IMPORTS_Men's Sewed Straw Hats Report of the United Stated Tariff Commission to the President of the United States (1926)

The quantities and values of sewed straw hats imported into the United

States were not separately shown in official statistics prior to the

tariff act of 1922, in which sewed straw hats were given a separate

classification.

Table 3 shows the imports for consumption of sewed straw hats from the

principal countries of origin, by months, for the calendar years 1923

and 1924. Total imports increased from 93,309 dozen in 1923, valued at

$779,989, to 164,041 dozen in 1924, valued at $1,179,929, a gain of

approximately 75 per cent in quantity and 50 per cent in value.

TABLE 3.--_Imports for consumption of men's sewed straw hats[1] from

Italy, England, Germany, and other countries, by months, calendar years

1923 and 1924_

(Source: Foreign Commerce and Navigation of the United States)

-------------+----------+----------+----------+----------+------------

| | | | [2] |

+----------+----------+----------+----------+------------

Month | 1923 | 1923 | 1923 | 1923 | 1923

-------------+----------+----------+----------+----------+------------

January | 51,225 | 9,734 | 2,460 | 26,606 | 90,025

February | 53,644 | 9,235 | 8 | 4,756 | 67,643

March | 54,102 | 55,920 | 7,420 | 51,305 | 168,747

April | 66,552 | 46,222 | 1,931 | 84,684 | 199,389

May | 78,602 | 68,989 | 80 | 31,888 | 179,559

June | 38,658 | 42,776 | 1,960 | 4,414 | 87,808

July | 23,049 | 6,717 | 848 | 11,685 | 42,299

August | 1,796 | 1,250 | 1,504 | 1,041 | 5,591

September | 120 | 960 | 1,272 | 102 | 2,474

October | 53,129 | 396 | 3,411 | 331 | 57,267

November | 77,962 | 2,718 | 8,929 | 7,524 | 97,133

December | 78,372 | 1,647 | 21,334 | 20,415 | 121,768

+----------+----------+----------+----------+------------

Total number | 577,211 | 246,584 | 51,157 | 244,751 | 1,119,703

Dozen | 48,101 | 20,549 | 4,263 | 20,396 | 93,309

+==========+==========+==========+==========+============

| | | | |

Total Value | $289,215 | $256,769 | $32,503 | $201,502 | $779,989

| | | | |

dozen | $6.01 | $12.50 | $7.62 | $9.88 | $8.36

+==========+==========+==========+==========+============

country | 51.50 | 22.00 | 4.60 | 21.90 | 100.0

-------------+----------+----------+----------+----------+------------

| | | | [2] |

+----------+----------+----------+----------+------------

Month | 1924 | 1924 | 1924 | 1924 | 1924

-------------+----------+----------+----------+----------+------------

January | 35,754 | 50,087 | 19,829 | 34,754 | 140,424

February | 114,644 | 35,024 | 25,372 | 57,429 | 232,469

March | 97,899 | 46,435 | 50,126 | 40,669 | 235,129

April | 192,007 | 119,031 | 85,421 | 49,935 | 446,394

May | 113,593 | 54,874 | 85,884 | 34,047 | 288,398

June | 59,840 | 37,208 | 6,873 | 14,769 | 118,690

July | 22,505 | 1,533 | 720 | 41,367 | 66,125

August | 4,000 | 820 | 2,795 | 41,689 | 49,304

September | 427 | 706 | 7,377 | 10,550 | 19,060

October | 37,809 | 318 | 4,541 | 34,528 | 77,196

November | 82,313 | 2,640 | 959 | 44,471 | 130,383

December | 100,353 | 4,723 | 5,332 | 54,516 | 164,924

+----------+----------+----------+----------+------------

Total number | 861,144 | 353,399 | 295,229 | 458,724 | 1,968,496

Dozen | 71,762 | 29,450 | 24,602 | 38,227 | 164,041

+----------+----------+----------+----------+------------

| | | | |

Total Value | $427,706 | $282,402 | $180,054 | $289,767 | $1,179,929

| | | | |

dozen | $5.96 | $9.59 | $7.32 | $7.57 | $7.19

+==========+==========+==========+==========+============

country | 43.75 | 17.95 | 15.00 | 23.30 | 100.00

-------------+----------+----------+----------+----------+------------

[1: Including men's, women's, and children's.]

