The daily union. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1845-1857, 1846-11-13

Pa policy which could not be followed without great
nauonal njury--ncr abandoned without extensive
individual ruin. To leave men 70 their own dscie-
ton--to conduct their own concerns by their own
skill and prudence, and 70 employ their capital and
their labor in such occupations as they themselves
/ found most expedient has been found the wlsest,
as IL is the simplest, course, OF political ieg'sauoh
| AZ there is order in the natural world whlch
holds all things in pace-as the AIR we preathe 10
| wisely combined and compounded for our use by
the course OF natu7e-so there is principle of regu-
ation a sort Of uis HlfdeaTir natuT9-ln the social
world Excess eorrects itself II there Is too much
commerce, ii will be dlminlshedif there be too few
man ufaetures they will be Increased, with but or
binary care and protection. For his part, ne De-
ieyed that, however derded, the principle OF leay-
ing such things very much to their own course IN a
country like ours, the only true policy-snd
that we could no improve the order and habit
and composition Of society by artificial balancing
of trades and occupations, than we could improve
the natural atmosphere by means Of the condensers
| and rarifers Of the chemists.
| Mr. w. proceeded TO observe, that the various
propositions before Congress- at the last session, APP
peared TO him TO be equivalent 10 direct declaration
Of the expedency Of ab0lshing the foreign trade; OF,
at least Of most materially diminishing II. He did
| not perceive how any man could understand II
otherwise. The new dates proposed, and the bills
to repeal the laws respecting credits at the custom
house, and drawbacks, were TO be considered part
OF system. As TO allowing credits for duties, II
had prevailed from the commencement OF the gov
eminent IL had been thought to have been produc.
tive Of much good. A few merchants Of the richest
class might no doubt be benefited by repeating this
system, because such repeal would tend TO give
them a sort Of actual monopoly in importation.
But TO merchants of small capitals, the change
| must be most destructive On some articles, such,
for instance teas the duties to be paid here equal
the first cost IT, therefore, the duties must always
be paid before a sale here, the business would re-.
quTe two capitals, in China TO purchase the
tleles, another here to pay the duties This might
be very well for the chairman, Mr.. Gray and a
few other genlemen-but he Mr.. w J well knew
that both the chairman and these gentlemen saw too
we'll how this would agect the enterprise Of young
merchants, to give IL their countenance or support
As to the punctuality and certainty with which the
duties had been paid, under this system, they were
wonderful. The loss from 1883, was most neonsid-
cradle. The curtaing Of the privilege Of draw
backs, Mr., w. thought equally objectionable. He
could account for the proposition only the suppo-
sitlon that the intention was greatly to diminish, il
not, indeed TO abolish the foreign commerce of the
country.
Other nations had deemed il an o ject Of import
ance to make their country snirepoi Of commerce;
and, for this end, to encourage the importation of
such articles az were likely To be again exported
Such also had been system heretofore. IL was
very obvious to what extent foreign commerce was
encouraged by allowing drawbacks; and, il the OBJ
Iect OF the present proposed measures be what he
DINERS,
was a means huy chosen to produce the end. There
| were many gentlemen present who knew much bet
ter than he did 10 what extent our foreign trade con
sisted at the present moment Of foreign articles i'm
ported into this country, and again exported. IL
was certainly very considerable. He found by a
| reference to Mr.. Seybert's tables and statements
that the average value Of foreign merchandise ex-
ported from the United States from 1875 to 1917
amounted to ~ lO0ths Of our whole expectations.
Ia some years the expectation Of foreign had ex-
ceeded that of domestic produce. IL had been sta
ted, and was doubtless true, that in years. not
wlthstandlng the quantity of India goods consumed
in this country, the amount OF sales Of those ex port.
ed within the year exceeded the amount of all the
purchases in India important fact, by the way,
for the conside OF those who consider the East
India trade destructive. Mr.. w said he hoped
he had msapprehended the object of those who pro-
posed these measures. He hoped they saw a mode
IN which to reconcile them with the existence and
the fair rights Of commerce.; but he confessed he had
himself perceived no such mode He found that
on introducing and recommending the bill, the il.
uments OF the committee thus expressed by its
chairman: "Commerce has been too long a pet the
spoiled child of government TO think there are any
other interests worth protecting. The mere creature
Of legislation, raised TO importance by our laws and
the expenditure Of great portion of our revenue for
its support, commerce has presented herself as the
Atlas which supports the government, the country,
and all its great nterests-now it seems she cannot
support herself"
He (Mr. w begged to differ most widely from
these opinions. He by no means agreed that the
commerce of the country the mere creature of
congressional legislation. The commerce of the
country was older than Congress-older thaa the
present government. This Commonwealth had
great and profitable trade, notwithstanding its EN-
barrassments, before Congress had the power to le
gslae upon the subject. The county Of Essex alone
possessed tons of shipping, before this govern
ment was framed, than belonged to the whole of
En.r and in, he oF oIo,l Il.
the repeing, by her fleets, of the Spanish INVASION
Before the organization of the present government
| so considerable was the commerce of the States
that the amount of importatons, for some years,
rose to several mions in one year, indeed, il fell
little, If any, short of twenty millions of dollars
1t was certainly true that the government, during
the greater part Of its hitherto, had shown
just, but no more than just, for the protection
of commerce. He thought the government had done
| no more for commerce than commerce had done for
the government. Commerce, in his opinion had
been the main support of the public revenue. He
did not, in saying this that any particular
| class Of persons-the merchants the ship-buders
or the ship-owners, for insance-had been the prn-
cipa support of government or had done more than
their part towards that support.
But commerce, ny acting upon, and enriching, the
agriculture of the country, by calling into activity
all the capital and exciting all the industry and en-
erprse of the country, had given to the whole peo-
pie an ability to contribute TO the revenues and it
had also afforded an easy and convenient mode for
the collection of the revenue. Since the commence.
ment of the government, three hundred and fifty
millions of dollars have been paid into the treasury
through the custom house; thirty four thirty-fve
millions alone have been obtained from all other
sources of revenue; and this, not without much dis
content, and more than rebellion. This does
not prove, indeed, and is not stated to prove, that
any one part Of the community has borne more than
its portion of the public burdens. But Ia stated to
show that the country has been able to do that which
there is no reason to believe it could or woul Id have
| done without commerce.
The commerce of the country, so far from being
the mere creature Of congressional legislation, was
one OF the principal causes Of calling Congress itself
and the government into existence
1t is well known as matter of historical fact, that
Of the causes which led TO the establishment of the
present government very prominent one was the
desire to establish uniform duties and imposis
through the several States, and, by means of such
uniform duties and mposts to enable the country to
| provide for the payment of the revolutionary debt
| Not to dwell however, longer on this part of the