Evening star., 1922-08-13

ton of railroad, there is little to show
for the heavy expense of the occupa-
ton. No development of natural re-
sources has started because foreign
capital has been refused permission
to do the work.
Discrimination Against U. S.
Under the division of the mandates
Acre. which Napoleon called the key
TO the east. and it's adjacent port of
Haifa in preference to the nearer port
damascus bring their goods through
Haifa in preference to he nearer port
Charges of theft of goods. enforced
gratuities to officials and similar
grievances are numerous against the
Beirut customs. but more serious are
the delays and reappraisals of i'm
ports from any country except
France. Importers say that French
goods are passed Immediately. while
frequently those from America are
held for weeks. and then released
only when the importer consents to
an increase of from 40 to so per cent
Of the invoice values and payment Of
to per cent harbor charges.
Recently Consul knabenShue, in
Beirut. has obtained tentative
promise that customs duties can be
paid in kind" the importer giving
is dispute as to value. Even if the
agreement goes into effect, it will not
change the spirit of discrimination.
In Haifa the customs duties are IL
per cent. the British collecting 3 per
cent for the old Turkish debts and 1
per cent municipal tax In the French
territory the duties are II per cent
and much trouble. Goods trans
shipped through Palestine do not pay
duty. However, once they enter Syria
they pay duty, and there is no draw
back If they are again sent out of the
iS
chants in Syris trading outside the
present reduced area of the country
store their goods in Haifa or Alexan-
dria, Egypt, and fill their orders from
there at considerable inconvenience.
Everything Heavily Taxed.
Land taxes in Syria are four times
what they were before the war. Pri-
an automobile from s72 to s12O, boot
blacks, peddlers and almost every
line of business are taxed where be-
fore they paid little or nothing, The
cities have the French octroi system,
under which everything that enters
brought $4,000 to Damascus last
year, and according to local business
men an equal amount to the collec-
tors, the illiterate peasant not know
ing whether his receipt was for five
or three camel loads of hay.
Taxes and commerce offer a good
measure of an administrators eff
cheney. The silk business Of Damas-
Gus. which formerly amounted to $780,
100000 a year, fell to $10,000.000 last
year. according to the merchants.
They say that most of the taxes
sitting the already handicapped coun.
try go to pay salaries of officials and
conduct propaganda. Schools, irriga-
ton systems and street paving are
more needed.
France changed the Imperial Otto
man Bank into the Banque de Syrie,
and paper currency issued by the
latter was substituted for the gold
and silver which had circulated. Every
time an Arab receives one of these
dirty. ragged notes he mentally
mathematics France. He was forced
to change his good solid money into
that. More than mere sentiment
against the paper money, there Is a
serious question of it's stability, it
being backed merely by promise OF
the French authorities. At the same
time representatives OF the bank are
Systematically buying up the, gold lin
the country and shipping it to France.
When the French occupied Syria in
1920 a $750,O00 war indemnity-$5O0,-
900 from Damascus, $125,O00 from
Houraan, SIS 900 from Hama and $780,
600 from HONS, or about 81 per head
in the cities-was collected. The pay
ments were enforced by the black
soldiers France is using in
the country. Naturally the Syrians
resent the presence of African troops.