The Daily News. MONDAY, MAY 10. THE UNITED STATES TARIFF.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LII, Issue 88, 10 May 1909, Page 2

The Daily News. MONDAY, MAY 10. THE UNITED STATES TARIFF.

■Some recompense fur the action dune to British trade hy the United States of America in monopolising the i'hilippines trade is apparently being made by way of the amended United Stats . tariff, under which preference will be given to countries that give preference 1 to the States. The chief feature ot ' Senator Payne's Bill, as recently cabled, is the provision fur maximum unii mitimuni rates. The minimum duties represent the line of protection, and by no administrative Act can they lie re duced. The only countries that may enjoy these minimum duties are tlio.e ( which treat America 011 the "most |. favored nation " basis. Any nation which ( discriminates in favor of even one otrier ) nation as against the Unitvd Slates will have to pay tiie maximum duties 011 all imports iulo America. The maximum rates are generally 20 per cent. Higher than the minimum duties. The operation of the principle is thus described! by ill'. Payne, chairman -of the Ways and Means CtiumiUce, who has charge of the Bill: "The minimum rates are applied to all goods imported from any country which gives the United States as good terms by way of tariff as tiial given to any other nation, and the maximum rates are applied to those countries which discriminate against the trade of the United States, or fail to give to the United States tariff rates

as favorable as those given any other nation." Mr. Payne's measure provides that sixty days after the Bill becomes law it is the duty of the Customs authorities to begin collecting the maximum duties against those nations which discriminate against the United .States Most of tlie European nations have reciprocity agreements among Ihemsclv ",. In order to gain access to the great consuming, market of the United Stales at the lower line of duties, they will have to amend their own tariff Jaws in favor of that country, li is said that Ureal Britain and France are the «nly countries that will enjoy the minimum duties at the outset. An amendment which seems to ensure that Australian exports will have to pay only the minimum duties has been introduced by -Mr. Payne. Under the original draft of the

Bill it was doubtful whether or not ' reciprocity treaties between dilferent parts of an empire would be interpreted ( as discriminating against America. It < was not the intention of the framevs ' of the Bill that such reciprocity should subject the parties thereto to maximum , duties in regard to exports to America. ] Indeed, as America under this Bill 's : giving very material concessions to theji (Philippines and Cuba, it would be in- 1, consistent in the extreme to penalise Australia, for instance, or Canada, o'' any other British dependency, because of a tariff arrangement favorable tc England. To overcome any doubt as to Hie working of the Bill in this connection, Mr. Payne has introduced an amendment providing that the maxi mum duties shall not apply in eases where the preferential duties to nther countries are those given by a province, dependency, or colony, to a mother country only, or vice versa. This means, of course, that our wool trade with America 1 will not be jeopardised, as was at first thought, by the operations of the new tariff.

ON THE FOURTH PAGE. '. District News. Butter in Store. The Naval Crisis. The (1.P.0. Robbery. Clifton County Council. Talcs of an Entertainer.