Great Falls tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1921-current, 1922-09-26
OUR l. FOREIGN
TRADE


l. Tune 80 last, United States
vessels carried about 100000 tons
less freight through the Panama
canal than they did in the previous
year. Japan carried through the
canal 758,o0o tons more than she
did in 1921. Dutch, French and
Swedish ships also increased their
canal tonnage during the last year.
The United States vas the only ma
ton that fell off materially. AS
United States vessels have a mo-
nopoly of coast-to-coast trade, tor
eign vessels being prohibited by
our laws from engaging in our
oas traffic, it is evident that YES
sells under a foreign flag are in
creasing their share in foreign
trade, while American vessels are
losing this traffic. The figures are
cited by an eastern newspaper as
justification for a big annual sub
sidy for all American-owned yes
sells through a tax levied on all the
the taxpayers of the United States
for their benefit. But the figures
tell another story. A considerable
portion. and a rapidly growing por-
ton of the foreign tonnage passing
through the Panama canal neither
originates in the United States nor
is destined for any port l n the
United States. 1t is going from
foreign countries to South Amer
leo or is billed from South Amer
;ca to some foreign country in pay
mcnt for goods purchased there.
Our foreign trade has shrunk amaz-
ingly in the past year, and we have
Just passed a tariff bill that is de-
signed as a practical embargo. 1t
shuts the door against foreign m
ports and, of course. that is equally
effective against our foreign ex-
ports. Other things being equal,
any foreign nation would prefer to
buy its wheat and foodstuffs from
a country where it can pay for
them with goods instead of gold.
Every farmer that has traded but
ter and eggs with the village store
understands this principle. He can
get a little better price for his but
ter and eggs if he will take trade
for them than he a get If he de-
rnands cash, because the store
keeper expects to make a profit on
the goods he swaps for these
things. For precisely the same rea-
son, Great Britain would rather
buy wheat and food stuffs from
Argentina or other countries that
have a surplus Of such things than
from the United States if it can
nav for its food with British goods
ard not in gold. There is the profit
on the British goods sent in pay
nent of Argentine beef or wheat
to consider. If the cash price in
the United States is enough lower
than the trade price in Argentine
to offset the profit on the British
goods, then Great Britain will buy
its supply of wheat from our sur
plus. Otherwise, it will not. That
is why a high tariff that shuts out
foreign goods from the United
States is not for the interest of the
producer of wheat or other food
stuffs where the production is
greater than the home consump-
ton. 1t makes the American pro-
Queer cut his price to a point lower
than his competitors in order to
sell abroad. In substance he is
compelled to pay the profit the
foreigner would have realized if he
could have settled the bill against
him by shipping US goods instead
of gold.
But that is not the whole story,
A nation like Great Britain may
have and exercise a choice between
paying for our wheat and other
surplus food products in gold or
in goods, and if our price is 10"
enough TO more than make up the
difference caused by loss of profit
on the goods, she a ship us gold
instead. But a good many nations
in Europe who need our surplus
food products cannot eve exercise
such choice. They have no golc
and can get no gold, and as we
have barred their goods out of ouI
market, they cannot buy our fooe
products, no matter how cheaply
we may offer them. They arr
compelled to buy these food prod
ucts from some nation that will
take their goods in exchange, ever
if they pay considerably higher
prices than we ask for them.
xr AL-k L.A4 DA E1rAanr