India, Sept. 23 -- In the first century, Pliny the Elder complained that India, China and Arabia drained Rome of 100 million sesterces a year. He blamed luxury and women.

The trade-deficit column, it seems, is older than the newspaper.

But the more revealing document may not be his complaint, it is all the paperwork. The second-century Muziris Papyrus has records of financing and cargo calculations for trade between India's southwestern coast and Roman Egypt, including a 25% customs levy. While Pliny lamented the outflow of wealth, the Roman tax collector had reasons to welcome the ships.

The distinction is vital. Trade is neither a national triumph nor a national surrender because someone announces a large number. What matters is how ...