Canal Giving Us Big Opportunity.

New York Times 100 years ago today, May 11, 1913:
General Director of North German Lloyd Line Says Europe Must Strain Every Nerve.
A GREAT CHANCE IN ASIA
But if We Desire to Press Our Advantages We Must Be More Liberal Regarding Oriental Immigration.
By Marconi Transatlantic Wireless Telegraph to The New York Times.
    BERLIN, May 10.— That the opening of the Panama Canal will make America a much more dangerous competitor in all fields of industry and commerce than she now is and that Europe must strain every nerve to keep up is the opinion of Philipp Heineken, the General Director of the North German Lloyd Company, given in a long article on the subject in the Tageblatt.
    America's trading chances, he says, will be most markedly improved in the Far East, and President Wilson's wise policy regarding China is preparing the ground for the increasingly important role the United States will play there.
    Herr Heineken thinks that Europe will feel the increased competition most keenly in the Far East, and finds comfort in the fact that England's merchant marine tonnage is nearly 18,000,000 and Germany's 4,333,333 against only 1,400,000 for America.
    He discusses the shortening of the present sea roads by the canal, amounting, for example, to 10,000 miles between Bremen and San Francisco, and expects therefrom a tremendous development of the entire Pacific Coast and the west coast of South America.
    Herr Heineken refers to the decision to exempt American vessels from canal charges. He calls it flatly a violation of treaty, but finds ground to hope that the discrimination will be eliminated through the effort of President Wilson and Senator Root.
    "While the whole world will share to a greater or less extent in the benefits of the new canal, America Will naturally profit most," he says. The exclusion of railway-owned vessels will undoubtedly mean cheaper freight rates for many articles. The canal will also save America millions by making it unnecessary to maintain two separate battleship fleets. The development of the West, Herr Heineken thinks, is also likely to attract emigrants from places where there is need of relieving congested labor conditions.
    The one fly in the ointment, in Herr Heineken's opinion, is that if the United States intends to press her advantages in the Orient vigorously she must be prepared to adopt a more liberal policy regarding the immigration of Orientals to California, but it may be questioned whether such a policy will be compatible with the sound economic employment of the Panama Canal for the benefit of the United States. (
    Herr Heineken declares that German commerce and shipping demand only fair play and expect to maintain their position by upright battling for the advantages which the canal will bring Germany, as yet incalculable, and developments coming which cannot be foreseen.