New-York daily tribune., 1842-07-22
Protection W. Free Trade.

Ncr,N. titDcr IL Idltoi Oi We are strangely oD-
,usc with regard to the ground The other stands
We tried hard To show it, by instance Of lii
mus. that the People of thi, Country would pay
much leSs actually, even f moro nominaiiy, Tor
their Cloths and other Manufactures IT made at
home than # brought from England, and that Il the
money price of English Broadclotli hc - and thc
corresponding American fabric 81 (thoush wo do
not admit that there .ouid be snch difference
the Ame,ican articls uouid shH cost us iess real
Il han Mc Brttish-in other words, our consum'
crs Of Cloth would give less Flour, Pork, Lumber,
Potash. Vegetables. Wool &c &c. for a given
amount of American Cloth at 81 than OF Bnush
Cloth at g. We undoubtngly believe tins to be
the i,.me3iofe effect; while ultimately even the
ro.,y urice of the American Cloth would be GER
,ainly reduced by efficient Projections; the real cost
immensely so. We gave The Era reasons for the
faith that is in US. Yet in the face Of all ihs, The
Era asserts that we admit that the American Cloth
would cost the more and that Manufactures can
only be built up at the expense of all other inter
ests Most certainly, we never admitted, believed,
imagined Or dreamed any thing like this. We be-
love on the contrary, that every State IN the onon
every man, woman and child with very rare and
transient exceptions, would be benefited immedi-
ately and certainly by such measure of Protection
n, will ensure the Manufacture in the United States
Of every article which can be produced here BY an
amount Of Labor not essentially greater than isre-
dured TO produce il elsewhere. We believe, tor
instance that every farmer, blacksmith, lawyer and
editor in the land would procure his clothes AZ the
cost of less amount of his own proper Labor
than he must pay for it while the Cloth is made in
England.
But The Tribune admits (savs The Era)
that the Agricultural classes could only be bene-
Z" fted at the expense of Commerce. Here Is
another amazing mistake We do indeed believe
,ha, that portion of Commerce which is employed
in bringing hither fabrics that we could better
make for ourselves end taking hence our Grain,
Pork. &c at cost OF onehalf OF 1t, Is dead
weight on our Productive Industry, and ought TO
be directed into more advantageous channels
But we maintain also that Efficient PToteetson
uox6 largely increase The aggregate amount
and PrOduet,reness OF onr Commerce, (external
and internally The first element of hourishing
Commerce is ability to buy-in other words, full
and advantageous employment to all the Industry
of the Country If fourth of our Population Is
unemployed or unproductlvey employed, (as mar,
thousands now are in our City alonet Commerce
must langsish If fourth is employed in useless
exchanges and transportation of Products, the
true, benchcent Commerce Of the Country will
he enormously curtailed thereby. Commerce ha.
It's own independent and hcalthful function m ex-
changing between different classes Of producers
Il thnca
articles which each can more advantageously pur-
chase than produce. Commerce was not destroyed
nor permanently injured by the naturalization oi
the silk Culture in Europe, nor will II be by It's
corresponding naturalization here. The Com
,nerce of Germany mas doubtless been increased by
inc Zol Vergein or Protective Tariff Hnder
which Manufactures have been there built up; ii
would have been benefited thereby even though the
aggregate experts of Germany to Foreign countries
had been diminished, while we believe the contrary
has been the effect.
As to what the Manufacturers Gsk or do not ask
we care little. They arc probably Just about as
patriotic and unselfsh other classes, which is
not saving a great deal. We care nothing for them
a. Glass; we look only the interests the neces-
site, Of the whole county. We well know that the
highest rate of duties could not for even two wears,
increase the prs6ts of Manufacturing, because do
mestic competition would prevent it. This is as
it should be- But the common presumption that
all (or most) Manufactures have required increased
and still increasing Protection is mistake. Many
articles of manufacture are now produced here a.
cheap as, if not cheaper, than elsewhere-for in
stance Plain Couons, Cut Nails, &c.--in spite cf
g. ,f lahn in
try. All must know that the price of nearly every
article OF domestic manufacture has been gradually
reduced the last twenty years We know that
there is not a single branch which would not be
successfully prosecuted under Protective Duties
considerably lower than those which Mr.. Van Bu-
rem voted for in 1898, and we know hardly one
which i, now asking duties so high as these.
u For the honest opinions of an opponent
no matter on what subjective ever cherish a SIN
oerc respect; regard with forbearance even the
ignorance of essential facts which such one may
may exhibit; but there is low trckery Of parti-
warfare Ga Ia Samm) which we regard with
entire disgust and abhorcnce. 1t i. exhibited in
picking ont some inconsderate expression of .
political epponcnt. perhaps embodied in az Ad-
dress or Resolution OF public meeting, garbling
and perver,ing it so that its OWN father would not
know II, and thereuPon procaiming tina, the party
has avowed and is responsible for the sentiment
80 manufactured. The inevitable effect of this Is
to hll the public mind with unjus, and binding
preludiccs, and prevent the candid consideration
OF the real and prsctics questions at issue before
the country. VIII the lower order ef demagogues
al. k. skl hue, l.. e