The Evansville journal. (Evansville, Ind.) 1834-184?, 1846-10-01

| friend and humble advocate of the laboring
man. He had been laboring man himself;
he knows their privations and had partlclpa-
ted in their tolls; and 10 deserve and receive
the appreciation OF the laboring poor, Of the
mechanics, and log-cabin men OF this coun-
try, would be more grateful 10 his heart than
all the praises of all the presses of the land.
1t would be the GROWING and cherished re-
ward of all his efforts-the only reward to
which he aspired.
Labor, productive labor. was the great
source of national wealth. lis importance
was incalcnable. Compared with this all
other interests dwindied into perfect insignffi-
canoe. What is all other capital combined
together TO the capital of labor-hard- Inland
ed honest labor-lhe toling milions-the
great fountain Of our national prosperity
look at it. Suppose we have but two mil
lions of working men in the United States,
whose wages average $50 per year-this
is equal TO the interest of $4,000 at six per
cent. Each laborer's capital, then, is equal
TO $4,000 interest. Multiply this by TWO
millions, the number of aborers, and il gives
you capital amounting to the enc nous
sum Of sir thousand millions of dollars, pro-
ducing, at six per cent, three hundred and
sirty millions of dollars year.
This was the ''labor capital'' he wished to
sustain and uphold This was The great ma
tional industry he wished to protect and de-
fend against the runous and degrading eff
fec;s OF a Tree and unrestricted competition
with the foreign labor of foreign lands lie
went 10 secure the American market for
American labor. In the great struggle for
the American market he took the American
side. On the other side the gentleman from
Alabama and his friends went for the Brit
ish; for free trade; for opening our ports 10
the manufacturers ofall the world; for bring
ing in freely the pauper productions of Great
Britain, 10 overwhelm the rising prosperity
of our own poor but industrious Citizens
They went for crushing American enterprise,
grinding down American labor, and putting
their couhfrymen on footing with the very
sweepngs of the poor houses OF E rope; and
would, in the,end, bring them down to their
political, as well as their pecuniary and NOR
al condition. Mr.. S. was for chcrishing A.
mercan labor; for giving high wages; for sur
rounding it with all the substantial comforts
Of life. Which was the true friend of The
PEOPLE? And yet these flee trade advocates
from the Secretary dewn, pfofessed 10 be
exclusive friends ofthe 'poor man." and we
are denounced as the friends of smillionaries
and monopolists." We now imported twenty
five millions worth of British agricultural
products-of English wool, English grain,
English beef and mutton, English fax, Eng
ish agricultural production OF every kind
And yet gentlemen would rise here and
talk of british market for our breadstuffs =
Why, how much Of this did England take? ?
Not a quarter of a million, in all its
forms!
Here was beautiful rec 'procity. Here
were the beauties of free trade. Here was
our equality of benefits. We talk of fifty
millions of British goods, one half oft agr-
cultural produce, while she took one-quarier
of million of breadstuffs. This was our
boosted British market What was this Brit
sh market to ours? The American market
consumed annually nearly thousand mil
lions of American grain; but the British
market one-quarter Of one million. Greai
Britain took of our -four not one-tweniieih
part as much as Massachusetts, not a tenth
part of the amount taken by the East and
West Indies; not third part as much as Bra
zl; moi as much as the little Island of Cuba :;
and not as much as half as much asHayt.-
Poor, miserable, negro Hayti, took last year
SO Ia barrels of our -four and one barrel of
corn meal. Yet we are told in the face of
these official facts, by the Secretary of the
Treasury, that we must take more British
goods, otherwise she will have TO pay US
.scash for our bfeadstuffs, and not having ii.
to spare, she will not buy as much of our
cotton.'' What an insult 10 Au erican far
mers is this AS an honorable man, must
he not blush. for his reputation when he looks
upon these facts? But what better could
we expect from this American Secretary,
who over and over, in his report, denounces
the Substitution of American manufactures
for foregn goods, and declares that direct
taxation is more equitable and just than du-
| ties on foreign goods, especially in lis oper-
alton on the poor! Better levy xes on our
productions than on those of foreigners!-
Such are the doctrines openly avowed by
this Secretary TO favor hiT miserable system
of free trade. Away with such British doc
ttriscs as these! They could never find ia
vor with the American people while sparl.
of patriotism anmates their hearts, or a drop
OF Revolutionary blood runs in their veins
The gentleman from Alabama will no
doubt discover another terrible absurdily
when Mr. S. stated that Great Britain export
ed and sold more agricultural produce than
any other part ofthe country in the world
tits strickly and ur1eniably true. Export
ed. not in IFS original form, but worked up
and converted inio ooods iron cloths tS1c
consisting ofraw materials and breadstuffs