Bisbee daily review., 1905-04-29


 American Trade-Other Nations of
 the same Mind.
 The beneficiaries of the Ding,ey tariff law do not desire any revision of the present schedules, but there is q large commercial class ill various parts of the country who do not feel sanguine relative to tine future successful oper- ations of this law.
 While the foreign commerce of the United States may have been benefited greatly by some of the provisions of the law. there are many rates that are so high they are beginning to interfere with the very purpose for which the schedules were framed.
 The important question now is, Will not other countries finally frame such retaliatory tarlff bills that our foreign commerce will begin to decline instead Of advance:
 This matter of tariff retaliation by foreign governments. now that there are no elections pending and congress has adjourned without taking steps to- ward even a slight revisioh of the Ding ley act. is being discussed by authori- ties upon the subject. The experts are more fully Investigating our actual for eign trade relations, and there are many matters connected herewith that disturb their calculations.
 Much valuable information concern ing these trade relations is furnished by \. I. Stone. the tariff expert of the bureau of statistics. in an elaborate ar ticlc in the current North American Re view. Without going into the merits of high or low duties this writer. while admitting how much the Mckinley and Dingiey tariffs have helped Ameri- can manufacturing industries abroad, points out how France. Russia, Italy, Switzerland. Spain and Portugal have each introduced a high protective sys. tenn, which has been raised higher and higher as one country tried to meet the repeated assaults of the other against one or other of her own in. dustries." In other words, the so call ed tariff war which it has been proph. esied would occur eventually between many leading nations seems to be near at hand.
 It has been argued complacently by the high protectionists of the United States that American goods of every description could be dumped upon the foreign markets indiscriminately and as long as desired. This argument re- ceives a rude shock by the recent ac- ton of many European governments. ,-sR s,I. was passed in 1902, that has not yet been put in force, but the kaiser is said to be using it as a basis for new negotiations with the principal coun- tries with which Germany has had commercial treaties. In it's final shape, Mfr. Stone asserts, this German tariff presents such an extraordinary in- crease of protective duties. especially on agricultural products and other raw materials. as to haze called forth the strongest condemnation even from the protectionist manufacturing associa- tlons of Europe.
 To illustrate what the German em- peror can do by this new tariff with some of the principal items of Amer iean trade with Germany the following rates are quoted:
 The duty on bacon is raised from % marks per 10O kilograms in the old tariff to 36 in the new. or 8 per cent: on canned beef. from l5 marks per 100 kilograms in the old tariff to marks. plus a. surtax of % per cent In the new. making a total increase of 3S0 per cent: on lard and cot tonseed oil from 10 marks ia the old tariff 10 12.50 marks in tho new. or . per cent; the duty on various kinds of lurr bcr ts increased about 2 per cent: the old a-ty of 2f marks on sewing machines is raised 10 9 marks, or 46 per cent; the increase Of duty on other kinds of machinery. such 8 typewriters, agricultural implements. etc, reaches as high as 5O and 100 per cent: the duty on wheat. which has been S50 marks per 100 kilograms under the conventional tariff still in force. is raised to 7.50 marks per 100 kilograms (about 50 cents per bush- ei or over III per cenD. on corn. from 50 marks to marks. or 212 per cent: on flour, from 7-S0 to 1875 marks. or 156 per cent.
 It is not unknown that Germany is very friendly with Russia in tariff mat ters and has considerable influence with the cars fnanciers. It is recall | e1 that Germany forced Russia to grant more favorable terms to her goods in 1894 and that on that occasion , the kaiser used Yankee competition as a whip against the eczar. At present if is assertcd, it is apparently the in- tention to use Russia as a whip against tbe United States.
 A similar game of tariff retaliation seems imminent iI France because German ra English competitors are favo-el by hea2er freights and GUS gOrl Gut.eS
 II i3 ojvi0T5 ;iat bigh tariff walls 1 ran Ee butt il foreign countries as well a5 ia ,Ae United States. The sooner congress realizes this and takes ] propc:I action the better it will be for ! 9ur future foreign trade relations