Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1842-07-26
No. XXXIX. :

and it should be urged that manufacture. are not
profitable, it furnishes another overwhelming ar!u-
ment against a species of legislation which or in
tereres with the productive energies OF The coun-
try 10 embarrass and Cypress them. In the report Of
the honorable chairman Of the Committee on Ma
n0factures, it is stated that ithe relative cost of boots
aud shoes in Paris and Boston is as 60 cents to 100
cents, and in Germany the price is still less" The
Massachusetts, manufacturer cannot, therefore, he
thinks, successfully, at present at least, compete with
The fo.cign PRODUCER in the article Of shoes and boots,
for the reason that The French shoes bear in price to
the American the rate of % cents 10 loo cents; being,
therefore, 35 per cent. chea per. How do the manufac.
turers propose to remedy this? Why, just by imposing
a tax high enough to exclude French shoes, or else TO
raise them in the American market to such a high price
as will enable the American manufactures TO make
his shoes, and sell them at heavy profits. The honora-
BILE member, in his report, places the whole value of tho
American shoes and leather business at $50, Goo, 000
annually, giving employment to not less than 100000
persons. 1t is ,anr to infer That, il Inc luy were re-
moScd from importa,ions, tins country would be sup
piled with shoes costing the peop.e easily less. Say,
then, Inc duty adds - per centum 10 The cost OF the
shoes used in the u. Spray who gets that sum- The
Government would receive, according to the estimatc
OF Secretary Forward, abou. S3j eco uoon the proba-
BILE amount ofshoes and boots imported under this t.
riff bill.
We might suppose, therefore, that the people have 10
pay, in consequence Of this Tatif, 500, OC0, 900 for
American shoes and manufactures Of leathr
as, without the Tariff, the same articles might be had
for about $l6,00U,0 900 lessor, in other words, for
about S34, 900, 900. To enable tue Government to de-
rive a revenue on imported shoes and maauiact; res of
leather Of about S35, 600, you 20 impose tn tax as 10
throw into the pockets ofihe American shoe ind Ter her
manufacturers some $4,000, 900 more than they CT I'D
possibly get for the same articles without you Tai T..
Whether this enormous sum Is q clear prcit 20 t.etI,
or not, is lmmaterial, so far as the AK payers are COZ
cerned for, in ether event, they Will be forced, shoulI
YOU pass this bill, 10 pay II.
But It will be 'ound, on examining the table, that
,aa - G,c ,Eo a y ~ fur,c. n mo- ~ tupnlilp nnnrS
as We import, and more than five times the amount
of cotton goods; and the same proportion OF iron
and steel aud iron manufactures. The remarks made
in explanation of the effect Of duties rpon imported
shoes, are equally applicable 10 the articles Just men,
toned.
II seems, therefore, upon due consideration, that tho
more nearly domestic manufactures approximate 20 the
home supply at any given rate o. duty, The large. will
be the amount of indirect tax which the community
will be forced 10 pay 10 satisfy the avar.ce ofsome, and
the "orotecting abs;sactions' OF Others. Under this
aspect of The subject, justice In the other great inter
ests of THE country no less than ccn,mo sense would
seem TO demand that as your manufactures increased,
and filled up the channels of the home market, protec-
tive duties should diminish, and gradually cease alto
gether. For, Otherwise, when they shall have attained
a point Of production. beyond the home supply, they
would have to encounter the European prices IN 70.
reign markets, where alone the supply and demand re-
gulate the rice-modlGed it is true, to some extent, by
the fluctuations in currency, and the general state Of
the commercial community. The following table pre-
sents an interesting contrast IN the ay0catlons and en-
%ploSment of The population Of Great Britain and the
U. States:
From the Money Article of the n. Y. Herald
Population end employment Of Greet Britain aud ne u Stats.
ramnit. employed. Person. employed.
