C. Reasons why women's and men's hats are made in separate establishments... V. Seasonal character of the industry. 7 77780 8 10 11 11 12 13 13 13 14 15 15 16 16 17 17 17 VIII. Export trade............. IX. Competitive conditions. X. Comments and suggestions as to tariff classification. 23 24 24 25 27 30 32 33 33 33 36 40 40 41 STRAW HATS. RAMIE HAT BRAIDS. GENERAL INFORMATION. 1913 tariff paragraph.-334. Ramie hat braids, 40 per cent ad valorem; manufactures of ramie hat braids, 50 per cent ad valorem. Description and uses.-Ramie braid, used for making hats, resembles silk braid, and may be made by hand or by machinery, as other hat braid. Production. The production of ramie hat braid is not very extensive, importers claiming that the demand for it in this country has ceased entirely. Switzerland is the chief producer, but some is made in Italy, Germany, and France. The raw material from which ramie hat braid is made comes almost wholly from China and Formosa. Imports.-Imports of ramie hat braids or manufactures thereof are not shown by countries. Imports of hat braids amounted to $3,018 in 1914 and $150 in 1920. În 1918 they amounted to $6,475, the highest. Imports of manufactures of ramie hat braids amounted to $4,033 in 1917. In other years they have amounted to less than $1,000 with the exception of 1916, when they amounted to $1,701. Tariff history. The act of 1913 was the first to provide specifically for ramie hat braids. In previous tariff acts ramie hat braids were dutiable under the paragraph relating to braids composed wholly or in chief value of cotton, flax, or other vegetable fiber and not elsewhere specially provided for. Under the act of 1894 ramie braids were dutiable at 45 per cent ad valorem, under the acts of 1897 and 1909 at 60 per cent ad valorem, and under the act of 1913 at 40 per cent ad valorem. Ramie hat braids-Imports for consumption-Revenue. Kinds of hats produced in the United States. The principal business of straw-hat factories in the United States is the production of sewnbraid hats, i. e., hats made by sewing plaits or braids, of straw or other vegetable fibers, into the shape of hat bodies. Woven-body hats, rough hoods or forms woven of straw or other vegetable fibers, are also finished and trimmed in American factories. The manufacture of sewn-braid hats constitutes the bulk of the business in every large hat factory; the trimming and finishing of the woven-hat bodies is important but subsidiary. • Materials. The principal materials used in the manufacture of sewn-braid hats are braids and plaits of straw, chip (wood shavings), and hemp. All braids are imported, chiefly from Japan (60 per cent), China, and Italy. Imports of braids for 1920 were $9,137,696, and the average for the years 1914-1920 was $7,502,457. Woven-hat bodies come from Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru, the Philippine Islands (Bangkoks and Buntals), Porto Rico, Japan (paper Panamas), Italy (Leghorns), China, and the East India Islands. The imports of hat bodies not blocked or trimmed were valued at $2,457,264 in 1920; the average for 1914-1920 was $3,772,783. The braiding of straw plait and the weaving of hat bodies are hand occupations performed by cheap labor, largely that of women and children, in the homes of the workers in foreign countries. With the exception of a small quantity of fancy braids of artificial silk and ramie fiber, neither braids nor hat bodies are at present produced in this country. Accessory materials, such as chemicals for bleaching and dyeing, cotton thread, glue, silk hatbands, leather sweatbands, and miscellaneous trimmings were imported (practically the entire supply) before the war, but all are now produced in this country. Manufacturing processes. The principal processes involved in the manufacture of men's sewn-braid hats are (1) Bleaching the braid. (2) Sewing the braid. (3) Sizing or stiffening the hat bodies. (4) A sulphur bath. (5) Pressing. (6) Finishing. (7) Trimming. Women's sewn-braid hats are made in the same way, except that the braid used is generally dyed, instead of being bleached, and the women's hats are varnished after pressing. The trimming of women's hats is usually done in retail stores, although many thousand dozens of hats are sent out from the factories "ready to wear." Wovenhat bodies for both men's and women's wear are imported in the rough, and bleached or dyed, pressed and trimmed in American factories. Sewing, the most important and expensive operation in volved in the manufacture of sewn-braid hats, does not enter into finishing and trimming of woven-hat bodies. Hence the labor cost is less, but since bodies are more expensive than braids the material cost is considerably higher. Production in the United States. In 1914 straw hats to the value of $27,918,553 were produced in 149 factories, chiefly in the States of New York, Maryland, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania. With the exception of a few large factories in small towns in Massachusetts, the industry is urban, being concentrated in New York, Baltimore, and Philadelphia. Of the total production, women's hats amount to approximately $15,500,000, or 55 per cent, and men's, boys' and children's hats to $12,500,000, or 45 per cent. Men's and women's hats are, with negligible exceptions, invariably produced in separate establishments. The materials used and the processes involved are similar, and although the styles of men's hats show more uniformity, a surprising amount of standardization has been attained in the output of large factories producing women's hats. The reason for the separation of the production of men's and women's hats into two distinct branches of the industry seems to lie in the difference in the character of the demand for the products and in the consequent difference in marketing problems. Production in both branches is seasonal. In the case of women's straw hats, the "busy" season lasts from November 1 to June 1. Velvets and felt hats are made in the summer and early fall months, but with reduced labor force. Wage earners. The average number of laborers employed in the straw-hat industry in 1914 was 9,483, comprising about 40 per cent men and 60 per cent women. The women who are employed in sewing the braid should be regarded as skilled laborers. A period of apprenticeship or training of one or two seasons is necessary to acquire proficiency. Added skill, resulting in considerably increased wages, is gained for several years. Operatives, who might be called partly skilled, are the men engaged in blocking, pressing and finishing hats. Competition. Production of women's hats in this country is on a larger scale, turning out a more standardized product, than in foreign countries. In foreign countries, straw-hat factories are principally engaged in the production of men's hats. Only women of the upper classes wear hats regularly in many foreign countries, and consequently the demand is not large enough to warrant standardized production on a large scale. The rapidity of style changes and the necessity of quick deliveries make foreign competition in the American markets impossible. A few French hats are imported every year; but these are mostly used as models. The imports of trimmed hats are almost entirely finished hats for men's wear. In 1914, the year of the last census of manufactures, imports of finished hats amounted to $903,179, the maximum figure. In the same year the American production of men's straw hats was $12,500,000, the ratio of imports to production being 7.2 per cent. A more accurate idea of the extent of foreign competition is obtained by comparing the production of men's hats in 1914 with the average annual imports for the years 1914-1917: Average annual imports 1914–1917.. Production of men's hats in United States in 1914. 64912-21—N▬2▬▬▬2 - per cent.. $468, 025 $12,500,000 3.7 |