[2: Including withdrawals from warehouse.]

A comparison of the imports for the first four months of 1925 with those

for the corresponding period in 1924 is shown in Table 4. A significant

feature of this table is the increase in imports from Italy and the

decrease of imports from both the United Kingdom and Germany. It should

be noted also that the average foreign[a] value per dozen of Italian

hats decreased while the average foreign[a] value of hats imported from

England and other countries increased.

[Footnote a: Values upon which duties were assessed as computed from

data given in Foreign Commerce and Navigation of the United States.]

TABLE 4.--_Imports for consumption of men's sewed straw hats[1] from

Italy, United Kingdom, Germany, and other countries, by months,

January-April, inclusive, 1924 and 1925._

(Source: Foreign Commerce and Navigation of the United States)

------------+----------+----------+----------+-----------+-----------

| | | | [2] |

+----------+----------+----------+-----------+-----------

Month | 1924 | 1924 | 1924 | 1924 | 1924

------------+----------+----------+----------+-----------+-----------

January | 35,754 | 50,087 | 19,829 | 34,754 | 140,424

February | 114,644 | 35,024 | 25,372 | 57,429 | 232,469

March | 97,899 | 46,435 | 50,126 | 40,669 | 235,129

April | 192,007 | 119,031 | 85,421 | 49,935 | 446,394

+----------+----------+----------+-----------+-----------

Total number| 440,304 | 250,577 | 180,748 | 182,787 | 1,054,416

Dozen | 36,692 | 20,882 | 15,062 | 15,232 | 87,868

+==========+==========+==========+===========+===========

| | | | |

Total value | $228,452 | $201,291 | $102,366 | $123,775 | $655,884

| | | | |

per dozen | 6.23 | 9.64 | 6.80 | 8.13 | 7.46

+==========+==========+==========+===========+===========

country | 41.76 | 23.76 | 17.14 | 17.34 | 100.00

------------+----------+----------+----------+-----------+-----------

| | | | [2] |

+----------+----------+----------+-----------+-----------

Month | 1925 | 1925 | 1925 | 1925 | 1925

------------+----------+----------+----------+-----------+-----------

January | 212,292 | 8,995 | 12,070 | 6,104 | 239,461

February | 189,736 | 31,776 | 7,697 | 22,580 | 251,789

March | 207,218 | 61,755 | 3,828 | 24,482 | 297,283

April | 260,145 | 45,711 | 40,479 | 10,545 | 356,880

+----------+----------+----------+-----------+-----------

Total number| 869,391 | 148,237 | 64,074 | 63,711 | 1,145,413

Dozen | 72,449 | 12,353 | 5,340 | 5,309 | 95,451

+==========+==========+==========+===========+===========

| | | | |

Total value | $395,298 | $161,422 | $40,923 | $78,222 | $675,865

| | | | |

per dozen | 5.46 | 13.07 | 7.66 | 14.73 | 7.08

+==========+==========+==========+===========+===========

country | 75.90 | 12.94 | 5.60 | 5.56 | 100.00

------------+----------+----------+----------+-----------+-----------

[1: Including men's, women's, and children's.]

[2: Including withdrawals from warehouse.]

TABLE 5.--_Imports at the port of New York of men's sewed straw hats

from Italy[1] classified according to foreign value, including packing

January-June, 1924_

[In dozens]

----------------+-------------------------+-------------------------

| Sennits[2] | Fancies[3]

