Indiana State sentinel., 1846-07-16


saker and desired him acquaint the House that she
would Immediately cancel the grevous and oPpres-
sse Of these penls upon The delivery Of which gracious
message, Hume. member said with tears in bis
eyes, that If Of everlasting happiness had been
pronounced n his favor he could not have felt 10y
than that with which he present overwhelmed" F"
Another form of4nt, Iercnce with commerce, very
ard IN those days, ibe law Of apprentice
ships. Oge of Edward the Six,hs Parsmens passed
act by which every prohibited from making cloth
unless be had served apprenticeship Of years
When this absurd law repealed in the succeeding
reign, the preamble 10 the repeating set forth, that
the restriction in question had occasioned The decay
the wooen manufacture and ruined several towns Yet
Edwards law revived in the reign Of Elzibeib AID
srrangc to say still in f1rce late, at least the
date Of our revolution. -
Our colonial history furnishes continual examples
Of legal eBcToachmenis commerce, that longer
in vogue Char es by proclamation in 1926 announced
his intention Of becoming by bis agents the sole factor of
the Virginia sntes Three years afterwards, he address
cd letter Of instructions TO the governor and council offr
Jog for the whole of tobacco and desiring
bAt assembly might be conveHcdto consider his propo
sal fortunate piece Of cupidy ;fOr this the first
rognition by British monarch ofa representative
bly, America The asssmbly-an this. of future
independence !rejected the conditions and protested
gaint the monopoly ;but two years later by compromise
between the planters and the king the former obtained
The exclusive right supply the British market and the
latter succeeded in imposing exorhant duty. They
divided the spoil between them, and the people paid for
Of that system which goes Ivy the Of commercial pro-
lection
Another sample Of legislative intermedlIing no longer
pacsed in lis direct turm, in the history Of the
period The early governors of Virginia, by way OF
promoting the culture of corn, sought by penal
fix It's price. The colonial legislature afterwards hit upon
the true remedy: For the encouragement Of men TO
plant Of corn, the price shall not be slned bat it
shall be free f0r every sell it dear he CAM
Legislative assemblies gather wisdom rapidly when
ed bryo be atmosuheYe n court.
These various flint lights from the past converge
point They indicate To the inevitable line Of progress
Il has been in ecclesiastical in commercial affairs
from abe more to the less Of ineFfeence One statute
used to fix the wages of labor aud another the price of
food both left II regulate themselves. The leg
slator formerly decided who should uacture this
cIc, and who vrnd that; general rule, each may
now make sell what he eascs In these il is
much that have altered the law have repealed
IT, We have legslatcd more wisely than our ancestors,
chiefly in that have leeslated less. We have run our
experiments through these various phases of Interference,
learn at last how many there in which Iesis
alive ai ncumbrance, aud legislative duty-to do
nothing.
Let Us apply these lessons of the past have spoken
Of those forms Of legal nlermedllng with commerce that
antquated. and have past away let these
that still fashionable, at this day. and in
try.
Tariff protection is the chief Of these. The o.! ct pro-
posed by protective tariff similar that which the
legislator of former days had in view when he determined
of wages anil fixed scales Of prices Some branch OF
industry generally manufacture is declared to be in
feeble and dropping condi ion profits too small It's
ges too low its prices in.ul-irni. Politicians 90 work
increase the profits and raise the wages and the prices
This they e1ect by shutting cot competition. Formerly
close corporation was the usual form cmplOyed all but
the members of the favored company forbidden
compete. In our days the monopoly, with excep-
tious is co extensive with the kingdom or republic in
which the law passed and competition forbidden,
der penalty Of ne. foreigners only. This is great
Ouaen Efizahethfs
and close corporations.
Yet the effect produced by these national monopolies
differs in degree only, not in kind from that caused by
those exclusive corporations Three hundred years ago.
Ezbchs patent increased the price Of salt fold the
tariff of day raises it comparatively moderate percent
age only The former excluded all competition, both for
eign and domestic the latter leaves domestic competition
unchecked Yet in both cases, the principle is identical
Artificial means employed to control and divert from
its natural channels, the of trade. certain a
of competition is shut 10y law, for the purpose
of raising the price Of certain article 10 its producers
and Of course its also. That the opera
ton. and the intended eff of all protective tariffs. II
they do not produce that effect they far regards
protection imperative and useless If they do produce it
they egsa,e money from the pockets Of class into
the pockets of another without value received JUS
tfy The transfer. They do not effect this directly, did
Louis by his ordinance against The Jews did the
eay governors of Virginia. when they fixed by law the
price Of corn. But they eff CT il, nevertheless.
As the close corporations of the middle ages may have
been, for the time, defence against evils than
the nelves so particular period during the infancy
OF State the interference of temporary tariff for pToec-
tion-a hedge defend the young plants of enterprise
until they shoot up independent growihmay pro-
duce benefits to overbalance It's injustice. But this, like
the kindred plea of retaliation, is question of the day
and of expedIenry The ultimate issue of reform is
queston the day and the hour when each step may safely
and usefuIiy be made is another Yet the
stronger temptation to be oversc!upuous than TO be
fash II is the tendency of temporary injustice endure
bcycnd the rm of its necessity especially when the pc
cuniay Interests of any class Of men identified with
endurance.
SIR, bring railing accusation against any party
presume not 10 judge the motives, pass indemnaton
the acts, of any class of Who WISE that
he may boast to have been blinded by SD
just that the hope Of present advantage isead
him would speak of errors without denying their hon
esiy To long vexed question invite the attention Of
our opponents IN the spirit Of the texts "Come now,
/ let reason together"
In such spirit ask the advocates of tariff protection
how far do your views extend What your intentions
This policy of imposing taxes with single eye
enue but with the express design shut competition
and raise pTIces-dO you regard permanent policy
You speak Of ii pati,c you still call it American Dc
you hope TO continue, TO pefpeuae, 10 ensraf it
republican system to transmit i: TO ,stery
You cannot do it, History, lifting up her voice of ex
Pcrience declares to you aloud that you cannot Yor
may giate against the for the hour for the day
That is thing within human power, like the clock over
your entrance door You may put back the hands of
clock till il shall seem fthe day grew younger nsiea(
Of waning. But not the less will the sun, without holt
his apparent through the heavens aud not tht
less will the inexnabe DIAL steady to truth, continue
indicate the constant regularity of his progress.
Do you still demand proof of these assertionsl Then
ask you briefly TO reyIew with me, the history Of the
mercan protective system; to trace its rise TO follow
its progress, to note the symptoms not TO be mistaken,
its decay.
In 1883 was passed the 6rst tariff bill. The young
public had just brought to close expensive war; and
her population of less than four Millions had incurred