RAINFALL, THE <i>MÉLINE</i> TARIFF, AND WHEAT PRODUCTION IN MEDITERRANEAN FRANCE, 1885–1914

Bassino, Jean‐Pascal; Dormois, Jean-Pierre

doi:10.1111/j.1467-8446.2009.00270.x

Cited by 3 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 14 publications

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“…In the 1880s, farmers' lobbying led to the introduction of a tariff on wheat, with a dual rate depending on whether the country of origin was granted the 'most-favored nation' clause or not. All of France's major trading partners were granted this clause resulting in low de facto tariffs; see Bassino and Dormois (2010).…”

Section: Historical Backgroundmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Toll of Tariffs: Protectionism, Education and Fertility in Late 19th Century France

Bignon

Garcı́a-Peñalosa

2018

SSRN Journal

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This paper examines a novel negative impact of trade tariffs and the costs they induce by documenting how protectionism reversed the long-term improvements in education and the fertility transition that were well under way in late 19th-century France. The Méline tariff, a tariff on cereals introduced in 1892, was a major protectionist shock that shifted relative prices in favor of agriculture and away from industry. In a context in which the latter was more intensive in skills than agriculture, the tariff reduced the relative return to education, which in turn affected parents' decisions about the quantity and quality of children. We use regional differences in the importance of cereal production in the local economy to estimate the impact of the tariff. Our findings indicate that the tariff reduced enrolment in primary education and increased birth rates and fertility. The magnitude of these effects was substantial, with the tariff offsetting the increasing trend in enrolment rates and the decreasing one in birth rates by a decade.

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Section: Historical Backgroundmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In factBassino and Dormois (2010) show that in the 1870s and 1880s acreage under cultivation and output had fallen, particularly in the South of France. SeeAllen (1988) on property sizes and mechanization.…”

mentioning

confidence: 98%

The Toll of Tariffs: Protectionism, Education and Fertility in Late 19th Century France

Bignon

Garcı́a-Peñalosa

2018

SSRN Journal

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“…The reversal of this relationship during the final quarter of the nineteenth century may be explained by a combination of lower precipitation levels and new tariffs. Bassino and Dormois (2010: 37) emphasize the importance of the imposition of new tariffs on agricultural imports in the 1880s and assert that rainfall was a very important factor in explaining the development of wheat production under the tariff. Given the reduction in rainfall between 1840 and 1900 (table 1) and restrictions in trade, they pointed out that agricultural depression was felt more acutely in dry areas, where “wheat cropping became uneconomical in marginal areas that had been cultivated during the comparatively wetter and colder period up to 1870” (ibid.…”

Section: Climate Effects On Staturementioning

confidence: 99%

Climate Effects and Stature since 1800

Galofré-Vilà¹,

Guntupalli²,

Harris³

et al. 2018

Soc. sci. hist.

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During the last 30 years, economic and social historians have collected and analyzed large amounts of anthropometric data to explore key aspects of the human past. Attention has also been devoted to the examination of factors that can exert an influence on stature. This article outlines the different ways in which climate might influence stature, either directly or indirectly. It then uses geographical information system software to explore the relationship between variations in temperature and precipitation and the average heights of men in France, India, Mexico, Spain, and the United States over the last two centuries. It is possible to observe an influence of climate on stature in some countries, especially during the nineteenth century, but the relationship weakens across time and largely disappears in recent decades. The attenuation of this relationship is attributed to a process of “technophysio evolution” as countries modernized and developed economically.

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“…Farmers' lobbying in the 1880s only led to the introduction of a tariff on wheat, which had a high and a low rate, depending on whether the country of origin of the product was granted the 'most-favored nation' clause or not. All of France's major trading partners were granted this clause resulting in low de facto taxation; see Bassino and Dormois (2010). following the introduction of the tariff, with the lowest price being reached in 1895.…”

Section: The Méline Tariff and Its Economic Consequencesmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Toll of Tariffs: Protectionism, Education and Fertility in Late 19th Century France

Bignon

Garcı́a-Peñalosa

2018

SSRN Journal

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

This paper examines a novel negative impact of trade tariffs and the costs they induce by documenting how protectionism reversed the long-term improvements in education and the fertility transition that were well under way in late 19th-century France. The Méline tariff, a tariff on cereals introduced in 1892, was a major protectionist shock that shifted relative prices in favor of agriculture and away from industry. In a context in which the latter was more intensive in skills than agriculture, the tariff reduced the relative return to education, which in turn affected parents' decisions about the quantity and quality of children. We use regional differences in the importance of cereal production in the local economy to estimate the impact of the tariff. Our findings indicate that the tariff reduced enrollment in primary education and increased birthrates and fertility. The magnitude of these effects was substantial. In regions with average shares of employment in cereal production, the tariff offset the (downward) trend in birthrates for 13 years; in those with the highest cereal employment shares, there was a delay of up to 22 years.

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RAINFALL, THE MÉLINE TARIFF, AND WHEAT PRODUCTION IN MEDITERRANEAN FRANCE, 1885–1914

Cited by 3 publications

References 14 publications

The Toll of Tariffs: Protectionism, Education and Fertility in Late 19th Century France

The Toll of Tariffs: Protectionism, Education and Fertility in Late 19th Century France

Climate Effects and Stature since 1800

The Toll of Tariffs: Protectionism, Education and Fertility in Late 19th Century France

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