Reporter and farmer. [volume] (Webster, Day County, Dakota [S.D.]) 188?-1946, 1897-07-15
eially, unoaicially or in public prints

many, france, Italy, turkey, Greece,
Spain, Netherlands, Switzerland, Ar
gentine, Mexico and Canada, and pos
sibly Brazil. Less than half this num-
Der have filed formal protests at the
state department, but there has been
sundry g~rumblings and inutterings
among the others, either in their leg
islative bodies, In the individual utter
ances OF their representatives here "a
elsewhere. or in the public press.
The practical business question with
regard to these people and govern
ments is whether they can afford to
take any retallatory steps against a
tariff which makes no discrimination
as between countries or which does not
discriminate against any one OF them
individually. II they were to attempt
which should exclude American prod
ucts from their markets or discrimi-
nate against productions in IN
way ii would be expected, and very
properly, that the United States would
return the compliment by excluding OF
. AihAubtAu6 dSbihSt tht PAOooSNo "a
the country which had taken such ac-
ticn. The practical business results OF
an occurrence of this kind would be
that nearly every one OF the countries
in question would suffer a greater loss
IL the sale of her products than would
the United States. OF the fifteen
tries included in the above list thirteen
sell more goods to the United States
than they buy from us, and the total
sales of the fifteen countries in ques-
ton to the United States are hundreds
OF millions of dollars greater thar are
our sales to them. The result would
be that IL they should undertake to ex-
clude our goods from their ports SINH
lar action on our part would cut on
a much larger market for their pro-
ducers than would their action affect
the markets of our W producers. An
attempt at retaliation by the countries
In question, with possibly two excep-
tons would therefore be much more
disadvantageous 10 them than TO the
United States. Hence the improbable
ity that the nations which are Offer
irg these protests have the slightest
expectation that their actiC.t will be
anything more than a mere bluff or be
followed by any attempt at retaliation
by them in case their protests are I'M
needed.
A few examples of the commercial
relations existing between some of the
nations In question and the United
States will be sufficient to show that
there is no probability that they are
going to endanger their own business
and the markets for their own pro-
ducers by any steps which might o
sibly close the ports OF the United
States against their productions. In
the statements which follow a ten
years period has been covered in
showing the commercial relations be-
tween the United States and the coun-
tries in question, In order to give a
fair average showing Of the sales Of
those countries 10 people Of the United
States and the return sales Of our
products to those countries. 1t will be
observed in the statements which fol-
low that in practically every case the
countries now suggesting retaliation
which would affect commercial rela-
tions have sold. us very much more
OF their productions than we have sold
TO them, and therefore any action on
their part disturbing or closing these
relations would cut off a larger mar
ket for themselves than they would de-
stroy for us.
Japan has sold to us In the past de-
cade 1912, 790, 200 worth of goods and
bought from us $45. 007. III worth of
our productions.
China's sales to us in the past ten
years are $1S9. 246, 849 and her pur
chases from us $54, 219, 40.
Austria Hungary's sales to US in the
past ten years are $83. 3O1 .4S1 and her
purchases from us $40, 1893, 224.
The total sales to us OF the fifteen
countries which are reported as COM
planning, formally or otherwise, of our
tariff, have been in the past ten years
S4,S43, 943, 533. while the purchases from
us in the sane length Of time have
been only s3,059, 220, 1872. Thus they
have sold us in the past decade ST.
7S4, 722, S41 worth of goods In excess
OF what they have bought from us, or
an average Of $17s.472 ,2S4 per annum.
The following table shows our pur-
chases from and sales to each of the
countries in question during the past
decade:
Imports into U. Exports from
s. QSS6-'96) u. s. Q8S6-'96)
from protest to protest.
ing countries. ing countries.
Greece ....$ 10,184, 500 1872. 584
Turkey -. 46,978,71 1852, 357
Argentine 57,903, 1888 81. 235. 5O5
Australia S3,301, 4S1 10.993, 224
Swttzer'd 138.919.67S 1852, 482
China go. 1S9, q 6,S49 54,219.7 10
italy $500. POI. 500, 145 143. 1897, 6O4
Neth'lds* PIP, 743. 1874 31S. 7O8 200
japan -. 212, 100, 200 As. O07. 1T
Mexico go TIP RIO 12a te1 no