The daily union. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1845-1857, 1846-06-01
For the Union.
THE FAIR-ITs FABRICATIoNs AND ITS
FABRICATED FACTS.

II was OF course, expected that every tariff wing
and every agent OF the tariff protected manufacturers
of the North would come to the fair now holding in
this city, thoroughly prepared with arguments in
favor Of the system by which they are enabled 70
suck out the life.blood Of the people. But il could
hardly have been anticipated that they would resort
to fabrcatons Of facts too shallow and barefaced TO
deceive even the most credulous and unsu speeding
Such however, seems to be the case one or two in
| stances Of which | will take it upon me to ex-
| pose.
In the Intelligencer OF yesterday morning notice
| communication signed "a. f. D." in which the
writer refers 10 very curious and ingenious ma
| chine for manufacturing cards with which TO card
cotton and wool. IL is truly an ingenious and beau-
tful inventoa, and worthy Of the admiration Of al
who view It; and the writer adds sit is not in
teresting account Of its ingenuity, than as an sr-
| ample Of the effects ofihe tariff"
| Now, what will be thought Of the yeracity Of q
writer who would ascribe such beautiful specimen
| Of the inventive genius of countrymen TO the
tariff, iohen IL is knopR thai that pery machine oas IN
vented BY Whihemors nearly fly year, ago, before a
protective tariff thought Of in this country? Yet
such is the fact. The machine has undoubtedly
bees very little improved since Whittemorc in.
vented 1t; but so long ia 1t since il invented,
that it has long been without the protection of pa
| tent. Ii is among the many other causes which
have tended TO reduce the price Of manufactured fab
RIGS in spite Of tariffs 1t has greatly increased the
facility Of making cards, and thereby essened their
cost, and consequently the cost Of goods manufac-
tured by them. Ii belongs TO that great class
Of labor-saving inventions, by which the steam
| engine, cotton-gin, splnning.jenny, and power
| loom belong; and which have been the main
| cause of the cheap fabrics Of the present day
Those wonderful productions Of invention have
| conferred upon mankind cheap fabrics in spite Of
| the schemes Of monopolist manufacturers, in the
with view to keep up the prices of fabrics 10 the
consumer. IL is to Watt, to Whitney, to Ark
wright, to Crompton, to Hargreavss, to Wh,temore,
and other lusrious inventors that the world is now
| indebted for cheap goods. . - =
The writer also says that description Of fabric
which in 1872 cost IS cents per yard, now sells for
7. cents; and he would have the reader infer that
the tariff ,ckeh gives monopoly OF The market 10 The
MANUFACTURE aud enables him 10 fir hi o,rn pride has
been the cause Of this great change. Now any man
Of common will at once; that this great re-
duction of price is to be mainly attributed to the
great labor-savng inventions, which have above
referred to- which have added a thousand-fold to the
power Of producing the raw material as well as the
manufactured fabric. But another cause operated
to keep up the price in 1912. We were at war with
England OF course British fabrics were excluded
from our market, and thus the manufacturer had a
monopoly Of our market far as he was able to
supply it. He hadhten by the operation Of iohat
he seeks 10 obtain BY prohibitory tariff piz:-
the control Of the home market. The whole world
| also in state of war. Manufactures were to some
havng'left the workshop for the field of battle. The
general war which then prevailed throughout Chris-
tendon caused a suspension of manufactures and
other productions, while the consumption was in
creased, thus creating greater demand in proper
ton to the supply. Such were the causes of high
prices in 1872 and the causes first mentioned, viz:
| the great labor-saving inventions of the last and
present centuries, the main causes of low prices
now.
Bat if the American tariff has produced such an
| immense reduction of price, how happens it that a
still greater reduction has taken place in the mar
kets of Europei The.American tariff does not
operate upon the manufactures Of Europe to reduce
them in price. If it Does what do our manufacturers
gain by it, Certainly, if such is its operation in
| foreign countries, it is the most deadly foe to
the interests of our manufacturers. 1t enables their
foreign rivals to compete with them not only in the
markets Of the world, but in those of our own
| country. Such absurdities will hardly 60 down
with an intelligent people.
But have not done with the Edbrications of those
| manufacturing agents who have come here to con-
vince Congress and the people that taraiion in the
form ola tariff is the most supreme of all the bless
| ings which they can enjoy. In passing through the
| building in which the fabrics are displayed | OBJ
served some very handsome Marselcs quilts,
| The largest size had the following words labelled
upon them: Cost in ls43, 80. In 1916, a." Those
80. In 1916, 80 So" Now, know from my own
| experience that the statement of the prices Of
these articles in 1S43 is totally false. had occasion
to purchase several of those quilts for my own use,
in that very year, and | paid for the largest size
| 81 25, and for the smallest SO so. These were of
precisely the description of goods as those dis
played at the fair. The prices have named in
ls43, were the retail prices, as bought but very
few.
Now, what can be thought Of such unblushing
descriptions as these, which sought 70 be palmed
off upon the community by the manufacturers
Are they simple enough to suppose that there is
nobody present who understands these matters and
cannot expose themi And, after such exposures,
who will believe any statement which they or their
agents may make
submit these facts for the consideration Of the
public, and will at aauture time take occasion
pose other attempts at deception which have come to
my knowledge. VERITAS.
G5-For the Rio Grande.-The patriotic
citIzens of Washinntnn WIN have suhacrihcd