The Montgomery advertiser., 1901-11-26

for production of quality and quantity has outstripped the power of our owr country to consume. We can manufacture in nine months as many shoes as our people will purchase in twelve. We have, theerfore, reached that stage of development when we should vigorously improve every opportunity to widen our market and when 1t would seem good policy for our government to render every aid to complete development Of the possibilities of foreign trade.
 In 1895 our export of shoes reached $1, ,0oO,00o. In 1896 they were s1.50O.0oo Yet leather exports were s17, 700,o0o for the same year. Taking fiscal years ending June 30, in 1898 shoes were over u,9CJ, 900; in 1899, $2 7l1, ,656; in 1900 $4276,6 ,656s and for 1901 they reached s5,526,290. showing a gain of 200 per cent. in the past three years. The exports of leather for the same years, however. are over $1,000. 900 year. -r
 Our American tanneries make the best leather in the world. They use not only the vast production of the hides in our own country. but last year imported hides and skins to the amount of $Ss. ooO,- 900, making of leather from the foreign hides and skins alone more than fifty millions. The Englishman, the German. and other foreign manufacturers buy that American leather to take homo and man
  and. when they take it out of the coun- try. our government pays them for do- ing 1t bounty. alias rebate. of e9 per cent of the duty that may have been paid on the imported hide, amounting to from to 10 per cent; and no way has yet been found for American manufac- turers to get like treatment. The result is that considerable portion of the up- per and much of the sole leather made in the United States from imported hides is sold to foreign manufacturers at a lower price than we can buy it, ny to 10 per cent.
 It may be asked. Why don't you get the rebate of duty paid on the imported leather in exported shoes?
 For the reason that there arc from f1f- teen to twenty-five pieces of leather in a made from imported hide. and others not; and. when once hide is tanned and cut up into innumerable pieces. and made into a shoe, 1t is impossible to which are made from foreign hide to the satisfaction of the United States officers
 This hide duty is a serious handicap to the American shoe manufacturer in com- petition with the foreigner for the ex- port trade. As a revenue duty. it is a failure; for the rapidly increasing re- bate together with the cost of collection, will soon absorb the income, and the op- portunities and temptation to fraud in regard to rebate are numerous. It pro- tects the foreign manufacturer against American, and nobody else. 1t encolr- ages the tanner of leather for export to buy foreign hides, whenever they can be bought for nearly the same price as the domestic, because he can get his profit in the rebate.
 It has resulted in building up the tam nery interests of Canada at a orrsspond- ing loss to those of the United States. It has increased the cost of footwear, ard other products of the hide to the people of the United States, while benefi.ing none. unless it be the great leat-pack- ing establishments; and 1t Is very doubt ful if 1t benefits them.
 The hide duty ought to be repealed not alone in the interest of the great in- dustry of curing and tanning hides, and fashioning them into the lumberless things which are necessities, but .n the interest of the consuming public.