Evening star., 1927-09-11

| trade-which is perhaps the
| outstanding issue in the mind
| L of every United States manu-
| facturer who thinks of ex-
port---has phases and produces prob
lens which go far toward forming the
underlying reality of Pan-American
relations. None the less, the question
of that trade Is blandly ignored by
most of us. We like to talk at great
length about the political issue, of
which few Of us feel any personal ef-
| feet whatever, but we ignore with
| grand gesture the problem which
reaches us In our pocketbooks and
whose principles, at least, most of
us understand.
| 1t is rather more than merely de-
sirable that we should appreciate, for
instance, the true inwardness of the
Latin American attitude toward our
tariff system, as 1t works out in their
trade relations with us. Not that
we must or could adopt this attitude
as our own. But we should under
stand and therefore be able to SYM
pathize with the Latin American view
point.
Few of us make the journey needed
into the minds of the Latin American
in this, any more than we do in other
phases of our relations, but If we do,
we should come upon a surprising dis
covery. We should find, for instance,
that the Latin American is not rab-
idly opposed to tariffs of any size; he
uses them himself. He recognizes
everybody's right, 50 to speak, to a
tariff. But what he resents, deep
down where he does not talk about it,
is our refusal to execute reciprocity
treaties with Latin American coun-
i 'ThoF0 hn 10
mental policy of this Government.
but none the less he is firm--and un-
happy. 1t is well to understand why.
Trade-Treaty System.
It is automatic, of course, that the
countries of Latin America are pro-
ducers of raw materials, which they
sell abroad - they want markets
rather more than does the United
States, even since our emergence,
following the war, as one of the
hugest manufacturing entities the
world has ever known. Some Of the
Latin American countries produce
manufactured or semi-manufactared
products; some of these, also, require
markets. The United States tariff
seems to close the door to many of
these products. which ares thus
|
the richest markets in the world. OF
course, Latin Americans who produce
and export know all about tariffs
their country protects them with an
overwhelming tariff. like as not. But
they believe, none the Jess, that If the
tariff is high in the countries where
they sell, they get less of the price
paid for their goods in those coun-
tries than they would If the tariff
were lower. This is not entirely sound
economies. but 1t Is sound human
nature. Our exporters are not above
firm conviction that the buying
power in Latin America for their par
ticular products is greatly lessened
by the fact that Latin American tariffs
Keep the prices high there. All these
feelings and tariffs and pains on the
part of the manufacturers and pro-
ducers work both ways, and it Is all
quite obvious. But it is the other
phases than the obvious which dis.
turb Latin Americans on the tariff
issue as applied to the United States.
The feeling there is against not our
tariff system as such, nor merely
against the embargoes that our own
producers of raw materials seek
rightly or wrongly, to induce the Gov.
ernment departments to add as an ex.
ira protection against competing for
eign products. No, the feeling in
Latin America Is against our trade
treaty system. What sticks In the
throat of the Latin American pro-
ducer and exporter is that he cannot
make an exchange of favors with us,
that we either open the market to
everybody or close it to everybody. In
other words. as noted above, it is be-
4 H.
treaties, and there is no way on earth
to get through the tariff wall on a
privately profitable expedition. We
once made what amounted to reci-
procity treaties with Latin American
countries. but now our policy is very
definitely one of securing "uncondi-
tional mostfavored-nation treatment" {"
which puts US on a par with every
body and everybody on a par with US,
in the chief markets of the world
which in the future means the Orient
and Latin America. We ask no favors
there, and we believe that the era of
favors would always work to our dis
advantage. But that does not at all
fit with the Latin American idea.
Change in Policy.
When our tariff came into being.
or. rather, began it's present line of
development, shortly after the Civil
War, we had one fixed policy, which
was to allow the raw products of our
little sister (as they were them ma
tions Of this hemisphere, to enter our
markets without duty. Enunciated
most forcefully by James G. Blaine,
"the father of pan-Americanism,"
this policy has been declared many
times and on many occasions, and
was meant to be. and was, one of
the friendly, generous gestures of our
pan-American diplomacy. In recent
years. and chiefly since the Spanish
American war, this old policy has
been slowly lost sight of, and about
the only important raw products of
the Latin American countries as
whole, which continue to enter this
| country without a tariff are hides.
coffee, cacao, nitrates, tin and cop
per. Duties are now assessed on
such important Latin American prod
| ucts as wheat and corn, meat, sugar,
wool, fruits and linseed.
The next development of this
| friendly policy was in the direction
Of special treatment, through virtual
reciprocity treaties, based on ex-
changes of favors under conditional
most favored nation treaties. The
chief of these treaties, and the only
one which now remains in force with
any large effect on our tariff income
or on the prosperity of the other
country, is that with Cuba. Once
there were such treaties with Canada
and Hawaii and specific customs CON-
cesSionS with about a dozen Latin
American countries. All Cuban pro-
duce enters the United States still at a
fiat 20 per cent below all other ma
tions in the world, and every trade
treaty we now make has the provision
that the relationship with Cuba (along
with the Canal Zone and our outlying
possessions) is not affected by nor does