The New York herald., 1922-06-28
Tariff Sense and Tariff Madness.

Every once in so often the eco
nomic sense of the Senate majority.
not TO mention its political sense. as
serts itself with refusal to hoist a
high duty on some necessary of life
still higher or to have any duty at
all that might impede the relief OF
the housing shortage, as In the in
stance of shingles. And every time
this happens it emphasizes the fact
that there is really no uncomfortable
fate compelling the Congress tariff
makers to become party wreckers. 1t
prompts the thought that even yet 1t
might be possible to make the pend
Ing tariff bill not by any means a per-
feet but at least a rational measure.
Every thinking mind recognizes
and every fair partisan admits that
this country must have a protective
tariff system. In respect Of some con-
siderations such protection Is more
essential now, even with our well de-
veloped and powerful agriculture and
manufactures, than 1t was when this
was in truth a country Of infant In
dustries that were struggling for ex-
istence against seasoned and aggres-
sive'foreign competitors.
The Industrial growth of some pau
per labor countries. the low exchange
rate OF the printing press money of
other countries. the desperate need
Of international traders the world
over to buy gold with goods on the
best terms they can get--these and
various conditions abroad make It
possible for foreign made articles to
be laid down In this country at costs
that are not comparable to American
costs.
Nevertheless there remains the
cold economic truth that many Of our
American costs are very highly and
dangerously inflated. Anytariff that
is devised merely to take care Of a
domestic cost of production, regard
less of whether It is too high or not.
is simply tariff not to protect home
industries but to perpetuate high
prices. wherever they happen to be
up in the sky. Nobody can get away
from that.
And a tariff that simply keeps up
excessive prices at home, tariff that
jacks up the cost of living when the
cost Of living ought to come down, is
absolutely contrary to and irrecon-
cilable with the fundamental princi-
pies of the American tariff system
itself. The people Of the United
States will never stand for such con-
6itions. The export trade business
of American industries cannot sur
vive them. The country will not
thrive under them.
At this very moment Germany,
with her lower production costs,
caused both by territically de-
pressed exchange rate and an indus
trious, energetic labor striving to re-
store its country's opportunity for
work and business, is not threatening
American industry with German ex-
ports into our markets. But Ger
many is threatening American indus
try elsewhere. Germany is driving
American industry out of foreign
markets we seemed in the war
definitely to have captured.
Cable trade reports of yesterday,
for example, told how Germany, COM
pletely vanished from the markets of
Chile during the war, was back there
now in full feather. Germany before
the war had a big export business to
Chile. American exporters during the
war took every dollar of II. Ameri-
can exporters took as well 10 per
cent. OF tho business of the British
exporters who hitherto had fought
for the supremacy of the Chile field,
not with the United States but with
Germany.
The British exporters now have no
fear at all OF America in the Chile
field. II is with Germany the British
traders are again fighting for the
trade supremacy OF Chile. Chilean
imports from Germany In 1919 were
only quarter of million dollars.
They had risen In 1920 TO approx
mately eight millions of dollars. And
the British Department Of Overseas
Trade reports that the German gain
in exports to Chile has been running
so strongly in this first six months OF
1922 that the record of the whole
year will be startling to international
traders.
This is a signal warning OF what
any American tariff that merely pro-
tects excessive American prices can
do to our export business and to the
country. while at the same time piling
an insufferable cost OF living burden
on the American consumer.
/