The Ohio Democrat. [volume] (Canal Dover, Ohio) 1840-1900, 1842-02-10
PROTECTION OF Labor.

Congress, and much the largest Of sOme OfI's
most stormy and proIacIed sessions have
been occupied with questions, tho solution OF
which looked really or osteHstbly to the PRO
lection of Labor And yet, after forty or more
years Of IsglsIatlng 90 the subject. at an ex-
psnd,ture Of what il would coat forty mIlliOns
of days ofhard labor TO accumulate; it begins
10 bs perceived that-Labor has not been pro-
Iected, aud that il needs no prolecuon,--at
least IN the sense in which the word protection
10 generally understood Oar Illustrations
under each Of these heads must necessarily
be'briel,
Labor has moi been projected. Every mea-
sure Of Government, having this for its osIen"
sible object, has 10 reality looked only 10 the
protection Of Capital invested for the purchase
and sse Of Labor, and TO encourage the furlh-
or Investment Of Capita, for :he same purpose.
: Protection has been sought, only by those "ho
have owned and controlled this Capiial. Laws
the most papAbly unjust, and PrejudIcial TO
the Interests Of majority Of the States and the
: people, have been enacted al their lnstigna-
lion; and Gordon Of CusIum houses erected
along our whole maratime and inland frontier,
with an ever hungry swarm Of officers, fed and
IdhOuOu ub 'uO PuONN OAPShSVB " "OSS
laws;-scheme has been' devised and debated,
and change succeeding change adopted, to pro-
tect this particular iHieTesi, OF TO appeese that
particular section, which had become REBEL
lious under ihe aggravated wrong Of the svS'
tenn; and 10 THE result hasihe action OfGoV-
ornment invariably tended TO such base uses
hath it come at lasl!' Capital invested in our
own country, thus projected against Capital
similarly invested in Europe, further invest
ments were thus stimulated at home. Thsin
torn, by increasing competition, and at the
came time bringing il nearer, and also BY in
'creasing the supply, diminished the prices Of
manufactured goods, the proti's on caphsl in
Npested, and Of necessity, as measure OF self.
preservation; the cost Of production or manu-
jacture, (which is Labor, and nothing butLa-
r Dor. The price Of Labor, which always de-
ponds more on the want Of The purchaser than
on the will Of the seller IS therefore first reach
cd by an unnatural increase of competition, or
any excess Of i,s product beyond the wants OF
Ahe consumer. Capital wants interest on The
investment. This is the first want; out OF
which all lie action must tend. II wants la"
Dor, but Il Labor cannot be purchased N a
price which will sfford profit TO the purchas-
r eer, il will not be purchased. Capital can keep
aiiself-can clothe itself in The finest and feed
itself on the dainiies; but Labor cannot keep
itssiE--i, must seIl itself or starve. Necessity
- stf6nger than iaw,, compeis The sac OF It, and
, regulates its price. Law, therefore, cannot
project Labor, and i, has not been protected.
s-LsbOr needs nc. protection. 'LaisseT mons
Jdfre' LEAVES us alone-is and has ever been
Il anI ,hn nF tho
"' wants Of the individual, and 10 this his'a'ways
." adequate, even under the most unfavorable
= circumstances Who can doubt that II Labor
10 EogIand was left 10 tself-lf The Queen and
her squalling babies .-the ArchbshOps, BIsh-
ops aud Prebendaries, with all lheir franchise
eres--the Lords, spiritual and temporal with rent
rolls and title deeds; the Commons, with all
their viii, wisdom and sssecity--he Judges
with aliihe their laws and learning-and the
whole army Of Bankers, Government PEN
sioners and Stipendaries Of every name and
description, with their Msgps Charta--the
glorious British Constitution 10 boot, were all
annhllated : banished- ->driven out Of. official
existence and authority a, once, in an instant
--nO,o; who can doubt but that Labor would be
better fed, better clothed, better paid than it
na1 ever DelOre; or ever VIII ue, uh eoMo suSh
glorious revolution is effected Yet, in that
country, as in this, the Paper Money system
has been tried till ii died -as ii is here DYING
ofits own inherent rottenness and corruption
Their manufacturing interest has been proec-
ted by Tariffs ill almost every kind Of manu-
factured article lie protected, 10 degree equiv.
ruIeUt to prohibition its importation. Ag-
ricuure too, has had s share Of protection,
and foreign bread stuffs cannot be imported
until the price has reached The starvation point
And, after all this, Protection Of Labor liz
Ireland, six millions Of the finest peasantry in
the world principally iarm'aborers. have "a
scarcity Of third rate potatoes, thirty elk weeks
in the yeas;' and probably about the same num-
ber Of manufacturing operatives in England al
this moment, are literally pershng for want oil
comfortable shelter and necessary food! Theil
cries and groars even now, 60 upto the Throne
Of the Eternal; and 30 sure ss Omnpolen
Justice regneth in the earth 80 sure shall their
suferings be speedily and terribly avenged
IS. R. Republican.
PAPER BETTER THAN SPECIE. The Bankers
Tell Us that paper is better than specie if go