Value +-------+---------+-------+-------+---------+-------

----------------+-------+---------+-------+-------+---------+-------

$2.99 and less | | 18 | 18 | | 60 | 60

$3.00-$3.49 | 6 | 38 | 44 | | 219 | 219

$3.50-$3.99 | 255 | 23 | 278 | 1 | 250 | 251

$4.00-$4.49 | 2,518 | 28 | 2,546 | 196 | 2,909 | 3,105

$4.50-$4.99 | 1,617 | 24 | 1,641 | 61 | 477 | 538

$5.00-$5.49 | 1,671 | 4 | 1,675 | 427 | 711 | 1,138

$5.50-$5.99 | 1,687 | 1 | 1,688 | 608 | 89 | 697

$6.00-$6.49 | 1,313 | | 1,313 | 2,831 | 182 | 3,013

$6.50-$6.99 | 2,657 | 1 | 2,658 | 2,537 | 33 | 2,570

$7.00-$7.49 | 740 | | 740 | 996 | 15 | 1,011

$7.50-$7.99 | 255 | | 255 | 939 | 3 | 942

$8.00-$8.49 | 147 | | 147 | 470 | 6 | 476

$8.50-$8.99 | 165 | | 165 | 261 | 5 | 266

$9.00-$9.49 | 10 | | 10 | 165 | 1 | 166

$9.50-$9.99 | 30 | | 30 | 107 | | 107

$10.00-$10.49 | 39 | | 39 | 56 | 1 | 57

$10.50-$10.99 | 46 | | 46 | 34 | | 34

$11.00 and over | 63 | 3 | 66 | 10 | 12 | 22

+-------+---------+-------+-------+---------+-------

Total |13,219 | 140 |13,359 | 9,699 | 4,973 |14,672

----------------+-------+---------+-------+-------+---------+-------

[In dozens]

----------------+-------------------------+-------------------------

| Miscellaneous[4] | Grand total

Value +-------+---------+-------+-------+---------+-------

----------------+-------+---------+-------+-------+---------+-------

$2.99 and less | | | | | 78 | 78

$3.00-$3.49 | 50 | | 50 | 56 | 257 | 313

$3.50-$3.99 | 570 | | 570 | 826 | 273 | 1,099

$4.00-$4.49 | 622 | | 622 | 3,336 | 2,937 | 6,273

$4.50-$4.99 | 680 | | 680 | 2,358 | 501 | 2,859

$5.00-$5.49 | 1,715 | | 1,715 | 3,813 | 715 | 4,528

$5.50-$5.99 | 1,095 | 58 | 1,153 | 3,390 | 148 | 3,538

$6.00-$6.49 | 1,826 | 10 | 1,836 | 5,970 | 192 | 6,162

$6.50-$6.99 | 879 | 1 | 880 | 6,073 | 35 | 6,108

$7.00-$7.49 | 433 | | 433 | 2,169 | 15 | 2,184

$7.50-$7.99 | 346 | 17 | 363 | 1,540 | 20 | 1,560

$8.00-$8.49 | 598 | | 598 | 1,215 | 6 | 1,221

$8.50-$8.99 | 231 | | 231 | 657 | 5 | 662

$9.00-$9.49 | 420 | | 420 | 595 | 1 | 596

$9.50-$9.99 | 46 | | 46 | 183 | | 183

$10.00-$10.49 | 203 | | 203 | 298 | 1 | 299

$10.50-$10.99 | 56 | | 56 | 136 | | 136

$11.00 and over | 527 | 1 | 528 | 600 | 16 | 616

+-------+---------+-------+-------+---------+-------

Total |10,297 | 87 |10,384 |33,215 | 5,200 |38,415

----------------+-------+---------+-------+-------+---------+-------

[1: Taken from original invoices. Fractional dozen omitted in this

table.]

[2: Split, improved, and flatfoot.]

[3: Fancy straw and sennit, fancy.]

[4: Including hats the type of which is not specified in the invoice.

Probably many sennits and fancies.]

In Table 5, imports of Italian hats at the port of New York in the six

months January-June, 1924, have been classified according to foreign

values shown on consular invoices. There is a marked concentration of

imports in the value groups between $4 and $7 per dozen. About 90 per

cent of all the sennit hats and 80 per cent of the total importations

had foreign values of less than $7 per dozen.

