25,310,684, out of a total of $26,242,868. The shipments to the Hawaiian Islands included merchandise of all classes, the largest items being breadstuffs, $1,456,571; iron and steel manufactures, $1,149,505; cotton manufactures, $1,022,116, and manufactures of wood, $815,290. To Porto Rico the shipments were larger than in any preceding year, being $12,246,225 against $10,882,653 in the preceding year, while the receipts of merchandise from Porto Rico were $11,057,195 against $8,378,766 in the preceding year. Of the merchandise received from Porto Rico the largest item was sugar and molasses, $7,847,558, and tobacco, $1,890,391. Of the shipments to Porto Rico the principal items were cotton manufactures, $2,044,470; provisions, $1,463,121; breadstuffs, $1,183,313, and iron and steel manufactures, $1,434,350. To the Philippine Islands the exports of the year amounted to $4,039,909, of which the largest items were iron and steel manufactures, $657,354; provisions, $127,936; mineral oils, $265,624; cotton manufactures, $316,570, and breadstuffs, $278,891. From the Philippine Islands the value of the merchandise received was $11,372,584, against $6,612,700 in 1902 (of which $10,931,186 was manila hemp, against $6,318,470 in 1902). The tables which follow show the commerce of the United States with Porto Rico and the Hawaiian and Philippine islands for a term of years: Commerce of the United States with Porto Rico and the Hawaiian and Philippine Islands from 1897 to 1903. a Does not include supplies sent by the Government. b No data. Importation of Tropical Products. The growing dependence of the United States upon the Tropics for articles for food and for use in manufacturing is again illus trated by the fiscal year 1903. A larger quantity of sugar was brought into the United States in 1903 than in any year of our history, and an unusually large proportion was cane sugar of tropical production. The total amount of cane sugar brought into the United States during the year, including that from the Hawaiian and Philippine islands, was 5,076,604,049 pounds, of which the Hawaiian Islands contributed 774,825,420 pounds, the Philippine Islands 18,773,333 pounds, and Porto Rico 226,143,508 pounds. In many articles of tropical production the imports of 1903 exceeded those of earlier years. The table which follows shows the value of articles of the imports of tropical and subtropical production in order of magnitude in 1903, compared with earlier years: Value of principal imports of tropical and subtropical articles at quinquennial periods from 1870 to 1900, and in 1903. a Only cane sugar not above No. 16 Dutch standard in color, and molasses. b Includes articles from Hawaii and Porto Rico. The figures in the table do not include articles received from Hawaii and Porto Rico during the years 1902 and 1903, those islands being now customs districts of the United States, and therefore merchandise from them is not considered as imports into the United States. The principal article of tropical production received from Porto Rico and the Hawaiian Islands is sugar, of which the quantity received from Porto Rico in 1902 was 183,817,049 pounds, valued at $7,999,853; from Hawaii, 720,553,357 pounds, valued at $24,147,884; in 1903, from Porto Rico, 226,143,508 pounds, valued at $10,741,533; from Hawaii, 774,825,420 pounds, valued at $25,665,738. While the table shows a large increase in the value of tropical and subtropical products imported, the actual growth can be better determined by an examination of the quantities of the various articles imported. In a large proportion of the cases prices have greatly decreased, and consequently the figures of values do not show the real growth. Sugar, for example, shows a comparatively small increase in value during the period from 1870 to 1903, while the quantity shows a very large increase, and this is true in a less degree of other articles. The table which follows shows the quantities of principal articles of tropical and subtropical growth imported at quinquennial periods from 1870 to 1900, and in 1902 and 1903: Quantities of principal articles of tropical and subtropical growth imported from 1870 to 1903. Sugar a...lbs. 1,196,622,049 1,829,286,030 2,332.820,896 3,305,087,796 5,076,603,529 499,159,120 787,991,911 915,086,380 15,270,859 a Cane sugar under No. 16 Dutch standard in color only; figures of 1903 include sugar from Hawaii and Porto Rico. Commerce of the United Kingdom with Its Colonies, 1869 to 1902. This table shows the commerce of the United Kingdom with its colonies from 1869 to 1902, and is interesting by way of its exhibit of the value which the British colonies have proved as a market for the products of the United Kingdom. It will be noted that the exports to the colonies have increased from 252 million dollars in 1869 to 571 millions in 1902, or considerably more than doubled; while the total exports have increased from 1,153 million dollars in 1869 to 1,699 millions in 1902, an increase of less than 50 per cent.; also, that the sales of the United Kingdom to her colonies during the period in question have amounted to more than 13 billions of dollars. Statement showing the total imports and exports of the United Kingdom, and the amount imported from and exports to her Colonies during the past thirty years, 1869 to 1902. Total exports of United Kingdom to colonies from 1869 to 1902, $13,661,815,825. Commerce of countries commercially adjacent to the Philippine Islands in latest available year. Rapid Growth of Our Commerce with Asia Under the Republican Policy of Expansion-Growth in Exports More Rapid Than the Growth of Imports. This table shows the growth in commerce of the United States with Asia since 1889. That under the expansion policy of the Government since 1897 our prestige in the Orient and our trade with Asia has grown very rapidly and the percentage of growth in exports has been greater than in imports. The total gain in our exports to Asia since 1889 has been 157 per cent, while the growth in our total exports to all parts of the world since 1889 has been but 91 per cent. The relative growth of trade with each grand division is shown in the tables on pages and Our commerce with Asia-Increase in exports more rapid than the increase in imports. ... [Prepared by Bureau of Statistics.] Japan. Calendar Year. Imports into United Exports .... 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