Clearwater Republican. [volume] (Orofino, Idaho) 1912-1922, 1916-01-14

Recently it was reported from
Washington that the administration |
had in mind a measure to be termed |
an "anti-dumping" law, the idea be-
ing to prevent the unloading of Eu-
ropes surplus products on the United
States after the war. Concerning this
so-called dumping" writer in Ma
tons Business says:
Dumping" as the term is now
commonly used, means selling goods
in foreign country at a lower price
than the market price in the country
of production. The term implies an
unloading of surplus product.
Take the coal tar industry, for ex-
ample. Germany has SO far out
classed all other countries in the pro-
duction Of dyestuffs that it is no ex-
aggeration to say that she has con-
trolled the markets of the world. At
odd intervals efforts have been made
to establish coal tar plants in this
country. Such efforts, at least prior
to the European war, proved unsuc-
cessful There may be many theories
as to the failure of these efforts, and
there may be even some diversity of
opinion as to whether it is possible
to establish a coal tar industry in
this country on sufficiently sub
stantial basis to compete successfully
with the German plants.
Whatever diversity of opinion may
exist, however, there is no doubt that
one of the chief causes of failure to
establish coal tar industry here has
been the ruinous competition from
abroad in the form Of the dump"
The small plants which have been
started in this country for the manu-
facture of dyestuffs, or their inter
mediate products, have had similar
experiences. No sooner have these
plants reached a position to put up
some show of competition with the
imported articles, than the prices of
these imported articles have at once
dropped below any reasonable cost of
production. The results have always
been the same-failure.
We thus have situation, so far as
the coal tar industry is concerned,
where an industry firmly established
in foreign country and there con-
trolled through the instrumentality of
the syndicate or cartel combinations
prohibited here under our antitrust
laws), is in position to dominate
the markets of the United States
There is ample evidence that this
domination has taken the form of un
derselling or dumping with the ex
press purpose of destroying or hin
dering the development of the indus
try here. Such competition can only
be described as unfair, and, unless
there is some form of governmental
action to relieve this situation, there
is every prospect of the old methods
being resumed at the close of the
present war.
The evils of dumping have beer
recognized in the laws of at least tw,
countries, Canada and Australia.
The Canadian law (customs act o
1907 undertakes to prevent DUMPING
by imposing an import duty, in add
ton to all other duties, on all article
of a class or kind produced in Car
ada if the export price or actual sci
ing price to an importer in Canada
, less than the fair market value G
, the same article when sold for HON
consumption in the usual and ord
nary course in the country whenc
| exported to Canada. The amount {
! this dumping duty, up to an arbitrar
maximum of Is per cent ad valoren
is equal to the difference between tn
l export, or actual selling price for e,
port to Canada, and the fair marke
value for home consumption. By o
: der in council the Canadian law ha
been extended to free list articles 9
: well as dutiable articles. A series {
departmental regulations have pc
fected the law, and Canadian Gu
toms officials say that the law hs
, worked successfully.
The Australian law approaches tt
subject from a somewhat differel
:. point of view, dumping falling with
L class of acts called unfair col
F. petition" The very title of the Au
tralian law indicates it's scope, nam
ly-"Australian industries preserv
ton act"
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