The Bozeman courier. (Bozeman, Mont.) 1919-1954, 1922-01-11
TAKING LESSON
IN IMPORT Duties

WASHINGTON, Jan. 3.-Before
the Bridgeport Manufacturers Asso-
citation a few days ago, Chairman
Fordney of the ways and means COM
mittee of Congress, declared:
81 have with me two knives sent me
by a MAI in Chicago. One was picked
up recently in Germany by a traveller.
1t cost the equivalent of go cents.
The second knife was purchased in
Marshall Fields Chicago store and
the price asked was SIS. Both knives
were made by the firm of A. J. Hen
kle. Consider what the margin of
profit must be on the knife imported
by the firm of Marshall Field & Co.
Marshall Fieud Co. is not an elee-
mosynary institution. On the con-
trary, they are reputed to be more or
less representative on the question Of
money-making.
They have been taking a leading
part in opposing the American valu-
alton proposal. In their newspaper
advertisements they claim that their
representatives are known in every
part of the world. In their adver-
tisements they refer to their foreign
organization. If they can purchase
knives in Germany for 9 cents and
sell them in Chicago for S., are we
assuming too much when we assert
that their activity in opposing the
pending tariff bill is prompted by
selfish motives? Where the discrep-
ancy is as great as appears in the
case of these knive, American valu-
alton may cut the importers profits
in half, but 1 state very firmly that
such abnormal profits should be cut
in half"
Chairman Fordney's remarks were
timely and the example he cited, as
Stunning it to be authentic, is replete
with Republican argument. The fact
| seems to be that the firm named by
him is resorting to methods identical
with those which it adopted III 1919
when the Payne law was being de-
bated by Congress. Mr.. Fordney was
a member of the ways and means
committee at that time, and he can
not have forgotten the display of
heavy expenditure of money and eff
fort which Marshall Field & Co. made
with a view to defeating the Payne
bill-particularly the. paragraphs
which gave protective rates on no
siery and women's apparel. A firm
that can sell a Scent knife for Sc
can afford to work pretty hard tt
defeat protection. 1t is a business
proposition with them.
But that was not all there was t.
it in 1909. 1t soon developed to tn
satisfaction Of then Chairman Payn
1 that Marshall Field & Co., and a nun
2 Der of other importing firms VIII
: were fighting the hosiery rate
maintained large establishments i
the city of Chemnitz, Germany, wit
a full force of help organized to bu
and obtain foreign hosiery at tt
least possible cost. Many of thes
h concerns not only advance money
s small manufacturers to purchai
yarns to make goods according
It their specifications and account, b
,e in many instances supply them WI
IF yarn. They receive from these co
IS Germs the unfinished product, sen
ing it to public finishers in the CT
of Cheunnitz to dye, finish and r
into marketable condition for tn,
account, shipping the goods to t
country through their establishmel
od in Chemnitz. These people are alws
oe opposed to the purchasing of Anne
ar can-made goods that In any way CT
Nd pete with the foreign article"
;ca Mr.. Payne saw to it that their pr
ore uganda was exposed, and a few d;
,ad after it was reported the mana
yas of the hosiery department OF Marsl
,st Field & Co. had left suddenly
Chemnitz, at is understood to r
- chase supplies and get them into
= country prior to the passage Of
proposed bill increasing =" '-lty
hosiery" Now 49, rs to
SAM old Gar.