Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1891-10-10
rnE-RRAzILIAN TREATY.
Much More Favorable Than We Had
Reason to Expect


The letter which has just been pub
lished in the Globe Democrat written by
the Brazilian minister at Washington to
his government regarding the CONNER
cial treaty which has recently been esta6
hshed between Brazil and the United
States, furnishes information which will
surprise American readers. The minister
assisted in framing the treaty, and writes
with the fullest knowledge of its scope and
character. This is one of the compacts
which is due to the retaliatory clause of
the Mckinley law. Under the treaty, he
slys, the United States surrenders Sl6,-
500 600 of revenue every year from the
concessions made to Brazilian products
while the monetary value of Brazll's
favors TO us at the custom house is only
81 500, 900 to 81 500, 000 On some or
our articles on which Brazil gains large
revenue no abatement of duty has been
made. The minister also takes pans to
tell his government that even with the
privileges granted to the United States
this country will have no especial adj
vantages over Europe in the Brazilian
market Our products, on the whole, he
virtually declares, can not 6e lMd down IN
Brazil so cheapIy rs those OF England,
France and Germany, because the interest
on capital and the rate Of wages are much
higher in the United States than IN the
great European countries, and because the
comparative absence OF direct and ire
quent steamship communication here with
Brazil, which compels us to send much Of
our goods by way Of England operates
heavily against us IN cost OF transporta-
ton and insurance.
There are several facts, however, which
should be duly considered any weighed 10y
Americans before forming and Judgment
on the treaty. 1t should ba borne in mind
on the start that the letter Of the Brazilian
minister was in defense of the treaty from
the attacks TO which il vas subjected IN
his country, and that lie naturally would
seek to make a campact for which he IS
in large degree responsible look as ta-
vorable as possible TO her interests. To
| this necessityis largely due his attempt to
show that European products wonld not
/ suffer by the treaty, as European influence
his powerful in the new government OF
I Brazil, and Europe all along fought the
project to bestow favors on the United
! States. A glance at the treaty shows that
! it admits many important American pro-
! ducts such as wheat wheat tlOm, corn,
potatoes, hay, pork, bacon, cotton-seed
oil hard and soft coal, agricultural tools
and machinery-free Of duty, while it re-
duces the duty on lard. hams, butter,
cheese, canned and preserved meats, fish,
vegetables, cotton, iron, steel and leather
manufacturers and other commodities, In
some Of these articles we hold q virtual
monopoly, and in others we can now sue
cessfully meet all foreign competition In
the Brazilian market. The fact that Bra
zil's concessions to US are hurting Europe
is concusively demonstrated in the cru
SADIE which England Germany and France
are making to kill the treaty or to have
equal privileges granted to the nselves
Moreover two,thirds of the sl6,500 00C
revenue which the minister says the Unit
ed States surrendered in exchange for 4
concession of from 81 500 900 to 81 500, 00C
by Brazil was surrendered many years be
lore the Mckinley law was framed mC
consequently cannot weigh heavily on II
now. The treaty may not be as favorable
to rs as could be desired or was hoped for
but it is much more so than the exigencie
of the situation permitted the Brazilian
minister to acknowledge and it Is fully a
favorable as we could have obtained a
this time under any Circumstances.-St
Louis Globe Democrat