Clearwater Republican., 1922-04-28
MUST HAVE $500 TARIFF
Failure Would Mean Closing
Down of Chewelah Plant and
lrreparable Loss.
BY Sidney Norman,
Editor Mining Truth, Spokane

" strengthen tne HauuS OF tnOSe
friends of the magnesite industry in
the United States who are fighting
valiantly for imposition OF a tariff
against foreign product high enough
to enable the domestic industry to
live.
The magnesite industry of Stevens
county is teh only great enterprise
created i'll this section of the country
by the exigencies of war. At time
when foreign supplies were cut of,
generous capital was invested to bring |
the domestic fields to production, un-
til today, after expenditure of many |
millions of dollars, they are able to
supply the demand of the entire coun.
try.
Unfortunately for this industry and
Tor local prosperity, powerful United
States interests control the sources
of foreign supply in Austria and
Greece, with the result that great
pressure has been brought to bear in
Washington to bring about tariff rates
that will allow the domestically-
owned foreign supply to annihilate
the domestically-o domestic in
dustry.
During the progress of the tariff
fight at Washington, mass of in
formation was placed before the
House and Senate committees. Much
Of it was relevant and much more of
it quite irrelevant and merely given
to muddy the waters
The Plain Facts.
The facts are these: The great
magnesite industry of Stevens county
cannot live with lower tariff than
$15 on dead-burned and $40 on crude,
; as fixed by the ways and means COM
mittee of the House. The Senate
finance committees recommendation
OF IS for dead-burned and $6.25 for
crude would mean the death of the
local industry. The great plant at
Chewelah would remain closed down.
to the irreparable injury of the entire
Northwest. There can be no question
upon that score. Either the Senate
must be made to see the error of its
committees recommendation, or the
: plants in Stevens county must be
l. abandoned and the money invested il
:. them written off.
i There is no chance that the domes
tic product can compete successfully
q with the foreign under the Senate com
a mittee's recommendation No Ameri
II can magnesite can find it's way to tn,
i. Atlantic coast at this time, either il
,s competition with the Austrian prod
v uct, for refractories, or with the Gre
"a clan product for plastic cement work
N The lowest costs in the fields G
|. Stevens county, f. 0. b. cars on Pa
cific coast or at any point in the stat
h of Washington, are over s25 per tor
6 on production basis sufficient t
a supply the markets of Chicago and tn
u Middle West. Reduction of that cos
II to $2O50 per ton might be possibl
upon production basis sufficient t
supply the market as far east as Al
lantic seaboard points. However, ther
is not the slightest chance, nor is /
even hoped by producers, that the de
mestic industry will be called upon t
II supply more than one-half of tn
r American demand, even with tarit
E. of SIS per ton.
= Austria Has 1t All.
g Austria has had the entire Amer
can market for dead-burned magnesit
=. all to herself for the past sixtee
>. rial having been produced in that tim,
&c Prior to the war. when both Au.
!. trian labor and fuel were higher tina
= now, foreign costs were less than 81
a per ton landed on American shore,
~ or less than 50 per ton f. o. b. car
= at Austrian plants.
q, Does the Senate finance committe
believe that American producers ca
u. pay minimum wage of So per da.
n as against Austrian average wages
- 81 1-2 cents per day and produce ma,
- nestle calcines for S25 per ton. payin
- $21 per ton freight in addition an
y compete with foreign magnesite. tn
10 not over SIS per ton at points of con
: petition on tn Atlantic coast?
n Or. does 1t think that domestic il
:, vestments in foreign lands are NOR
sacred than domestic investments
>. our own country?
% To any ordinary man 1t seems anna,
: ing that our own government shoul
:, hesitate for one moment to afford fu
!, protection to domestic industry tha
~ would make us independent of foreig
:, sources of supply in both peace an
\ war times.
v Industry Here Big.
t. The industry of Stevens county wi
4 support over 500 men at good wage
e in conformity with American stant
9. ards of living, and thus bring prosper
n ity over wide area 1t is interes
n ing to remember that in four year
prior to 1921 the Northwest Magnt
& site company alone paid over $4,000
y 600 in freight rates on magnesit
y shipped to eastern points and incon
n ing supplies necessary for conduct O
" its great enterprise.