The potters herald. [volume] (East Liverpool, Ohio) 1899-1982, 1944-06-08
Speaker Exposes Fdlldcious
Contentious OF The Freer
Trade Proponents

Matthew Vol, Vice President, AFL
and. President, American Wage Earn
ers' Protective Conference (the Tariff
Group of the AFL) addressed the an
nual meeting of the Manufacturing
Chemists Association of the United
States on June l, at New York, on the
subject of international Trade as
Viewed by American Labor
Mr.. VOL exposed the fallacious con
tentions of the Freer Trade proponents
who claim that tariff rates restrain
our foreign trade. He also indicated
that the benefits which American
products would secure (larger mar
kets) through our entry into trade
treaties had been scrapped, many
years ago, when imports of other ma
tions into their countries at lower
rates of duties than those they imposed
on products of America.
Mr.. VOL referred to the existence
of government operated bartering ar
rangements, cartels, and, government
control of foreign exchange, plus, the
instability of currencies, the subsidized
shipping and patent controls as trade
barriers far more responsible for the
restrictions on international trade than
the tariff rates which, he stated, were
the lesser restraints of those cited.
The following are some of the more
important points which Mr. Vol EN-
yeloped i'm his very able address
The outstanding postwar problem
both national and international, is TO
find ways and means TO meet in Il
spirit OF. justice and human kindness
the proper economic aspirations OF
both nations and individuals in order
that the temptation TO international
war may be removed.
Through bitter suffering the world
has learned that no nation is free if its
daily bread can be given or be with
held i'm war or in peace according to
needs or pleasures of some other ma
ton. The world has likewise learned
that political liberty without economic
liberty is but an empty shell.
The question presented to every
American is whether the United States
will shape her life largely in her own
way, and i'm accord with her ideals, or
whether she will become inextricably
involved in old world interests, habits
of thought and economic affairs. In
other words, America Is called upon
to decide whether international trade
has certain divinity which must be
placed upon n permanent basis There
upon it will be the duty of u, CONCERT
of powers To allocate 10 the nations of
the earth their rights 10 import and
export and at what prices and then
set up an international standard of
living and Il superstate 10 assure that
the world will stay pigeonhoed.
Or, will we choose To abandon at
tempts 10 regiment n world that re-
fuses Ia be regimented and adopt the
practical, diplomatic approach; that
is, 10 recognize what are the realities
of the economic interdependence of
nations and try to achieve Il formula
by which nations can cooperate. Ger
tainly, this is not isolationism, 50
called, but rationalism
Postwar Foreign Trade--American
Labor
American organized labor In the
North American continent seeks TO
maintain the Independence of labor
unions and business enterprises. In
contrast organized labor I'm Europe
and in the United Kingdom seeks to
natiOnalze basic industry and, by
tends to change and modify the charac
ter of an independent labor movement,
in the unfounded hope of capturing
control Of the state.
This increasing dependence upon the
state on the part of organized labor
in Europe and the United Kingdom h
shared by organized European indus
try. 70 an extent not appreciated by
either American business or American
labor, European and British industry
has become increasingly reconciled to
dependence upon the state and guild
ance upon the state and guidance from
the state in recent years,
In Europe, as whole, there gradu
ally developed first Il regulation of
foreign trade and foreign exchange as
emergency measures, 10 meet the eco
nomlc crisis. Thereafter followed the
regulation of internal business actiyi-
ties, including production, prices and
distribution.
As Nazl Germany In 1899 inaugl-
rated the German rcarmamcnt pro-
gram and the German effort to create
n "self-suilicient" war economy, other
leading countries also strengthened
state economic control over business In
order Ia prepare for war.
Practically every country In Europe
developed "A program of tied trade" or
balanced trade expansion of domestic
production of products formerly inn
ported. The result was, for example.
that Brazilian cotton of inferior qual-
ity and at higher prices was purchas
ed by Germany in preference 10 cheap
er and better grades of American
cotton.
From the standpoint OF the Ameri |
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