New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1846-08-14

for ourselves
g. But will not thirty per cent duty ensure
profit ION the Home production OF Pig Iron Of IS &c
la per cent. D. No my verdant friend nor would
duty Of 5000 per cent ensure for any consider
able period such rate OF profit You must have
imbioed your Tariff notions from Silas yVright's
WATERFOWL Speech, or some other very shabby and
tricky Loco.F oco electoneering tract OF the hand
bill order Where have YOU lived &c This day 10,
TO know that the rate Of profit on any article is
u!ated By Tie proportion Of supply TO demand, on
which proportion any possible duty can exert but
partial and transitory influence Suppose you are
a shoemaker or a ock.mith. and anybody should
talk 0: enabling you henceorth clear 100 per
cent. on your products by imposing duty o. mat
amount on the importation OF like Articles you
would no. fail at once 10 scout the absuroi'y'
it is not essentially different in its application - .
Iron Iron has been high for The past ''
world over still is, and the shi!ysha!is' ma,
half. of and on policy hitherto pursued oy our oo'.
eminent with regard to II has kept 1t Na'
L;,,ar bers Than in England. We can no more
anb, ,ba. an efficient and steady Protection on iron
c., ,7so m This time would have made Iron deci-
daar,, cheaper here than 1t is than we can doubt
an, own existence. All analogy, all experience
o.,.tI;sb The fact Yankee ingenuity and skill
,,ooIa have given us our Iron cheap relatively as
or, Hat. Shoes. Clocks Brick. Glass, Newspapers
&C. VIGOROUSLY are. if we had given them a fair
chance But when we impose duty nominaly
Protective wc try TO fix on rate WHICH VIII Just
allow the business struggle Oh against external
competitions and in few years policy is chang
ed and Protection thrown overheard altogether.
Meantime the adventures who dip into the bust
ness live in constant fear that the policy will be
changed and their investments rendered valGcless;
so they do not feel like making costly experiments
or improvements in their processes, &c; they can
hardly afford sacrifice present profits to the build
ing up OF reputation for their product they are
almost compelled to think only OF securing the
greatest profit in the shortest possible time. The
consequence we all realize, both in products and
prices American Iron ought TO he equal with the
best but is far from it it ought to be cheaper than
it is AS it certainly would have been II it had been
settled even so late as l342, that efficient Protec
ton was to be extended as long r. needed. Bu,
the cry of Repeal raised against the Tariff OF
az us soon passed it came near being repealed
/ by the next Congress and has stood in imminent
peril of overthrow ever since. 1t is needless 10 say
! that the great end of Observation-Disclosures and
cheap Home Product--can be- but slowly approx
mated under such circumstances. Had Mr. Clay
been elected in "a all would have been different
and Iron inevitably cheaper before this time.
4 The cost lin money of making Pig Iron here
is we presume, considerably higher as yet than il
is in England, where centuries OF experience,
cheap labor, immense aggrecations OF capital, won
derfu proximity of to coal, and extraordinary
facilities OF transportation combine TO reduce the
cost mot the present price to the lowest point.
The course of trade, also is immensely advan-
taecous TO the British Ironmakers in competing
for our scaboard market We send heavy cargoes
of Cotton, Tobacco Ashes, Flour, Turpcntinc, &c.
70 England. and bring back mainly costly and light
fabrics and wares in return These require bal
last and Iron is the very thing. Mr. Webster
states that Iron is brought out from Liverpool for
81 so per ton while it costs three or four times that
price to bring it from the gens of the Aeghenies
or from own States Iron region to this City,
where the comparative prices are usually csti'
mated. Let this be fairly considered.
We have thus answered our friends inquiries
very fully and now claim the privilege Of asking
him one question in turn We have asked it in
substance of the Free Traders repeatedly, but have
never been favored with an answer. 1t is th,
Suppose the average Of profit on Capital invest
cd in business is g. ), G. 10 per cent. and the
duty on Pig Iron should be made prohibitory-say
10. 90 or 50 dollars per ton Now hor con he profits
Of making Pig I,on be Kept aay,rhce near Is TO Is
pen, cent when immensely OF available Capital
is employed ali around at far lower rates stand
ing idle, and every element in the production Of
Iron-Ore, Fuel, Labor, &c. &c-is abundant and
so difused that their monopoly is maniiesty i'm
possible Ii few men owned or could monopo
lie all the Ore in the Country las with the Lands
of England there might be some FEASIBILITY in
the Free Trade assumption But while our Iron
Ores are vast and so cheap as at present-while
the Government offers them in limitless abundance
at ten shillings per acre. the supposition OF the
Free Traders is blunder or cheat of the grosses
! character.