TABLE 6.--_Percentage of men's sewed straw hats imported at the port

of New York from Italy with a foreign value less than that specified,

January-June_, 1924

--------------+------------+------------+------------------+-----------

Foreign value | Sennits[1] | Fancies[2] | Miscellaneous[3] | Total

less than-- | | | |

--------------+------------+------------+------------------+-----------

| _Per cent_ | _Per cent_ | _Per cent_ | _Per cent_

$9.50 | 98.6 | 98.5 | 92.0 | 96.8

$9.00 | 98.6 | 97.4 | 87.9 | 95.2

$8.50 | 97.3 | 95.6 | 85.7 | 93.5

$8.00 | 91.2 | 92.3 | 79.9 | 90.3

$7.50 | 94.3 | 85.9 | 76.4 | 86.3

$7.00 | 88.8 | 79.0 | 72.3 | 80.6

$6.50 | 68.9 | 61.5 | 63.8 | 64.7

$6.00 | 9.1 | 40.9 | 46.1 | 48.6

$5.50 | 46.4 | 36.2 | 35.0 | 39.4

$5.00 | 33.9 | 28.4 | 18.5 | 27.6

$4.50 | 21.6 | 24.8 | 12.0 | 20.2

--------------+------------+------------+------------------+-----------

[1: Split, improved, and flatfoot.]

[2: Fancy straw and sennit, fancy.]

[3: Including hats the type of which is not specified in the invoice.]

The imports at the port of New York of hats from England are classified

in Table 7. It is evident that the bulk of the English importations are

not competitive with Italian hats. Only 28 per cent of the imports from

England had a foreign value of less than $7 per dozen.

TABLE 7.--_Imports at the port of New York of men's sewed straw hats

from England,[1] classified according to foreign value, including

packing, January-June_, 1924

------------------+---------

Foreign value | Dozen

------------------+---------

$6.50-$6.99 | 2,631

$7.00-$7.49 | ...

$7.50-$7.99 | ...

$8.00-$8.49 | ...

$8.50-$8.99 | 3,340

$9.00-$9.49 | 1,260

$9.50-$9.99 | 1,044

$10.00-$10.49 | 98

$10.50-$10.99 | ...

$11.00 and up | 948

| =====

Total | 9,521

------------------+---------

[1: These data cover 9,521 dozen hats out of a total of approximately

10,730 dozen imported from England, or 89 per cent. They represent

the larger invoices (several over 1,000 dozen) and hence are not

so evenly distributed as are the Italian hats.]

_Effect of imports._--The effect of the increasing imports of straw

hats on the production and sales of domestic firms was discussed at the

public hearings before the Tariff Commission. Evidence was introduced

showing that the production of 19 factories decreased from 468,424 dozen

in the eight months August, 1923, to March, 1924, to 391,189 dozen in

the corresponding months of 1924-25. Seventeen firms showed decreased

production and two firms reported increases. Meanwhile imports of

foreign hats increased from 74,355 dozen to 102,450 dozen. Imports

from Italy increased from 38,000 dozen to 70,000; imports from England

decreased from 12,000 dozen to 9,000. Representatives of several

domestic firms stated that their losses of business were directly

attributable to inability to meet prices quoted by importers of Italian

hats.[1]

[Footnote 1: See Transcript of Public Hearings, May 16, 1925, pp. 408,

420.]

Representatives of the importers, on the other hand, called attention

to the increasing competition of small firms in and around New York

City with larger and longer established firms located principally in

Baltimore. Some of the new firms operate on small capital and specialize

in cheap hats which are directly competitive with the cheapest Italian

hats. Others produce a somewhat better hat, such as is sold by chain

stores. The rate of business failure among the newer firms is unusually

high. Although the membership of the group of producers of cheap hats

is fluctuating, its total output of hats each year is a factor in the

competitive situation.

A relatively new development in the distribution of straw hats is the

chain stores. Sales of such stores, estimated at 150,000 to 200,000

dozen straw hats yearly, include Italian and English hats but are

principally of domestic manufacture. In some cases a chain-store

organization has established factories and thus has instituted direct

competition with manufacturing firms already established. Chain stores

also have furnished capital to small manufacturers, contracting for the

bulk of their output. Thus the change in marketing methods has a bearing

on the failure of the older establishments to keep pace in the volume of

their sales with the national expansion in straw hat consumption.

Men's Sewed Straw Hats Report of the United Stated Tariff Commission to the President of the United States (1926) · 第 12 / 28 题