Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1821-06-15

heo uic COuIitry. lie case Ialrly stated Is,
that the merchant, for the privilege of carry
Ing on ms lawful pursuits, is obliged TO pay,
according to Mr.. Niles's statement, (which as
far as facts and figures 60, we have no doubt
is correctly at the rate of fifteen dollars for
every sixty dollars worth of merchandise
which passes through his hands. This mo-
ney supports the government. Without il
we do not hesitate TO say, our whole sys-
tenn of government would have been a dubi-
Gus, ifnota hazardous, experiment. icon.
gress had the right to cut off this revenue, by
annihilating ut a blow our foreign commerce,
as Is now almost in terms recommended, to
do so would, i'll our view, be an act of politi-
cal suicide, on which insanity would be the
understandable verdict that jury ofinquest
could render.
Mr.. Niles has not mentioned the circum-
stance, that every cent of the taxes on i'm
ports, which he has suddenly discovered to
be so oppressive because it is not felt, is a
premium to that amount paid to the manu-
facturers by enabling them to sell their fab
RIGS to the people for exactly so much more
than they could otherwise get for them
This premium, however, which on some arti-
cles is actually hundred per cent on the
prime cost, neither satisfies him nor them
Nothing short of prohibition Of importation
OF foreign goods, it appears, will answer
Fine times, then, for the manufacturers. on
must take their goods at their prices, or not
at all--and those prices by the new and APP
proved system of finance, are to be further
enhanced by the taxes which the manufactu-
rers are then to be made to pay for the priv
ilege of making their cloths and cacoes, and
pins and penknives.
| Now, against this system for encouraging
manufactures and raising a revenue, we beg
leave with great Difference, but with great
| sincerity, to obtest, by all that we respect of
Republican principles-by all that we love
in our forms of government. We are the
| friends of manufactures. Ourselves one of
| that interest, ii would be strange if we were
not. 1t affords us pleasure to witness their
improvement, and we hope ever to see them
cherished. We believe, however, that on
most articles of foreign growth or manufac-
t,ire, the duties are now abundantly high for
all the purposes uf encouraging the gradual
growth of American manufactures. We
know, indeed, that, under this protection,
manufactures are actually growing to such
| an extent, that, we have no hesitation in pre-
dieting they will, within ten years, in the
natural course of things, cast the balance of
trade ON the other beam, SO that exchange on
London will be as much in our favor as il is
now against us, and Great Britain will have
to seek for new markets, where too she will
find in US a formidable competitor Our
manufactures are growing so rapidly that it
is hazarding nothing to suggest that, in less
than fifty years, our redundant manufactures
will find their way to every nook of the
world into which white man canpenetrate
It's not true, as general remark, that man
| ufactures are depressed, more than as, with
every other pursuit in life, they have exper-
fenced some Inconvenience from the general
peace. They are rapidly growing, and al
ready supply our wants so extensively,
flat the amount of our importations from
abroad bears almost MO proportion to that of
our home manufactures. These may APP
pear at first to be broad assertions, but they
will bear the test of examination. We re-
| collect lately to have seen few facts, which
throw light on this subject. A Deputy
Marshal, in taking the census of one small
county m the state ofVirginia, took the trou-
bic TO procure from each family an account
of what they manufactured for their own
use, aud it appeared that, in a population of
$500 souls, there is annually made of the
single article of cotton cloth $4,000 yards,
and of woollen 1900. There are in Virginia
more than an hundred such counties, aud
the addition of two cyphers TO each of the
above Quantities will give an idea ofthe extent
OF the manufacture ofcloth in state which
IS generally considered the reverse Of manu-
featuring state. A few extensive manufac-
tories, with too expensive buildings, having
ill-contrived and discarded machinery, are,
from these causes and the want of capital
in iangulshing state, and this produces an
impression that all manufactures are So
But that impression is believed 10 Be errone-
Gus. We know the fact that some establish
ments, extensive ones too, are not able to
comply with the orders for goods which
they receive, under the Improvement of the
demand for domestic manufactures natural
ly and necessarily growing out ofthe present
state of things. We arc, therefore; the rea-
der will see, opposed TO prohibiting imports
from abroad, for the purpose of encouraging
manufactures, believing them to be, general
ly speaking, sufficiently encouraged already.
But infinitely less are we in favor of pro-
hibiting Importation, for the purpose of sub
stltutng direct impositions as preferable
mode ofraising revenue. Direct taxation,
II is expressly recognized by the Consiitu-
ton, must be resorted to when the imposts
fail, and may at any time, discrectly regulat-
ed, be salutary and useful adjunct to the
revenue derived from foreign commerce.
We have no objection, even now, to taxes
on dlstillatiOn--on sales at auction, pleasure
carriages, Injuries Of any sort. But to resort
to II as a system, would be an extraordina-
| ry and dangerous experiment. The tax on
the tonnage OF a ship is cheerfuiy paid, and
| readily collected. Yet, apply the same rule
| to land conveyances, and moments re1ec-
ton will shew the comparative oppressive.
ness and difficulty of collectiono of the tax
The freight Of every ship arriving in our
ports is readily ascertained, and may be exa-
mined without encroaching ON personal
| rights. The landing of every wagon could
not be examined with view to raising
revenue from it, without the exercise of {
despotsm OF inquisition which freemen would