The Massachusetts spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1821-1823, 1821-10-10

announced In newspapers. Formerly
commerce was confined to few towns
and to few merchants; consequently
their profits were enormous. In mod
ern times foreign trade. has become a
very hazardous lottery kind of specula-
ton, wherein very few draw prizes
The tobacco merchants have suffered so
much lately, that our planters find them
selves necessitated TO ship their tobacco.
thus they must incur the expense of
freight, OF insurance, and the risque Of
foreign agency and should i'll success
attend some of them, these must sell
their slaves and property, and retire in
to The interiour, far from market,
whence grain will scarcely deflay the
expense OF transportation, and where
the comforts OF society and the means of
education are wanting.
If we examine the rises and falls of
modern nations, we shall find that they
depend upon the increase OF elimination
OF internal manufacturing industry. If
machinery can give to nation equal to
the productive iabour of hundred mil
lion of hands, think how handicr;dt bust
ness must be undersold, and how the ma
ton that employs machinery can obtain
the raw produce, and the specie, and
the stocks of another nation which does
not use machinery. Statesmen and finan-
elers ought particularlyto consider how
machinery can be introduced and aug
mented in their own country.
It would require several pages TO
contain an enumeration of the consuma-
BILE things produced By ingenuity and
industry. Let any one taiSe list of what
is in his house, and he viii be surprised
at the variety. lie cannot be clothed.
or comb his hair, or shave, or look a
bout his room, without Finding what
leather for shoes, what cotton, wool,
&c. for stockings, pantaloons, sc. what
skins for hats, and what dyes are re-
CURED. Let him look at his sideboard,
and view the glass, pottery, Sc. &C.
Let the agriculturists then consider,
that if the makers of these did not ex-
ist, what would their farms be worth,
and that the nearer the makers of these
things reside, the less distance they
have TO send their produce, and the
quicker their returns.
You, sir, have proved yourself most
Jealous, assiduous and intelligent promo
ter of agriculture, and | wish you could
induce each of our Societies severally
to appoint a committee to give reports
on political economy; for | fear we
are too attentive to the one, and too
negligent of the ether. These COM
mittees would teach the agriculturists
to consider, that they must no longer
rely exclusively on exports and imports,
and that commerce is trifing precari-
Gus resource compared with a home
market. In Mr.. Sullivan's address to
the Massachusetts society, published in
your 9th number, it is stated. that one
man can produce on 10 acres potatoes
enough to feed one hundred Thus ten
thousand men and one hundred thousand
acres, could feed a million of persons
there must be ground TO feed cattle,
sheep, and horses and if we had a mid
die class, in sufficient numbers, great
quantity of meadow land would be re-
qrired, and the manure of these animals
would enrich the uplands and increase
our crops. The farmers would thus be-
come rich, and obtain. resources to irri-
gate, and to make All kinds of improve.
Hents.
Were we agricultTrists, how wretchef
we should be by excess of food, and the
want of every thing else. 1t may be
said that man would naturally turn to
other employments. SO | admit he
would, and thus barter would be intro
duced- 1t may be also urged that ex-
ports would take place ; but that deny,
if other nations prohibited the admis-
sion of our products. But to this it may
be replied, we may buy and sell amongst
ourselves; this also deny, unless we
make our own circulating medium for
nation without mipes,. cannot have
specie but by the balance of trade.
If our societies had committees, as
propose, to make reports on political
economy, our farmers from. the interi-
our, when members Of Congress, would
know their own true interest, and be no
longer deluded by the exploded doc
trines of the French economists, which.
for long time prevailed, producing
much mischief. If Great-Britain had on
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