Tiade and manufactures, IDiJs35 :s.as
Commerce., 1.,oa
All otler employmenls, lOs,I Cs l5i3S
a4l4.r75 A.71ai33
From this stable, the interesting feet is exhibited, that
in the Z. s., the Ggrienl,urists, are, 10 those engaged i'll
all other pursuits, as three is TO one while in Great
Britain the agricullurisis there bear the proportion 10
those employed in all other pursuits Of ,ont one TO Mrss.
In the L. s., the manufactures are, ~ those engaged
in agriculture, commerce, navigation, trades, mining,
and The learned professions as one to si3: and to the
great consuming class, as one to tnenfy- eight. In Eng
land, the great landholders being the hereditary law
givers, the agriculturists do in fact, make the laws.
TIL great contest convulsing Great Britain is to
get the corn laws repealed. Why is this so; Because
The agricul,urists, having the control of legislation,
imposed high duties on imported breadstufs, in or
der that they may monopol re the home market, and
dispose of their wheat pretty much at their own
prices. The manufacturers there do not go for protcc-
lion, but rather for n repeal of the corn laws. Here,
however, though the asriculturists have the power and
he numbers yet, instead OF lie gislating money into thei,
own pockets, they bave permitted the manufacturing
interest to preponderate in the halls Of Legislation -ay,
Sir, they prgtaSc'y Mred themselves, that tn : night
have the proud satisfaction of making the s,ns and
daughters of the manufacturers ,cealihy, by the tribute
exported from their own.
The friends Of the Tariff assert that il has the ten.
dency to cheap pen the price of goods If it does, do
they deserve any credit for that? The country has
given them ample equivalents for efecting all the
reductions in prices of which they boast. Justice
would require of them, before they put up such shall
low pfetences TO public favor, 10 nuke out an account
current, setting forth how much extra price was legis-
lated into their pockets before they effected a re-
duction Of prices, or, in other words, ~cheapened goods.
It savors of knavery, first TO hold out to the country
that, if protection is extended, they will ultimately 50
improve IN the art OF manufacturing as to be able to az
ford their articles at prices corresponding with the
foreign rates, and then use the favor, granted under
such circumstances, as an argument IN favor OF addi-
tional protection. As soon as the people begin 10 enjoy
the benefit OF those productions, rendered cheap ny tho
operations of the protective Tariff, they are gravely
asked to bestow all the money they MAJ save by the
ope ration in enabling manufacturers TO cheaper some
thing else. Thus they are forevr! TO be employed at
the public expense, until everyth. ny el,ncst used iT the
country is ma nusdcturrd at home. Having paid GER
tain Gentlemen 10 place the country n such q condition
as TO be forced to resort to some other mode of taxation
for raising revenue 10 defrny Tie expresses of Govern
ment than by import duties, we might Their he advised
by the agriculturist to raise revenue IL some M ode that
would protect his interest, as il had persisted away
while the country was engaged in building up manu-
features. This being accomplished, then IN. CONNER
cial immunity might insist upon being reimbursed
for what they had lost in the Qnixotic G, apartment of
forcing manufactures and agriculture At the public ex.
pense. So, if this system is 10 be carried en', The coun-
try may expect, in all time TO come, TO be 'egui'ed TO
pay a &c rtain sum 10 support Government, and, III ad-
dition, a still larger sum IN the way OF incnec' bIuhty
to some ricket,y, crazy interest that cannot snstl i
self. Tina, such a system of legislation Us ills should
find favor in The monarch!es Of Europe, ought not u
astonish MS, when we bear in mind that in taose coun
tries religion Itself is not allowed to depend on the vo-
luntary principle ter its support. But in free Ameri.
ca, possessing a Government prcdica,ed upon the abb.
lily Of the people TO govern themselves, with a Con-
stitution asserting religious free iom. and purportng
~ 1z,.I go. - II .a4 -.1r..ua C,onro -
none, we are harrassed with the exploded s~en.lities Of
by. gone British statesmen and, when urging the
doctrine of freetrade, sneered o. b. this "Plunder
party" as promulgating theories ihimicai to the manu-.
] f1cfurar'u lod1er md cop1eniaI ainra IN tho ho.1 In of