Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1890-07-11

mended by the conference. The practi-
cal eve J day experience of our mer-
chants engaged in the trade demonstrates
beyond question that in all classes. of
merchandise which we have long and
successfully produced for export they
are able to compete with their European
rivals in quality and in price, and the reit-
Grated statement that our Latin-Ameri-
can neighbors do not buy of us because
we do not buy of them, or because we
tax their products, has been annually
contradicted by the statistics of our com
merce for quarter of a century.
The lack of means for reaching their
markets has been the chief obstacle in
the way of increased exports. The car
rying trade has been controlled by Eu-
ropean merchants, who have forbidden
an exchange of commodities. The mer-
chandise we sell in South America is car
ried there in American ships, or foreign
ships chartered by American commission
houses. The merchandise we buy in
South America is brought to us in
European vessels that never take return
cargoes, but sail for Liverpool, Havre,
Bremen or Hamburg with wheat, corn
or cotton. There they load again with
manufactured goods for the South Amer
lean markets, and continue their trian-
gular voyages, paying for the food they
are compelled to buy of us with the pro-
ceeds of the sale of their manufactures
in markets that we could, would supply
if we controlled the carrying trade.
4 I
1880 her merchants suffered, as ours do
now, from the lack of transportation
facilities with the Argentine Republic.
Under liberal encouragement from the
government direct and regular steam
ship lines We're established between
Havre and Buenos Ayres, and, as di-
rect and natural result, her exports in
creased from $S,292 1872 in 1880 to $685.
996, 900 in 1888
The experience of Germany furnishes
an even more striking example In 1880
the exports from Germany to the Argen-
tine Republic were only $2,365, 152. In
1888 they were S13,3l0, 900. This re-
suit" writes Mr.. Baker, our most useful
and intelligent consul at Buenos Ayres,
sis due, first, to the establishment of
quick and regular steam communication
between the two countries; second, to
the establishment of branch houses by
German merchants and manufacturers,
and third, to the opening of a German
Argentine bank to facilitate exchange"
There is no direct steamship commune
cation whatever between the United
States and the Argentine Republic, and
there are no direct banking facilities.
The International American conference
has earnestly recommended the estab-
lishment of BOTH but reciprocal ex-
changes of tariff concessions will be
equally effective in stimulating COM
merce, and in increasing the export of
the products of which we have the larg-
est surplus, not only to the progressive
republic named, but to all the other
American nations.
The conference believed that while
great profit would come to all the
counties if reciprocity treaties should
be adopted, the United States would be
by far the greatest gamer. Nearly all
the articles we export to our neighbors
are subject to heavy customs taxes; so
heavy, in many cases. as to prohibit
their consumption by the masses of the
people. On the other hand, more than
81 per cent. of our imports from Latin
America are admitted free, leaving but
II per cent. upon which duties may still
be removed. But mindful of the fact
that the United States has from time to
time removed the duties from coffee,
|
bark, dye and cabinet woods, and other
Latin-American products, our govern
ment may confidently ask the conces-
sions suggested.
The increased exports would be drawn
alike from our farms, our factories and
| our forests. None of the Latin Ameri-
can countries produce building lumber;
the most of them are dependent upon
foreign markets for their breadstuffs and
provisions, and in few is there any OPP
portunity or inclination for mechanical
industry.
The effect of such reciprocity would
be felt in every portion of the land Not
long ago the Brazilian Mail Steamship
company took the trouble to trace to its
origin every article that composed the
cargo carried by one of its steamers to
Rio lie Janeiro, and the investigation
disclosed the fact that thirty-six states
and territories contributed to the total
as follows:
| New York S74,5i6 90 y. Carolina. S2,6f7 90
Vermont 90 90 Maryland see. 1850 %
Delaware 20,9lS 90 Mississippi. 2,056 %
| Illinois ...... 1881 I7 Louisiana. .. 2,lll OO
| New Jersey. l7.054 40 Wyoming.... 1850 %
! Pennsylvania 43O65 % Oregon ...... 1,lS3 On
! Connecticut. llS,i 90 Tennessee l,15O %
Kansas ...... il,33! 90 Iowa ....... sO7 o.
Indiana ...... 909S 90 S. Carolina. 5S7 "
| Massachuss 1,l90 90 Kentucky .... ISL nj
| Ohio ...-.... 6.250 % Wisconsin,. $40 on
New Hamp'e. 6,035 % California $50 "
Missouri ,... 5,a73 90 Dakota. 900. 20 90
Georgia. ..... 5,006 OF Texas E. ..... 1862 o.
| Rhode Island. 4,0a0 90 Nebraska .. l25 Oh
| Mi,.hpan 40 M Alabama M M