Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 16.djvu/850

* KECIPROCITY. 750 KECIPROCITY. produced by us; (2) that the countries traded with must be such as would take our surplus of manufactures and farm produce: and (3) that the volume of trade gained by us under any agree- ment must be fully equivalent to that granted to the foreign country. The ilcKinley Act was ad- judged constitutional by the Supreme Court (Fields vs. Clark and Boyd vs. U. S.) and Mr. Jolm W. Foster, representing the State Depart- ment, negotiated treaties under it with Brazil, Spain for Cuba and Porto Rico, and England for Jamaica. Trinidad, Barbadoes. Guiana, and the Leeward and Windward Islands. Treaties were also signed with Santo Domingo. Guatemala, Salvador. Costa Rica, Honduras, and Xicaragua. These treaties closely resembled one another and were designed to carry out the idea of South American reciprocity. They all included reduc- tions of duty on live animals, some grains, corn, meat products, bridge-building materials, cotton- seed and its products, cars, ^vagons, etc., railway material, timber and iron for ship-building, and engines. Colombia. Haiti, and Venezuela declined to make tariff treaties ; and President Harrison, therefore, enforced against them the retaliatory duties provided in the McKinley Act. Treaties of a rather different sort were negotiated with Gei-many and Austria-Hungary, by which we se- cured some reductions on certain cereals, meat products, flour, etc., and on sundiy maniifactures of cotton, wood, chemicals, and machinery. These were the so-called 'beet-sugar treaties.' Little efiect could be seen as a consequence of the re- ciprocity treaties, but it should be noted that dur- ing the life of these agi'eenients trade conditions all over the world were much disturbed, so that the period was not a good one for observing their working. In general, their effects were slight and confined to a few countries, while imports were more largely stimulated than exports. So far as the latter grew at all. the increase is found in cereals, iron, steel, etc. The accession of President Cleveland to office for the second time (1893) was the signal for an effort to reduce the tariff. A bill introduced by AVilliara L. Wilson for this purpose retained raw sugar on the free list as well as coffee, tea. and hides, and reduced the bounty to domestic grow- ers. In the Senate, however, the tariff on raw sugar was restored. It had not been intended by Mr. Wilson to interfere with the existing reci- procity treaties, although he did intend to repeal the section granting power to impose retaliatory duties. The re-imposition of the sugar tariff, however, ipso facto abrogated the treaties, and protests ^ere filed by the representatives of Ger- many and Austria, while complaints were made by Brazil, Guatemala. Xicaragua. Costa Rica, and Santo Domingo. Trade, however, does not appear to have been materially affected by the abroga- tion of the recijirocity treaties, save in one or two imimportant cases. In some instances an im- provement in trade followed. One of the first acts of the Republicans, as they gradually re- gained power after the passage of the Wilson bill, was to announce their allegiance to reci- procity as a policy. A crop of bills and resolu- tions on the subject came up in the first session of the Fifty-fourth Congress and were referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means. The Republican victory of 1896 was interpreted as a verdict in favor of higher tariff duties and of reciprocity treaties. A bill providing for both had been drafted, and was early introduced, by ^Ir. Dingley. In this bill as first presented, reci- procity, like that of the ilcKinley Act, was con- templated. The original draft offered moderate reductions of duty upon various commodities, but while the bill w-as under debate an amendment was offered authorizing the President to negotiate reci)U'ocity treaties which should later be ratified by the .Senate. As finally passed, the act thus authorized the Executive to conclude treaties based upon a few unimportant commodities and to negotiate such other reciprocity treaties as he miglit deem appropriate for submission to the .Senate. President ilcKinley, luider this act, ap- pointed Hon. .John A. Kasson sjjecial commission- er for tlie negotiation of reciprocity treaties. Treaties were negotiated and proclaimed with France, Portugal. Germany, and Italy. Later, an arrangement with Switzerland was executed. Xo agr<'ements with South American countries were entered into. The treaties with the Ijuropean countries mentioned gave us favoral)le treatment for a few agricultural products, oils, and some machinery. These reciprocity treaties are the only ones now in operation. Jlr. Kasson, however, negotiated treaties with various coun- tries under the clauses of the Dingley Act, au- thorizing the President to secure such agreements as he might deem best for sulmiission to the .Sen- ate. These 'Kasson treaties' included treaties with France, Cireat Britain on behalf of Barba- does, British Guiana, Turks and Caicos Islands, .Taniaica. and Bermuda, Denmark for Saint Croix, and with Ecuador, Xicaragua, and Santo Domingo. These had nearly all been sent to the .Senate by the end of 1899. They were coldly received and referred to the Foreign Rela- tions Committee. The treaties with .South Amer- ican countries were chiefly concerned from our side with reductions of duty on eane sugar and tropical fruits, wool, and a few other products, that with France made some concessions on knit goods, bric-a-brac, cheap jewelry, cutlery, and similar small articles. Xone of them was seri- ously discussed except that with France, and even in that case, so loud a protest was raised by manufacturers who conceived their interests to be attacked that the treaty was pigeonholed. It was, however, very generally conceded that the terms of this agreement were unexceptionable. A general reciprocity discussion began in the news- papers, and protectionists displayed a strong dis- position to repudiate the whole reciiirocity policy. It was more and more felt that danger inliered in the discussion of such treaties, because of the ])robability that they would make a breach in the ])rotection system which might lead to too general tariff revision. This opinion was distinctly voiced in the so-called 'reciprocity convention' of manufacturers, which met in Washington in Oc- tober. 1901. Piesident ilcKinley. however, seemed inclined to recede from his a<lvanced protectionist position, and in a noteworthy speech at the Buf- falo Exposition, just prior to his assassination, in September. 1001. had taken strong ground for reciprocity. This gave a factitiotis impetus to the I'eciprocity movement which ultimately concen- trated its strength in an effort to secure reci- procity with Cuba. X'o treaty with Cuba had been negotiated by Mr. Kasson. This was due to the fact that the