The Bellefontaine Republican. [volume] (Bellefontaine, Logan County, Ohio) 1855-1905, 1904-03-04
Manufacturers HOunded
Out OF Russia.

Out Of Russia.
Mr.. A III. Ford, representing the
Iron Age, examined the state of af-
fairs in Russia for that journal and
writing on the subject Of american
Investors" in that country says:
when Japan eagerly offers every
possible inducement to Americans to
become investors in the island king
dom, Russia is engaged in bounding
from her vast continent almost the
last American enterprises she has SO
far allowed to remain and flourish"
The Russian plan as Mr.. Ford re-
cites it. is simple: 1.-THE manufactur
TT of locomotives, air-brakes, agri-
Gu tural implements. or sewing ma
chimes ito mention few actual ex-
amplesl, having built up trade in
Russia. is induced, by threats or
cajolery, to erect a plant in Russia;
then he is made to discharge his
American workmen and hire Rus
slams, and then his business is SO tax
ed. hampered, and interfered with
that the American finally sells out in
disgust, and Russia has acquired a
new industry at low figure"
The American firms that are now
having the screws put on them under
thisI system are the Westinghouse
Air Brake Co. and the Singer Sewing
Machine Co. The latter's tribula-
lions are told as follows;
"Many years ago it was that the
Singer Sewing Machine company be-
gan their invasion of Russia. Rap
idly the useful American invention
found its way to even the most re-
mote parts of the empire. Ihave en-
countered it in far-off Siberia and
Manchuria, and even have a photo
| graph of a Central Asian tent-home
in which the wives of an unruly chief
stitch garments for their lord and
master upon this ingenious Yankee
machine. have met Jewish traders
who carried the American sewing
machine by camel caravan far into
Tibet, from whence returning native
traders report sales even in the sa.
cred city of Lhassa, where the feet
of no white man have trod for nearly
a century. Such success caused Rus.
sian officials to smile upon American
enterprise and suggest a factory or
Russian soil. Now such suggestion
in Russia carries with it the assur
ance that If not favorably acted up
on import dues will be levied that
will force the foreign manufacturer
to terms. At present there is a mag
nificent Singer sewing machine fac.
tory at Moscow, and almost my firs'
view of the Russian capital included
the one modern Office building in al
Russia that the company are erect
ing on the Nevsky Prospect. All thi
display of wealth, it is needless t,
say, has excited the cupidity of th'
lczar's tax collectors, and, when it i
also taken into consideration tina
American enterprise in Russia is hell
largely responsible for the spread o
revolutionary doctrines, it is not sur
prisipg that the reactionists now il
power have organized a campaign o
petty annoyances to either drive tn
American company out of Russia o
force them to sell at a sacrifice
either directly to the paternalis
government or to some purely Rus
sian company"
The next move of the governmen
was a threat to tax the company
thousand or more rubles for eacl
agent, on the ground that, the stocl
, of the company being owned by for
eigners, their agents were drummer
for foreign goods, hence they wer
subjected to heavy tax. Mr.. For
concludes his article by saying: .
found upon careful inquiry. that tn
; Experiences of this company are con
: paratively mild compared with treai
ment meted out to some other Yanke
concerns attempting to conduct bus
ness in Russia"