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Show One Export That Hurts A considerable noise is being made about the importa-ion importa-ion of foreign products. Notwithstanding the fact that the United States'in Oc-ober Oc-ober had one of the most favorable balances of trade by erccntage in its history, various representatives of big in-' in-' Ms try are clamoring for higher and higher tariffs. In the first place, this newspaper refuses to get excited .bout foreign competition as long as our balance is favor-able. favor-able. There is no use trying to sell the world two or three times as much as we buy. The world can't pay, for the simple reason that we have most of the gold already. And if anyone expects the American public to continue the racket rack-et of lending money (which will never be paid back) to for-:ign for-:ign countries to finance their purchases, that person is sad-y sad-y mistaken. As long as the United States is selling more than it is uying, there is some question as to just why American msumers should not continue to buy foreign things which icy desire. It is certain that just as rapidly as they stop uyin& the United States will stop selling to other counties. coun-ties. -Meanwhile, there is one big field where the United rates is losing out, and that is in the play-spending of our iillionaii-es. An enormous wealth, taken out of our coun-1 coun-1 y, is dissipated in Paris and Monte Carlo and around the oild by our touring wealthy. Why shouldn't there be a heavy tax on dollars "exported'' "ex-ported'' for such purposes ? If the consumer must pay 50 per cent extra because he wants some foreign-made novelty or gadget, why shouldn't he industrialist,, protected by the tariff, pay 50 per cent ;tra if he wants to spend his money in Paris instead of , home ?.,",.. The only real difference is that one is usually rich and o other is often poor. |