Puget Sound Weekly Argus

The American Hog.

The President has sent to Congress a message recommending legislation to prohibit the importation of swine from France and Germany. It is claimed that the trichinae and infectious swine diseases are prevalent in both countries, but it may be suspected that the principal reason for prohibatory legislation is to retaliate for the exclusion of American pork particularly from France, where recent legislation has been extremely exclusive in its character.

It is not enough to prohibit the importation of something which is hardly imported at all. Since France has excluded our pork, let us see what the effect would be if we should exclude her imports, such as wine and oil and silks and other articles which we import in great quantities. France would soon be on humble pie if such action were taken, and would be only too glad to make a change in her laws.

As to the exclusion, and especially of food products, is also unknown to us at this time among civilized nations. Even where the article comes into direct competition with the home product, the most that is done is to impose an import duty, thus leaving to the consumer the option of whether he will use the domestic or the foreign product. Wine, which we are commencing to produce to a large extent, is protected by a duty; but it has never occurred in Congress yet to prohibit the importation of French, or German, or Spanish wine. Silk, too, has become a leading industry in some of the American States but our women can still have French silk dresses, if they choose to pay the duty on the silk. California produces to-day better olive oil than is imported from France or Italy, but olive growers have never asked that foreign olive oil be completely excluded.

To bring France sharply to its senses, Congress should authorize the President to retaliate in such a way as to make the retaliation felt. He should have authority, in case of France's excluding American food products of any kind, pork or anything else, to refuse admission into the United States of any French product of every sort and kind. In the year 1886-87 our imports from France amounted to over $68,000,000, and our exports to France something over $55,000,000, thus showing an apparent balance of trade in her favor of about $13,000,000. It may be safely assumed that France will not permit the American hog to disturb a condition of things so favorable to her, and that if she is seriously threatened with stern and effective retaliation, her prejudice against our pork will rapidly disappear, and hostile legislation be repealed or greatly modified.