Evening star., 1923-12-04
BR|T|SHELECT|0NS
IMPORTANT TO u. S.
Tariff Might Cause American
Industries to Transfer
Factories Overseas.
BY FREDERIC WILLIAM VILE

American big business" awaits the
result of the British elections on Dec
ember 6 with anxious interest. If
Premier Baldwin induces the Unite d
Kingdom to abandon free trade and
establish protection. American trade
valued al s1.500.00O.O 900 a year will be
directly affected. Probably the i'm
mediate result of a high British tariff
on imports would be the investment
of United States capital in British
factories. Hardly any other recourse
would be open TO the manufa Cture-s
of American agricultural machinery.
mechanical appliances of varied sorts
and host of other articles that now
enter Great Britain duty free. Amer
ica's annual exports to that country
approach q billion and Il half dol
lars. They mount to much more
than all the rest of our trade with
Europe put together.
Raw Materials Untouched.
The vast cargoes of raw materials
which the United States Sails TO the
British would not be touched by
tariffs. Our most important export
to Great Britain is raw cotton. Lam
lived on DiXis cotton. despite sporadic
efforts within the empire to supplant
II with cotton grown in Egypt ana
India. AS in the days of the civil
without American cotton supplies
would wither and vanish. In recent
times the American textile industry
has achieved the miracle of selling
America made denims and other
wares of kindred sort in the BRUSH
mar rket-carrying Goals TO Newcastle,
with vengeance. British tariffs
probably would wipe out this infant
export trade
Premier Baldwin and other pro-
tectionist advocates during the bit
ter campaign now drawing to a close
have drawn particular attention to
the effect of their program on for
eign manufacturers. The protection
proposals spring from the necessities
of the so-called key industries" of
the British Isles. They have been de-
manding protective legislation ever
since the war. War necessities re-
quired them to expand their plant far
beyond pre-war dinner sions, and the
British home market is less capable
than ever of absorbing any consider
able portion of British manufactures.
After the armiStice Britain began
with a limited scheme of protective
tariffs. A duty of 33is per cent on
imported automobiles was one of the
most important ones from the Ameri-
can standpoint.
Demand From Overseas.
In addition to the clamor Of British
key industries" for protection of the
home market, the British oversee
dominions have been demanding
preferential tariffs" Australia. New
Zealand and Canada want to ship
breadstuffs, meats and canned fruits
into the mother country on terms
better than United States compete
a Il IL ~
brings up the question of food
taxes" and places the protectionist
party on the horns of a disagreeable
dilemma.
For many years past there has been a
move on the part of American industrial
capital to establish plants within Great
Britain: Sometimes this has been done
under full American ownership; some
times under simply a scheme OF Amer
lean control. Several automobile COM
panies, including the Ford, have Brit
ish plants of considerable size. The
Westinghouse electrical interests have
since early in the present century.
Sewing machine corporations also have
been active as manufacturers on Brit
iSh soil and employers of British labor.
The American talking machine industry
is represented by several large British
factories.
Reasons for Protection.
This is precisely the sort of move
nent Of American capital into Britain
that the Baldwin protectionists want to
promote. They've been using the same
familiar "full dinner pail arguments
that the United States knew by heart
in the days of Grover Cleveland and
William Mckinley. "Patronze and
protect home ndustries''-that's an
other of the slogans used by the British
protectioniSts in their campaign against
free trade and which conjure up old
memories for the present generation OF
Americans.
American industrial capital, this
writer is assured in competent quar-
terS would not hesitate to draw the
necessary conclusions if protection
proved to be permanent feature of
british fiscal policy. A Baldwin vic
tory at the polls next Thursday would
not precipitate any extensive move
ment by American capitalists and
manufacturers. Many of them think a
good deal more water will flow under
the bridges Of the Thames before
parliament definitely and irrevocably
oyerthrows the policies of Golden and
John Bright. But a triumph for the
conservative party on the protection
issue undoubtedly Will be handwrit-
ing on the wall. What the anti-free
traders may not feel able to accom-
plish at once may become practi-
cal possibility a little later. In any
, event American exporting interests
will have a weather eye peeled on
the election returns from John Bulls
.sIz l,l,, RI