The Sun.
London, England, 1838-12-05 00:00:00

ANSWERS.

Suppose the manufacturers were to say, " Without a tax
on home-grown corn, there are such and such classes of
spinning jennies we find remunerating. But enliven the
demand for goods to purchase foreign corn, by a duty of
ten per cent upon home-grown, and we have such and such
other machines, now laid by as incompetent, which would
remunerate us instantly ; we demand therefore to be re-
munerated. And if instead of ten you would make the
duty twenty, there is yet another class of machines, quite
worthless to us now, which would remunerate immediately.
We hope that Parliament will immediately fix us a rea-
sonable standard of remuneration. The only rule by which
manufactures can be adequately protected is this, that
home-grown corn shall not, at any time, or under any cir-
cumstances, be admitted for sale, in any part of her Ma-
j esty's European dominions, until the price falls below what'
the Legislature shall deem to be a reasonable standard of
remuneration to the British owner of spinning-jennies."
This would display all the unreasonableness, and no more,
of the demand for remuneration put forward by the
owners of the land. Why is the owner of the one kind
of machinery, to have his bad machines made remunerating
out of his neighbours' pockets, any more than the other

294.—Without such protection, no country, burdened with
a load of taxes, can stand a competition with poor nations,
nearly untaxed, who live scantily on homely fare, whose rents
are paid in produce, and whose cattle or horses employed in
labour, cost but a trifle, and are cheaply maintained. The
plan of exclusion, therefore, until symptoms of scarcity appear,
is essential; and no encouragement ought to be given, to the
culture of foreign countries, with British capital, unless from
necessity. —ld.
A.—Why not the manufacturers equally set up the plea,
that it is impossible for a country to stand a competition with
poor nations, nearly untaxed, and whose labourers live
scantily on homely fare, unless its own manufactures are
protected by a duty upon home-grown corn ? All the rea-
son shown for the one, is good for the other.

295.-It is a most unfortunate circumstance, that any in-
dividual, friendly to agriculture, should be inclined to give up
the protection by averages, "which is the only one that can be
safety relied on." Importation on a fixed duty, without re-
ference to the average price of home produce, may suit the
speculative merchant, but would ruin agriculture. The farmer
must be enabled to form some general idea, of the price be is
likely to receive for the grain he raises, otherwise he cannot
calculate, what rent he ought to agree to pay,—ls hat quantity
of land to cultivate for grain,—what number of labourers to
hire,—and whether it would be advisable for hint to engage in
expensive improvements.—ld.

A.—lf the manufacturers were trying to bring their in-
ferior spinning-jennies into action by taxing the landlords'
corn, they might urge the same arguments for doing it by
means of a system of averages. But precisely because this
was most convenient to them, it ought to be opposed by
everybody else. " Neither the averages nor the fixed
duty,"—would be what all wise people would demand.

29G.—How is it possible that any calculation of-the probable
prices of grain can be formed, ff the whole world is opened to
the efforts of speculation ?—ld.
A.—And so the whole world is to be shut to commerce,
that landlords may better calculate the probable amount of
their unjust rents.

297.—Dependence on a fixed duty therefore, unless at a rate
higher than ever could be enforced, would discourage the
British farmer, whom it affects to protect ; would expose him
to that uncertainty which he most deprecates ;—ld.
A.—Let all these objections and inutilities be carefully
noted, when the proposal is made for a fixed duty ; which
will be the next attempt. By all means, do not discourage
the British farmer by affecting to protect him with a fixed
duty.

298. —and is far from securing to him the command of the
home market, to which he has so just a claim, for it is impossi-
ble to know, how cheap corn may be grown in other countries,
or what may be the rashness of speculators, in importing quan-
tities of foreign corn, which they may be compelled to sell,
even with a loss.—ld.
A.—A man has a just claim to get a certain price from
you, because there is no knowing how cheap you may get the
article somewhere else. Fancy this transferred to the ge-
neral concerns of life ; and what would, by the end. of the
week, have become of the proposer ?

299.—The dealers in foreign corn say " that abroad, the
price of wheat is so high, that a duty ofl2s. per quarter would
be sufficient." But even 20s. on what may be bought at
Odessa for 14s. or 155., and in Sicily also for 19s. per quarter,
would be no adequate protection, because the merchant
not only buys the corn cheap, but may receive, 1. Advan-
tages from the state of the exchange ; and, 2. Mercantile pro.
fits on the goods sent abroad, in return for the grain imported.
He may therefore lose by the grain be imports to the ruin of
the British farmer, (for the effects of a small addition to a
quantity already sufficient are well known), but ho may gain
by the whole speculation, when lie exports goods, as well as
imports grain. No attainable protecting duty therefore, can
be effectual. —ld.
A.—A duty must be laid on corn, because it might
otherwise be bought for 19s. a quarter in Sicily, and 14s.
in Odessa, and a gain be made on the manufactures exported
besides. So long as men will receive such a reason, let
them receive it.

