Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1902-11-19
The Cuban Treaty,

From the New York Tribune.
The essence of American commercial
treaties is reciprocity, and the essence of
reciprocity Is mutual advantage. The ad-
vantage which the United States seeks is
that paramount place in the Cuban market
to which 1t is naturally entitled by geo
graphical proximity and by intimacy of po-
litical and other relationships between the
two countries. The advantage which Cuba
seeks Is twofold Increase of revenue to
meet the needs Of her government and de-
velopment Of her industries and commerce
through access to the American market.
These appear to be safely promised by the
terms of the treaty now in process of ne
gotiation. ,'-
This country will gain it's advantage
through the operation Of a preferential
Cuban tariff, not altogether unlike that pro-
vided for the island by SPAIN but with this
radical difference-that whereas the one
was intended and was. in fact, operated
for SPANS sole benefit and actually to the
disadvantage of Cuba this one is to be for
Cuba's benefit as much for own. The
| end will be reached not by reducing tariff
| rates to this country, but by increasing
| them to all other countries. The latter will
| suit the United States about as we'll as the
| former. 1t Will give our goods a profitable
| advantage over the goods of other lands,
and that is all we ask. The question of
| how much duty they must pay Is of minor
Importance. For Cuba must have the goods
from somewhere, and II our competitors
are handicapped by preferential tariff she
| must get them from US. Instead, therefore,
| of our supplying only a minor fraction Of
| her wants, at present, we shall supply
| the vast majority of them, as we did under
| the benefcent operations Of the Mckinley
| law, which gave us a practical monopoly
| of the Cuban market. and at the same time
! gave Cuba so great prosperity that for the
| first time In half a century dssatisfa ctton
| was silent and insurrection uninterrupted
and undesired.
| Cuba. too. will gain her advantage
| through a lowering Of our tariff on her
| goods, and thus a freer opening Of our
| markets to her and a stimulation Of her
industries and commerce. That state Of
| AFFAIRS Will cause prosperity among her
| people such as that which they enjoyed ten
| years ago. and they will be able to pay the
| taxes. direct or indirect. which are neces-
| sary for government revenue. The Cuban
government Is not and cannot be a cheap
| one. The United States, in the Plat amend
ment, has required 1t to be a costly one
| The maintenance of sanitation, the prosec,1-
| tion of public works, the providing Of free
public instruction and the doing of a thou
| sand things which the Spanish administra-
! ton neglected to do will all cost money
They must be done or Cuba will be re-
| preached for barbarism and will lose half
| of the blessings of independence and
| therefore, money must be provided for do
| ing them. The island has now a tariff of its
own devising. such as will doubtless give 1t
| sufficient revenue, and such as 1t will be
| well able to endure under the restored
prosperity which an opening of the United
| States market will give 1t. All that now
| remains Is that the treaty shall be per-
| fected on the lines indicated and be ratified
and put into force at the earliest possible
| date.