The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1902-12-30
The cuban Treaty.


we had then. and must always have,
special and peculiar relations, requir-
ing special and peculiar treatment. The
speech was neither an accidental nor
an immature utterance, but. coming, as il
did, from the greatest champion OF the
American system Of protection, il must
be considered a. the expression Of de-
liberate and mature conviction. No one
familiar with the ISSUES and dscussp
of the last year can for moment doubt
that the American people are now in
favor of a broader and more liberal ap-
plication of the principle Of reciprocity
toward the Cuban republic than toward
any other country near or remote. This
il IA it should be, for, in the homelv
words of Senator ORvII.LE II. PLAT,
"we were under no obligation to adopt
that orphan boy, but, having done so, we
are bound to see that he has a fair start
in life"
This is a moral and sentimental view
Of our duty which all right-thinking men
must approve, and vet it is certain that
some will contend that We have fully
discharged our obligations BY driving
out his Spanish master and helping the
orphan boy To establish AN independent
and stable government of his own. This
was certainly great and unusual SER
vice for any people 10 render 10 another,
and it cost us many lives and many mil
lions of money. But we gained from
Spain Porto Rico and the Philippines
and a presumption claim against the Isle
of Pines. Looking at the matter in this
way, and considering the value of the
possessions We have acquired, ii might
be fairly admitted that we have not
failed 10 secure fair compensation for
past services. But how about the future.
The Monroe Doctrine is perpetual, and
may AT any time involve us in n war over
Cuba in comparison with which the
Sp. nish war would be justly looked upon
as childs play
1t is perfectly well known that the
German merchants and the British
Minister at Havana have done all they
could since the establishment Of the
Cuban republic to build up a sentiment
against reciprocity treaty or any
other preferential arrangement with
the United States. The arguments used
are obvious and need not be recapitu-
lated here. Suffice il to say they are
purely commercial and not directly
opposed to our policy against European
colonization and aggression. but this
makes them all the more dangerous to
Our permanent and paramount interests,
not only in Cuba, but in every other
Latin American country.
As pointed out in THE SIN of Dec. 20.
the reciprocity treaty negotiated under
the instructions of our Government by
Gen. BLISS is purely commercial con-
tract, which provides, for a period of five
years, that Cuban products imported
into the United States shall have pref
erential rates 10 per cent, or one-fifth,
less than those now collected in our ports,
and that American products entering
Cuba shall have preferential rates of
20 per cent, 30 per cent and 40 per cent ,
according to the class of goods specified
in the various schedules This plan
differs from the arrangement recon-
mendcd by the Committee Of Ways and
Means only by the fact that it increases
the preference for the articles enumer-
ated in Schedule from 20 to 80 per cent.
and in Schedule e from 20 to 40 per cent.
To those familiar with the testimony
Of Gen. BLISS before the Committee of
Ways and Means it will be apparent
that fhnsn g
and granted because he had shown that
a reduction of only 20 per cent would
not give us the trade, and that 30, 40, 50,
o. and even so per cent. reductions would
be necessary to turn the trade covered
By these schedules our way. Evidently
the C,Ibans were willing to concede only
a mOiety Of our claims because we were
willing to concede only two -ffths Of what
they asked for on sugar and tobacco.
their principal products
II il now well understood that our
Government aud our Committee Of Ways
and Means limited their concessions to
20 per cent, in favor Of Cuba because that
was the amount which Congress by the
Dngley act of 1897 had allowed the
President to fix in reciprocal arrange
ments with other nations. That, so to
speak, was the" beaten path, or the line
OF least resistance. II was decided, in
Difference to the demands Of the domes-
tic beet sugar men, aided by those in
terested in sugar from Porto Rico and
Hawaii, to limit the reduction TO 20 per
cent
This, on raw sugars 98 Dut Oh standard,
with our present duty Of l.6s cents per
pound, gives a concession Of one-third
OF cent per pound, or N.0s per bag of
325 pounds. With even this small red,ic-
ton. aided by the recent advance Of the
market price due TO the decrease of
the European beet sugar crop. doubtless
brought about mainly by the action e
the Brussels Conference. the Cuban sugar
growers will be enabled to tide over the
present crisis, and those antageously
situated may make up their last years
losses, provided the Bliss treaty is rati-
he'd by the Senate, approved by Congress
in concurrent legislation and accepted
by the Cuban Senate There are many
contingencies in all this, but il they arc
all successfully passed and the treat y