The Greenville times. [volume] (Greenville, Miss.) 1868-1917, 1909-08-28
AMERICANS BEING DISCR~ M
MATED AGAINST BY
MANUFACTURERS.
HIGH TARIFF Cause
Granting OF Secret Favors to For
eigners Is Practiced by American
Corporations - Average American
Unaware of Being Overcharged.
BY Iavcnucr.


LONDON. Aug. .z6-Whilc dcclar-
ing to the American public that they
must have a high tariff duty to pre-
vent foreign competitors from undc:-
selling them and driving them oHt
OF home markets. more than one
hundred and seventy-tivc American
manufacturers arc secretly selling
their products cheaper to foreign
consumers than to American CON
sumers
President TAFT, in one OF his pre-
election speeches, declared that
where foreigners were given 1owe-
rate than American consumers
through all seasons OF the year. ii
must be admitted the tariff rates are
excessive and should be reduced
The Presidents description hits each
Of the more than ono hundred and
scvcnty-6vc American manufacturers
because each Of them is selling hi5
~arcS cheaper to Foreigners than 80
American consumers throughout the
three hundred and oiNty-6vc days oi
ihe year.
The fact that an industry regularly
sells its products abroad at lower
than domestic prices not only shows
that the industry is overprotected.
but that the American consumer i
being made victim Of something
similar to a confidence game by being
ovcrcharPed
Evidence from a variety OF sources.
official and unofficial from prI1ica-
tions and directly from actual bust
ness transactions. shows clearly that
the practice Of selling protected
American goods cheaper abroad tim
at home. has become general bu>i-
ness custom 1t Is reasonably GER
tain that the great bulk Of American
manufactured goods. amounting 10
practically S4oo.ooo.ooo for the year
ending June 80. t6oS. not counting
the crude or partially manufactured
goods. arc sold to foreigners at prices
much lower than those prevailing III
the United States Except IL rare
cases these goods arc not sold at &
loss This discrimination against
the American people has cost them
incaluable but enormous sums
of money during the past ten years
during which time the system has
been gradually growing up almost
wholly unknown to the average
American citizen.
But. hush, Mr.. Average American
Citizen, You arc not supposed to
know anything about the fact that
you are being overchargcd for nearly
every manufactured article YOU buy.
That is trade secret
The fact that your local merchant
pays S4z5 for a Stevens No los
shotgun that Is sold TO the foreigne-
for Sa.So is not supposed to be any
of your concern Nor that the To-
cal retailer must pay $50 per dozen
for Fray's genuine "Spofford.' No
roz braces when the foreigner can
have the very same article for only
sos per dozen. In the case OF
braces the British consumer thus
kaves 50 IS per cent as direct re-
,ult OF not having his market cur
tailed by protective duty
Shot guns and braces arc not ex-
ceptions, nor is the cited difference
in the import and export prices un-
usual The same favor. often in
greater proportions. is extended the
foreigner in the purchase of practie-
ally all American made goods An
eccptional case would be one ii
which the American retailer was
given the same price extended the
foreigner
Coinoident with the export busi-.
ness of American manufacturers. has
been the development OF the organ
ization and decentralization of the
scheme of granting secret favors
The more perfect the organization
the more complete the silence as to
the extent OF price concessions. re
bates and discounts.
Having gathered 50 many mana
featuring concerns into one great
dominating organization in the