300.—Besides, if foreign grain wero to be at all admissible,
the rate of admission is of little consequence ; for the pro-
prietors in poor countries, as Poland and Russia, who receive
their rents in kind, umst sett it at any price it will fetch.—ld,
A.—Why de not they do the same now ? The question
is of no consequence, except as showing the vagueness of
the arguments on which men are advised to pay double for
their bread.

301.--But the most material objection to a fixed duty is
this, that when most wanted, it would not be enforced. If the
price became very high, no government would venture to
exact a tax upon corn.—/d.
A.---There is no doubt, that one of the mischiefs of a
graduated duty is, that it gives way whenever popular re-
sistanco is most likely to accumulate. It produces there-
fore a given pressure on the community, with the least
danger to the actors engaged ; in which it does the work
of the valve to a steam-engine. It may be truly said, that
without the valve, no government could meet the chances
of explosion from a tax on corn.

302. —The payment of the duty would be suspended, though
the entire ruin of the farmer would result from it.--/d.
A.—The ruin of the expectations lie bad built upon an
unjust price of corn. Or more exactly, the ruin of the ex-
pectations his landlord had formed of increased rents upon
the same. For the farmer would fall back upon the land-
lord ; or better still, he would preserve himself by pru-
dence in hia engagements as other men do, if he was not
tempted into gambling, by the assurance that his landlord
can go to Parliament and take the difference out of the
pockets of the community when he pleases.

303.—1 t has been well observed, that a fixed duty upon the
importation of foreign corn, would be a mere delusion upon
the British corn grower. The present system is founded upon
the principle, of affording to the farmer, a compensation dur-
ing years of abundance, for the loss which, in seasons of
scarcity, he is doomed to sustain, by the laws of nature and
humanity.—ld.
A.—Why does not Le find his compensation as other,
pok.:10 kie,,,trviithout a tax ? The palpable oh** is, to find
a uewpensation for the variation of tbo seasons, uponfla 6
stones,

fi 3,°47—Ti,,«! Projects of superseding this system, by opposing
4•4.11 4 mere device, to deprive thq british corn

of the latter, as much as it exalts that of the former. Of
the political article on " Lord Durham's Return," we have
already spoken ; we need say, therefore, nothing more in
this place. Altogether, the Number is an excellent one.

CORN-LAW FALLACIES, WITH THE

(Continued from The Sun of Wednesday.)
293.—0 n the System of protecting averages, as indispensa-
ble for the safety of the British Farmer. —The only rule by
which agriculture can be adequately protected is this, " That
foreign grain shall not, at any time, or under any circumstances,
be admitted for sale, into any part of his Majesty's European
dominions, until the price rises beyond what the Legislature
shall deem to be a reasonable standard of remuneration to the
British farmer."—On the Corn Laws. By the Right Hon.
Sir John Sinclair, Bart. Addenda to " The Code of Agri-
culture." No. rr.—(Continued.]
ANSWER.—What is the legislature to "deem a reason-
able standard of remuneration to the British farmer ?" He
can get remuneration and pay a rent out of the better kinds
of land, without any exclusion of foreign corn at all. He
can do so out of the sand at high-water mark, if through
the exclusion of other corn the wants of the public create
a sufficient price. And when the public has consented to
remunerate him for growing corn on the sand at high-
water mark, it will be asked to remunerate him for growing
it on flag-stones next. The remuneration demanded, is for
doing what no man has a right to be remunerated for. It
is as if a messenger should demand to be remunerated, for
hopping all the way on one leg. Nobody asked him to
put himself to the trouble ; there were plenty of people to
carry it at a lower price on two.
But the artifice is not so much with the farmers as the

landowners. The landowners inveigle the farmer into an
engagement for such rent, as can only be paid by his re-
ceiving a forced price from the public ; and then the land-
lords go into their places in Parliament and say, " Do you
not sce that this price is absolutely necessary to give re-
muneration to the farmer ? Diminish it and he will be be-
hindhand with his engagements ; he must take part of his
expected profit to pay his rent ; he must be a ruined man,
unless preserved by the forbearance of his landlord." The
secret being all the time, that rent is the thing mainly at
stake. The farmer may have a certain interest, in seeing
the sand at high-water mark brought into cultivation, and
thus the land on which farming capital can be employed in-
creased. But it is the landlord who has the sweeping
interest, in getting rent from land where in justice he would
have none.