The Washington times., 1931-10-29
TORY VICTORIES
SPELL WOE To. ;
j. s. TRADE
Conservatives Certain to Erect
RetaIIatory Barrier, With
This Nation Chief Victim
BY WILLIAM C. MURPHY, Jr.

By WILLIAM C. MURPHY. Jr.
International and domestic
developments during the past few
days foreshadow a lively con,
troversy over the tariff, as an
addition to- the long list Of
squsbbles already scheduled for
airing during the next session Of
Congress.
Outstanding among these fac
tors was the result Of the Brit
ish elections, returning a huge
majority in the House Of Com
mons for the National Coalition
government headed. by Ramsay
Macdonald, but including enough
pro-tariff Conservatives to dom.
mate Parliament without assist
ance from other elements Of the
coalition. Reports from London
indicate that some kind Of an
emergency protective tariff en-
actment within the very near
future Is regarded as inevitable.
U. s. To Suffer
If England goes on pro-
tective tariff basis, the chief
sufferer from such q policy will
be the United States. In normal
times the United Kingdom i'm
ports American commodities
valued at about 81 ,O00, 900 coo an.
nually- something like 20 per
cent Of all American exports.
In 1880, British Imports from
the United States dropped to
about $747,5OO, 900, but the ratio
with other American exports was
maintained. On the other hand
even in the boom year, 1928, Brit.
ish exports to the United States
amounted to only $227, 100, 900,
while, in 1880 they declined to
$139, 100000. Thus England has
. great deal to gain and very
little to lose by q protective tar.
iff against American commOdi-
ties.
If, as seems likely, the British
policy takes the form Of prefer
entail, rates within the empire,
the disparity will be acceatuated.
Adoption Of a protection;st policy
in Great Britain is regarded as
certain to cause demands for an
American tariff revision to pro-
tect American trade with Eng
land.
That the tide toward q down
ward revision Of the Hawley.
Smoot rates IS running already
was indicated yesterday by the
statement of T. w. Lamont, part
ner Of the House Of Morgan, who
asserted excessive protecCionism"
is imperiling American invest
mentS and loans abroad. AS La
mont explained it:
American bankers and in
veStOrs have about come to
the point, although not all of
them may realize it yet, where
they will no longer feel safe
in making loans abroad, while
their Government continues to
stick rigidly to a tariff policy
that threatens to take from the
foreign borrowers the means for
payment of such loans"
Tariff Unrest Grows
Meanwhile the situation was
complicated by a group of Amer
ican copper producers who ap-
peared before the Tariff Commits
sion seeking to have copper trans
ferred from the free list and
accorded protection. The move
ment for a tariff on oil and oil
products is well under way and
has considerable strength in both
the House and Senate. Already
there are rumblings of an at
tempt to revise the sugar tariff.
Altogether, it is a picture tend
ing to disturb Administration
leaders who have hardly recov-
cred from the year-and-a-half
fight over the Hawley-Smoot bill
and who, in addition, can fore
see plenty of other trouble ahead
during the coming session.