Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1922-10-14
FREE PORTS IN AMERICA
BY Frederic j. Haskin.

Washington, Oct. 14.-After year
and a half OF effort Congress- has just
passed a new tariff act levying In
creased customs duties on imports into
the United States. This Legislation has
brought forward anew ths question OF
the wisdom OF establishing free ports
In America.
A free port is a geographic excep-
ton TO a nations tariff. II Is a city
or a specified zone in a city 10 which
foreign soods may be brought. altered
or manufactured. and re-sxported
without the payment OF duty. The
Official definition given FREQ ports by
the United States Tariff Commission
reads AZ follows.
"a free port CT free zone is n place.
limited in extent, that differs from
adjacent territory in being exempt
from the customs laws as affecting
goods destined for re-export; il means,
simply, that es regards customs duties
there is freedom. unless and until i'm
ported goods enter the domestic mar
ket. A free zone may be defined as
as an isolated inclosed and policed
area, without resident population, fur
nished with the necessary facilities for
| lading and unlading, for supplying
fuel and ships stores. for storing goods
and for reshipping them. by land and
water; an area within which goods
may be landed, stored, mixed, blended.
repacked. manufactured and reship-
! ped without payment CT duties and
without the intervention Of customs
officials. 1t is subject, equally with
adjacent regions to all laws relating
| to public health. vessel inspection,
postal service, labor conditions, immi-
grafton. and. indeed everything ex-
cept the customs"
There have been two great parties
in the United States practically since
the foundation Of the Republic. One
has eepoused the principal of free
trade. that is the free import OF goods
without payment OF customs duties
and the other has espoused the prin-
ciple of protection of native industries
through the medium of a high tariff
which will prevent foreign made goods
from coming here and selling as
cheaply as the homo product may
sell.
Basically, the broad reasons for and
against a tariff are the following: A
thickly populated country producing
its chief wealth by manufacturing i'm
ported raw materials and selling then
abroad benefits by free trade because
it must get it's materials with which
to do business from outside. In such
n case, a nation imposing a tariff
would be taxing itself for the privi
la0a of
relatively sparsely settled country. tn
chief produce of which is raw mater
ials, but which is seeking to estab
lish industries for manufacture, cal
afford to impose a tariff because
does not require absolutely the good
of the outside world and TO admit sucl
goods freely would retard the develop
ment OF local manufactures.
Examples Of Free Trade and Protection
In modern times tho two outstand
ing examples Of such nations hav
been England. an island with NOR
/, than 5O,000,0o0 population, the chic
wealth of which arises from manufac
tued goods; and the United States
f, a territory of continental extent wit
only twice as many inhabitants, who's
chief wealth consists in raw materi
ais or agriculture and mines.
England IL a free trade countr
traditionally and the United States
high tariff land.
But in recent years the tremendou
advance of industry in the Unite
states and the inflow of our manu-
factured goods and those of othe
couauies to England, have served (
break down the old traditions Their
have been strong leanings in thI
country toward freer opportunities I
Manufacture and sell here or re-eS