American Protective Tariff And Anglo-American Textile Trade: 1883-1913

This thesis, from the angle of Anglo-American textile trade, deals with the establishment and influence of American protective tariff, and analyses the reason why it didn't change between 1883 and 1913.It has four chapters:Chapter one briefly describes the Anglo-American textile trade in the middle of the 19th century. It was by this time that British free trade policy had taken shape completely, while American protective tariff had set up officially. Morrill tariff of 1861 and "the war tariff' established the complicated textile tariff system, which became even more complicated after the wool and woolen tariff of 1867.As a result, the long established Anglo-American textile trade was badly damaged and entered into a more fluctuate period.Chapter two presents the course of American protective tariff from 1883 to 1900,and its influence on the volume of Anglo-American textile trade. In 1883, American tariff was regulated comprehensively for the first time since the civil war, but it wasn't a successful reform and gave rise to an intense debate in America thereafter. In 1890s, American tariff policy fluctuated more violently and the protectionism reached the highest point in the 19th century. As the emphasis of American protective system, textile tariff was also progressively raised to an unprecedented high degree by protectionists. As a result, the volume of Anglo-American textile trade was directly influenced.Chapter three describes the evolution of American tariff from 1900 to 1913, and the change in the structure of Anglo-American textile trade since 1860s. After 1900, American progressive movement and the new administration of Democracy in 1912 brought about another two reforms in American tariff policy. Owing to high tariff's restriction, from the civil war to World War I, the structure of Anglo-American textile trade had taken great change.The reason why the reformation of American tariff policy was delayed so late is analyzed in the last chapter. There were many domestic factors such as exist of many interest groups, the long-line administration of the Republic party and the development of protective theory. At the same time, the rise of protectionism in international society from the late 1870s also encouraged American protectionists.Seen from the Anglo-American textile trade between 1883 and 1913, American protective tariff greatly prevented the development of international trade. In the late of the 19 century, when world economy gradually moved towards unification and American economy began to expand externally, insistence on the high tariff policy and resistance to fit in with the new conditions were unreasonable. However, because of the many kinds of complicated factors, both domestic and international, American protectionism became more and more extreme, and therefore the development of foreign trade and American economy were badly influenced.