Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1918-03-03
ny THE RIGHT HON. WALTER
RUSCINAN, VI. T..
international News Bureau.I

!
tectionists still. complain that we have
learnt nothing during the ordeal Of
I lolf-19iS. They mean that wc have
not been persuaded to welcome a tariff,
as solution OF industrial and national
difficulties. and therein they say of us
| what is true. We have no reason to
/ be shy about our belief in the evils OF
tariffs for this country. On the con-
| trary. tho experience OF the war has
! demonstrated the unrivaled strength
CT free trade finance.
/ The United Kingdom for three years
/ bore the main burden OF financing
every one OF our European allies. We
/ paid our own way, and made advances
TO Russia. Belgium. Roumania Serbia,
Greece. Italy and France. The joint
! guarantees of France and Britain
! lapses in the early days into suaran-
! tees by alone.
| Not a single ally could have sur
vived without the aid OF the British
cSchequcr-a free trade excheQuer.
/ London remained the financial center
I or the world for three years. in spite
/ Of $4,000. 100000 advanced TO our al
/ lies. and many thousands more spcn,
/ by ourselves. And the city of London.
| SUCH as 1t became. was the outcome OF
seventy years of free trade. Our in
( duiries showed unrivaled facility In
.
/ and they were industries which had
| grown up during our free trade period
/ Our merchant feet was the mainstay
| of the allied commissariat and the al
| lied arscnals, without which every
enemy of Germany in Western Europe
would have been starved. possibly de-
/ feated. Our strength under all these
stupendous strains. which would have
| broken France. Russia or Italy. al
! though our area is less and our popu-
/ lntion no larger than theirs, is surely
prima facie ground for faith in free
! trade. and not for mistrust of it's bene-
| fits TO this country.
| Even as regards taxation, we alone
of all the European countries, found
! ourselves with revenue oasis CAPABLE
OF expansion. and we have pushed our
/ revenue up from So00,000.00o year to
/ nearly $40 100000 on a free trade basis.
| No other basis could have been of any
use. as indeed France. Italy. Russia
and Germany alike discovered Even
America has had to resort to free trade
! taNes in order to raise her revenue
! TO n war level: and she has had 10
adopt various forms OF income tax in
stead Of extending her tariff He
| would indeed he IA foolish fellow who
allowed h!msclf-with these facts (not
mere economic doctrine. but facts) to
guide him-to doubt ct this time OF
! day the wisdom CT those who for
seventy years depended on the free
trade system which has established
such a record in time of war.
I CHEAT AND ABUNDANT
FOOD SUPPLIES NEEDED
So much for the present; but what Of
the future? is not revision OF our
view necessary That is tho question
| put TO free traders In public and in
! private conversations; and in response
! 1t Is as we'll TO say frankly that We
arc always prepared to re-cxaminc our
. al II rttl1
policy. Let us, then, think Of our con-
ditionS. not as they were, but as they
are now.
! have already pointed out the
urgency, greater and moro essential
IMAM ever. OF cheap and abundant SUP
pies CT food. clothing. household goods
ana utensils. OF semimanufactured
goods and machinery. tools and ma
! tcrials for our industries Without
/ cheap and abundant supplies. our in
dustricS and finance cannot recover
! THIS aspect disturbs the mind OF
doubtcrs less than 2. vague feeling that
| we ought to withhold most favored
! nation treatment from Germany and
Austria. Whether we have or have not
! the power TO do this depends on the
terms of peace. To say definitely now
what we will grant or Will withhold
whether in our own interest or for
some other reason. is to commit our
selves or to threaten uselessly
In measuring strength. however. be-
| tween the central empires and their
enemies. we may point out to the
| world (not emitting Germany and Aus
tria) that in war a'outrance the
economic capacity of the allies and the
Americas is supreme. Germany can
get Nttlc or no cotton except from the
! United States or the British empires;
ner raw wool comes mostly from these
countries and the Argentine: she can
get no rubber except from the Rrazils
or the British empire, with the cXcen-
ton CT IA small amount under Dutch
control: only a fraction of her conner
can reach her If the United States and
the allies withhold supplies: she has
no manganese except from India or the
Brazils: very little wolfram from out
side the allied countries. and not much
zinc. Gcrmany's food may be supp,e-
mcntcd by what she captures in Rou-
mania or buys from Russia, but she
goes short so long North and South
American. Indian and Egyptian crops
arc shut off from her. Terrible con
trolls remain with her enemies. and just
as in peace negotiations SHE NAV
hamnt her wcll-crEanizcd lcgions, so
equally are we entitled to remind her
Of her peoples dependence on tho al
lied and American raw materials.
! ECONOMIC WEAPON WILL.
he NECESSARY THEN
That is the economic weapon i'm our
hands. and Yet for the purpose Of Sc
curing satisfactory ncace. it wilt he
oil little future value tbcyond the pres
cnt effect of the hlockadc) unless VIC
arc able TO say to tho German plenipo-
tentiaries: An unsatisfactory peace
for the world will involve you In such
iuturc shortage as our controls make
possible; satisfactory peace will free
YOU from these penalties" In other
words. To make the weapon effective
q al vi..s.l
depends on that--wc must he in n posi-
tion to use the weapon in all its rigor
on the one hand. or, on tho other. as a
contrast, to allow the peoples Of the
central empires. when VIC have re-
plenishcd our depleted stocks. to have
access To these raw materials. Any
government which counts on the ef-
fcacy OF the economic offensive must
contemplate it's fun riEors ir il is to
he used at all. or its complete suspen-
SIGN IL Germany does what is required
OF her. No tariff reformer can cscapc
fyp,, sI,o "a.