FINAL ACT OF SECOND PAN AMERICAN SCIENTIFIC CONGRESS. 135 







was to be the affiliation of many learned societies, the Section had the 

 great advantage of working with and enjoying the hospitality of the 

 American Economic Association and the American Historical Association. 



In order to place before the members of the Section the data neces- 

 sary for a judgment, each country was invited to describe the workings 

 of its financial system and to point out any desired changes. 



One of the pressing problems of young Nations is sufficient capital 

 with which to develop their natural resources. Stress was therefore laid 

 upon this, and one whole session devoted to its discussion. Another 

 problem which had been brought to the fore at the recent Pan American 

 Financial Conference was the possibility 'of establishing a common 

 monetary unit, and the subject was made one of the special Pan American 

 topics. Of no less Importance, and probably of greater urgency, is the 

 question of adequate credit facilities as a prerequisite to the expansion 

 of trade. It was the purpose of the committee in charge of the subsec- 

 tion on finance to bring this theme to the attention of the merchants and 

 financiers of the United States, so that a clear picture of its close rela- 

 tion to a possible extension of trade between the countries of the Ameri- 

 can continent might be presented to all interested in promoting inter- 

 national trade. 



Finance and taxation are so closely allied that it seems impossible to 

 separate them. Delegates from the several countries presented outlines 

 of their systems of taxation. A special effort was made to have papers 

 presented by recognized authorities in the United States dealing with 

 certain aspects of the problems which the United States had been com- 

 pelled to face, and this interchange of experience was useful to all of 

 the countries represented* in the Congress. 



Two principles governed the drafting of the program of Section 

 IX. To the first reference has already been made, but it is not out of 

 place to repeat it. This was the close relation established between 

 this section and the American Economic Association, and to a lesser 

 degree with the American Historical Association. Apart from the ma- 

 terial benefits derived from this cooperation, the visiting delegates were 

 afforded the opportunity of coming into direct and personal touch with 

 financiers and economists of the United States to a greater extent than 

 would otherwise have been possible. 



The second guiding principle was the emphasis upon the Pan American 

 topics assigned to the first week of the sessions. In the presentation of 

 these topics, invitations were extended to experts representing North, 

 South, and Central America. 



