Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-10-03
new ERA FOR RUSSIA
Internal Resources Will Be
Developed.
MONEY WILL BE NEEDED
THIS COUNTRY EXPECTED TO
SUPPLY SOME OF 1T.
Possible Explanation of Why Discrim-
mating Duties Against the United
States Have Been Removed.

While the removal by Russia of the dis
eliminating duties against this country may
not result Immediately In a great trade ex-
pansion, 1t is cheering to note that It at
least puts the United States in the line OF
fair competition with the other countries
that do business In Russia.
1t may be surprise, but the fact re-
mains that the actual bulk of trade be-
tween Russia and the United States has
increased while the discriminating duties
were in force. This is partly due to the
fact that the greater part of Russia's i'm
ports from the United States consist of
raw cotton. This was not included in the
list of prescribed articles, for the very
good reason that Russian mills could not
do without it. Cotton, therefore, continued
to swell the trade returns, while much of
the traffic in other articles killed. Re-
liable figures on the subject are hard to
obtain. Even official figures of this gov
ernment and that of Russia for the same
subject between the same years sometimes
show 30 per cent divergence. But the gen.
eral trend of the figures in both countries
shows "a not very rapid but fairly steady
growth.
Trade Between the Two Countries.
1t may be that the Ill success of the dis
eliminating duties in Russia had some-
thing to do with Russia's willingness to
remove them. Be that as II may. the total
Jade of the two countries with each other
has grown somewhat even during the con-
tnuance of the commercial war. But the
United States was the loser, inasmucn
as the normal expansion of Russian trade
that should have come to her was gradual
ly passing into the hands OF third couu.
tries, that If American goods did uiti-
mately reach Russia they were Germanized
before they got the market. and Ger
many got the benefit of the advertisement
which should have accrued to the United
States
There is general satisfaction among DEAL
ers and consumers both here and In RUS
sa that the tariff fight Is over. Under
the new regime the United States Will get
the same treatment as that afforded Ger
many and. England under the most IA
vored nation" clause. 1t Is true that the
duties that American producers VIII have
to pay in Russia will average little
higher than they did before the discrimi-
nation was made against us, but that Is
because the new German tariff under which
we get the most favored nation treatment
Is slightly higher than the old tariff under
which we used TO trade. However. We are
on an even footing now with the rest OF
the world, but have to make up for a
period of stagnation that has lasted since
February 4. 1861. That was the date when
the discriminating duties were put In force.
Effect Of Discrimination.
The effect of the discriminating duties on
American trade is partly shown by the
following table of goods imported into Rus
sia from the United States;
1900 .......... .sL- 4s,VU
1901 .....,................ II 94S.OC0
1StR ...........-..'........ ao'9as'vW O
1913 o-rooArSUo
1t will be seen that there is fall the
year after the duties were imposed and
after that the bulk of trade slowly rose
again. This is partly explained by the
fluctuations In cotton shipments. These
were as follows:
1910 s1S 49, 600
1901 ............... .............. AS'sot vov
18Uy lo'ooo'oO'
1t will be seen by this how large a pro-
portion of the trade Is made up of cotton
and how nearly the other articles or COM
merce have been a negligible quantity IN
recent years.
Russa's trade with the United States. on
the other hand, has suffered only In her
shipments of beet sugar, on which We I'M
posed the countervailfng duty. Otherwise