The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1931-12-12
by MA2&Y CANNES


paTrtsH and French newspapers shrek shout
tariff war" The American capitalist press
tries' to give the impression ts,at 1t 10 purely
European matter. Huwever, sf the inpsrsaAst
powers are involved British Imperialism is
making desperate struggle to rcouptme It's
world markets 30 rationshse les industry by
tremendous drive against the wcrkingclass, to
save its colonial empire from the attacks espe-
cisSay Of American Imperialism, and to hold off
impending financial collapse
The recent sharp exchanges betwsen the
French and British government over tariff has
very deep roots. 1t is based on the struggle for
hegemony on the European continent which
French Imperialism has rapidly been winning
and consolidating.
When The Hoover moratorium yes declared
British Imperialism began campaign for the
cancellation Of the world war debts particularly
German Preparations. This was blow at
French imperialism which has heavy stake in
German PREPARATIONS Later French imperialism
began an attack against the dollar In order to
force Wall Street to recognize French hegemony
in Europe, to force an alliance and a re- group
ing, and to shove Britain into secondary DO
sitiou
The Hoover-TA~al agreement" which followed
was another blow to British imperialism. 1t
strengthened the French position In Germany
by forcing Hoover to agree not to take any steps
involving German reparations or debt payments
without first consulting French Imperialism.
Drop In The Pound
In the meanwhile the British pound began to
go lower and lower. The National Government
came into power with a determination to re-
establish the waning position of British imperi-
alism. An ambitious scheme was proposed New
tariffs would be imposed. Competitors would be
driven out of British markets. The empire would
be drawn closer together by all sorts of conces-
sions AS the crisis sharpened, the British i'm
perialists decided to take drastic measures to
preserve the British colonies from the grasp of
it's main competitor, American Imperialism.
While the schemes of Empire free trade" had
collapsed previously, the British masters real
lied that with the pound dropping with the
crisis growing worse in England, with tire colo
NAL masses preparing for new revolutionary
struggles, new measures would have to be taken
in hercp,eln effort to keep British imperial
ism from remaining in secondary position
and its colonies erasped from it by American
Imperialism. The crisis has brought before Am
erican imre,ialisrn the rsctlen of getting rev
markets and especially new colonies in order to
preserve tn, whole capitalist structure of Wall
Street
Attack on Workers
The British program for capturing new mark
cts lay in two directions. First an attack against
the workers at home by lowering their standard
OF living, driving down unemployment insurance,
speed-up Lancashire textile industry and
second, by putting up heavy tariff barriers and
establishing reciprocal agreements with the Do
rninions, such as Canada and Australia, as well
as attempting to make trade agreements with
Argentina and win this market away from AM
erica
The first step taken the announcement
by Walter Runciman president of the Board of
Trade that the House Of Commons would pass
wholesale tariff increase of 100 per cent. This
hit all the capitalist nations. Important indus
tries in the United States were hit.
AS Sir Arthur Duckham. KC.B., G.BE., pres
ident of the British Federation Of Industries.
which represents 80 per cent of British industry.
put it In an interview with the Wall Street
Journal NOV. 80. 1931): Great Britain will
adopt protective tariff policy which will seek
to be a reciprocal bargaining policy with the
British Dominions and possibly the Argentines"
Besides, Prime Minister r. B. Bennett Of Can
ada made special trip to England to provide
for preference for the import of Canadian wheat
into England in return for providing a special
market for British manufactured goods as
against American Thus far no details have