The Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1837-1867, 1846-08-15

when we nTe dependent on importation 70
tho supply ofany article, the duty adds 10 TN
price, but not always the whole amount oftht
duty; That depends agnin on the law Of de
mand aud supply; bur, whenever there is here
Produced full supply the duy adds moth
lngto the price. Very heavy duties, are BY
the minimum prlncipIe imposed on coarse
coltons, hut they are not now imported, there
being full home supply, .md they are FIRE
| quentIy sold at less than the duty would be il
imported. Tho snino may be said Of nails
glaSs,and MARY other articles on which is
protective specific duty, which when frs
imposed, was perhaps equal to twenty
five per cent, but which has produced
home competition and home supply, until tho
whole price of the article is reduced below
the specific doty, ard the importation OF il
has censcd, and no man pays duty on il in
any form In such case, ii is now said the du-
" is over 100 per cent, hut no one pays il, OF
is injured, and the lower the Article goes the
higher the rate of duty will br.
But some gentlemen say, that though il
may not be true that the duty adds so much
to the price of the home produced article
Though the Secretary's report assumes that
ground and is all founded on that principle,
yet II is true, that if an article stll continued
TO he imported in any part, aud the country is
not wholly and exclusively supplied by home
production, then the duty is added 10 the
price of both This, insist is unfouudcd.
will call attention to some articles which
have on them high protective duties, and OF
which this country produces full supply and
II surplus, and yet orwhich there is some nu-
nral importation. We have n a duty on po-
tatnes ORC cts. per bush. still we have aunu-
ally some Importation. last year there were i'm
ported 81 1927 bushels & duty paid of ten
cents. Now, every gentleman knows thut
added nothingto the price OF the home pro
dnced potatoes. American cheese is here
produced for full supply for Our wants, and
sells at from D TO : cents per pound, Some
rich epicues prefer foreign cheese, and last
year there was imported %, lO9 pounds, aud
The duty of nine cents per pound was. paid
Did that add nine cents or even one cent per
pound 10 our home produced cheese: Clear
~ not. The same is true oflnms, of wlIick
30463 pounds were imported last year. and
n duty otthree cents a pound paid; aud the
same OF y 500 pounds of beet. Did this add
three cents To each pound of hams and beef
produced and sold in this country: Even of
cottonwood, on which is n duty ofthree certs
per pound, there, was last year imported 49,
Dos 34 pounds, and though this latter may
have been re-eXportcd, yet, of the other urii-
cles, the whole, or very nearly the whole,
were consumed in this country. Thus it is,
by thousands of facts, the basis which the
Secretary has assumed for his theory is shown
To he untrue. visionary, and delusive; and
Yet the whole present theory and proposed
bill is founded on this idea.
But the Secretary himself in his report in
effect comedies that the duties on an import
ed article does not add lhat amount to the
home produced articles o"the same kind, e.
ven while its importation continues. ne
says, in his report, page 3, aud also page q y
'lhc Iutes for the quarter ending Scpienl-
ber30, lS44, yielded $20I1 ,SS5 more ofrcy-
,nuc than the quarter ending 30sh September
1915 Snoring considerable decline Of The rer-
sruc grorjac ont ofG diminished Importation of
NE mighty pr0tccted articles, and NE progressicc
substitution oFihe domestic r'uais," SugsTIrU-
roM The Secretary seems TO think that any
ling made in this country is mere substitute |
and instead Of being made here, il ought 20
be bought in England; but wish to krow
now came the American article to he SujStfi- |
ef in our market and thereby in part TO di- |
nimisl The importation, unless it was because |,
1 was sold cheaper. How could il in any uth- |
n way be substituted, and how could this sell |
ng il cheaper, and so substituting il for the !
imported article, take place, if the doctrine is |
rue that the whole duty is added to the price I
1t both the imported and home produced ar |
icle? This single and repeated sentence in
he Sccretary's report, is utterly ut war with.
md wholly destroys, the whole assumed
principle on which his theory and this hill is |
bundled.
The very common and popular objection
q the protective tariff is, that it creates Il mo
'opoiy Now what is a monopo,y2 Its the
ceiling or securing by law to certain indi-
'idual or company an exclusive right 10
radein "A certain thing land forbidding all 9th
r. persons to enter into that husiness. Such
vas the character ofthe odious mouopolies
II England i'll the days ofthe Stewards. Now
las The business of manufacturing any such /
character? Yet, day after day in this house,
md week after week in most ofthr Admins /
ration papers in the country, malignant
prejudice is engendered against mnnufactur.
RS, and the law which encourages them, by
he false application of the odious word mo
'opoly What, in manufactures? Is any bod
7 forbidden to engage in it, by taking stock
n those already in operation, or by erecting
others in any part of the country? Is there
anything in the nature of the business which
shall conhpe il to.any one section ofthe coun-
ny? Certainly not. The protective system
was forced on New England against its
own choice; and now, having invested its
'apitul, ana concerned lis employments
hereto, is it common justice now to reproach
ler, and foster prejudices against her? A
arge part of our farmers in the nothern and
western States have been induced to turn Mt
ention to the growing ofsheep, and are de-
pendent for u market on the woolen manu- |
acturer. Is that interest to be now all frus-
ratedp Such is the inevitable tendency of
his bill. .r.r# r-u.#r .. nc|aN
Again, it is objected that those engaged in
make much greater profits
han men in other employments, and that the
present tariffs tax on one part ofthe cor1-
nunity for the benefit ofanother part. Now