The Wallace miner. [volume] (Wallace, Idaho) 1907-current, 1921-04-21
LARGE IMPORTATION
OF LEAD FROM SPAIN
Pay Duty and Still
Under Sell Amer
lean Product
NEW METAL SCHEDULE
Rates Should Make Protection
of American Producers
First Consideration

A CCORDING TO information
n schedule Of the me- new TIA tariff bill bill
has been completed by the
subcommittee having it in charge but
nothing has been divulged to indicate
what the schedules are. The COM
mittee very properly takes the posi-
ton that changes will doubtless be
made by the full committee and it
would therefore be unwise to invite
public discussion until the commit
tee is ready to act. Besides in addi-
ton to the public hearings already
held. persons interested will have op-
portunity to be heard again before
the bill is ready to be reported. There
is a feeling that many congressman
some of whom are on the ways and
means committee. are disposed to at
tach too much Importance to what is
commonly termed the changed condi-
ton due to the war, and which it is
urged must force us to modify our
protective policy to the end that the
foreigner may find market here for
his products. Stated in another way,
it is contended that since Europe
owes us vast sums of money she can
not pay unless we shape our tariff so
that she can sell her goods here The
force of this argument will be admit
ted, but on the other hand would it
not be as well to permit Europe to re-
main in our debt rather than to have
it paid through system that would
prove disastrous to our own Indus
tries and people either by forcing
them out of business or reducing Am
erican labor to the European stand
ard?
The Protective Principle.
The deplorable condition of the
mining industry today is due in
great measure to the present tariff
law which permits foreign metals to
be imported and sold at prices with
which American producers can not
compete. 1t is true that the con-
sumption of metals is comparatively
small. but the low price is unques-
tionably due to the fact that foreign
metal can pay the present tariff and
return a fair profit at the prevailing
low prices An increased demand
would not necessarily result in higher
prices so long as there is a foreign
surplus to dump into the American
market. The only relief for the Am
erican producer of lead, zinc and 9TH
er metals is a tariff that will repre-
sent the difference in the cost of pro
duction between the United States
and foreign countries. That is the /
principle for which the republican /
party stands and for which the peo-
pie voted last fall, and that is the
principle which the present con-
gress is expected to write into the
new tariff law
A Tariff Object Lesson.
A striking Illustration of the oper- I
alton of the present tariff law and .
how it robs the American lead pro-
Queer of his rightful market is de-
scribed in the last issue of the En-
gineering and Mining Journal. which .
tells of 1000 tons of Spanish lead be-
ing sold in small lots in New York,
and of an American producer placing
an order for 5000 tons because he
could not secure the large tonnage in
this country at the low price, while
the Spanish producer can pay the
25 per cent ad valorem duty and still
make a profit. Following is from the
Journal:
1.-TWO weeks ago in these columns
we mentioned the offering of Spanish
lead in the New York market. OF the
1000 tons to be shipped here for TAX
ing care of small orders. half has al
ready been received and the remand
err is said to be afloat In addition, it
now develops that large American
lead consumer has purchased 5000 4
tons of this Spanish lead. The de-
tails have not been made public but
we surmise that shipment is to be i'm
mediate and that the price paid was
about e19 5s.. which would be equiv
alent to about 425c., New York, after
all expenses have been allowed. This
would indicate that this particular
consumer. who follows the market
closely, does not feel that present
prices are likely to recede in the next
few months and also that no large
tonnage could be secured in this
at the present A. s. & r.
price. The question of the valuation