Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1909-08-11
TARIFF OFF, HIDES GO HIGHER
ARGENTINE EXPORTER TC
POCKET DIFFERENCE.
Ten Per Cent Added to Price-Rev-
enue Lost to Treasury and Con-
sumner Gains Nothing.

The cabled announcement that inn
mediately upon the removal of the pro-
tectiye duty hides the Argentine ex-
porters had raised the price of hides 10
per cent is the first of the series Of
demonstrations of the difference between
theory and practice in the operation Of
the protective tariff.
The removal of the Is per cent ad va
loren OF hides was for the purpose Of
cheapening hides to the American manu-
facturer of leather goods. Argentine cat
tlemen heard about it. however. and be-
ing thrifty persons-probably German or
English settlers-they thought 1t d shame
to let such good chance get by and
notified their selling agents in New York
and Boston to advance the price notch
or two. If the Yankee needs hides, let
him pay for them.
So it turns out this way.
The North American cattle raiser loses
in actuaity only the protection Of per
cent, the difference between the former
ad valorem and the 10 per cent increase
in price by Argentine growers.
Your Uncle Sam. now much in need
Of money that he increases internal taxes.
loses the revenue from protection which
has been running about So, 100000 per
year.
The Yankee manufacturer gets a re-
duction OF per cent in the cost Of his
ather, which is offset by reduction in
compelled to accept in order to get free
hides
The Argentine cattleman gets a clear
gain. velvet you might call 1t. of 10
per cent advance in the price of his hides,
for which he yields not a sou. one way
or another.
The consumer? He'll get the privilege
of paying just the same as ever for the
leather goods he uses.
The politician and legislator? Well. he
has gone home now to see what's coming
to him.
But there is claimed to be one compen-
sating feature in the hides incident still
to be realized upon. 1t Is pointed out
that Argentine buys three times as much
from the United States as she sells U.S.,
and that now Argentine may be expected
to increase her trade with this country.
In that event some other American
manufacturers may bring back to these
shores some of the "ve.vet" which the
Argentiners are now preparing to take
over.
There is a good deal of curiosity to
see how the new wood pulp and paper
tariff will work out: whether 1t will. in
fact, result in cheaper paper or not. 1t
will require actual demonstration to
prove that, although in theory the scheme
for lower paper Is lovely.
But if Representative Mann, head of
the special investigating committee of
the House, is to be believed the con-
sumner may be entitled to "ha'e his
doots" about the happy outcome. Mr..
Mann ella ms that it is almost a GER
taiEty that Canada will restrict the eX-
portation of spruce wood and pulp. there
by becoming liable to the maximum
tariff penalty the new law provides, and
American mills will be unable to get the
pulp they need except at higher prices.
subject to a heavy tariff.
Why Canada may do this, he thinks,
is because she holds the whip hand in
the possession Of the spruce which
Yankee mills need She can either make
the United States take the pulp at high
pr ces or the finished product of print
paper at high prices
However, there is the comfort to your
true protectionist that in this situation
the owners of spruce forests in the two
New England states containing all the
stand ng spruce left on this side the bor-
der will benefit by the increase in the
price of pulp wood.
But a great deal Of the outcome de-
ponds upon the course the Canadian prov
inces follow in regard to restrictions upon
the expectation of pulp wood.