Our relations with other nations are now undisturbed by any serious controversy.  The complicated and threatening differences with Germany and England relating to Samoan affairs, with England in relation to the seal fisheries in the Bering Sea, and with Chile growing out of the Baltimore affair have been adjusted.

There have been negotiated and concluded, under section 3 of the tariff law, commercial agreements relating to reciprocal trade with the following countries:  Brazil, Dominican Republic, Spain for Cuba and Puerto Rico, Guatemala, Salvador, the German Empire, Great Britain for certain West Indian colonies and British Guiana, Nicaragua, Honduras, and Austria-Hungary.

Of these, those with Guatemala, Salvador, the German Empire, Great Britain, Nicaragua, Honduras, and Austria-Hungary have been concluded since my last annual message.  Under these trade arrangements a free or favored admission has been secured in every case for an important list of American products.  Especial care has been taken to secure markets for farm products, in order to relieve that great underlying industry of the depression which the lack of an adequate foreign market for our surplus often brings.  An opening has also been made for manufactured products that will undoubtedly, if this policy is maintained, greatly augment our export trade.  The full benefits of these arrangements can not be realized instantly.  New lines of trade are to be opened.  The commercial traveler must survey the field.  The manufacturer must adapt his goods to the new markets and facilities for exchange must be established.  This work has been well begun, our merchants and manufacturers having entered the new fields with courage and enterprise.  In the case of food products, and especially with Cuba, the trade did not need to wait, and the immediate results have been most gratifying.  If this policy and these trade arrangements can be continued in force and aided by the establishment of American steamship lines, I do not doubt that we shall within a short period secure fully one-third of the total trade of the countries of Central and South America, which now amounts to about $600,000,000 annually.  In 1885 we had only 8 per cent of this trade.

The following statistics show the increase in our trade with the countries with which we have reciprocal trade agreements from the date when such agreements went into effect up to September 30, 1892, the increase being in some almost wholly and in others in an important degree the result of these agreements: 

The domestic exports to Germany and Austria-Hungary have increased in value from $47,673,756 to $57,993,064, an increase of $10,319,308, or 21.63 per cent.  With American countries the value of our exports has increased from $44,160,285 to $54,613,598, an increase of $10,453,313, or 23.67 per cent.  The total increase in the value of exports to all the countries with which we have reciprocity agreements has been