Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1847-07-23
[Fsom The Petersburg Republican

To The Voters ofttc Second Compassionate D''"
In onr first and second Nos. we en'eaVoftu ~ ~
trace The course Of parties from 1879. gov" .o,
present time, and TO show that Inc "h's POI
was guilty Of duplici,y in announcing 'h''i p''"
cpes in 1910. Gam t,o,, and
We propose now 10 submit a lew lac's . anu
arguments, upon subject wnich coheea,'s
much more deeply Than both Of Tue o.ne'S
or. We auce 10 The i'folec''oe Possss. hI lie.
cussed by The frs minds in The Country, we can
scarcely none 10 throw any new light upon II
But if we shall succeed in opening your eyes ~
the fact. that many OF you are sustaining co",se
If nolicv which, though insidu0nsly, IS mol me
less ureiv. undermining your best ihIefes'S, oui
labor will mol have been in vain. -.,.
MIR Jefferson in letter 10 Mr. Giles, written
in Dec. 1926, denounced This system as one wnich
was ssrdng and ruling over the punaeIea pioush'
men and beggard yeomanry OF inc County.
Let us see what is lis practical operation upon
the farming interests.
II will 20, be pretended, we presume, maj Inc
farmer derives any protection from the tarifis.-
Indeed, Mr.. Clay has said agriculture needs no
protection"
But il is argued by the friends OF the measure,
that, By building up manufacturing establish
menls in our own country "home maikei' IS
afforded for our surplus products. we reply 10
this that all experience demonstrates, That The
.(nclgz is vastly supr. iur 10 The home market -
Aud when lne duties upon foreign fairies are
laid so high Ak 10 pr"h;hil, or 10 materially dImi-
nish their Introduction tito this country, IL that
extent The American farmer is deprived Of The
market ahroad-ioT The manufacturer III Europe
cannot lake our arnduce, unless We Will receive
| his fabrics in exchange f"r IT,
No truth is better est. blishcd than this. All
trading between nations must be based chiefly
| upon an exchange OF commodities. Therefore,
| il The fabrics OF other nations he excluded from
our ports, the consequence is inst this, we are
forced TO give up g0od market for a 7ro'se one.
But, even il The home market really possessed
all The advantages claimed for il, how chimerical
is the idea Of furnishing one Talk Of "home
consumption !" You might as well attempt 10
empty The Atlantic into bucket. Lei Us look 10
the iacls.
In 1910 there were in lie United States, 90 46l
persons, engaged in the manufacture OF co!Ion
and woollen goods many i! not most OF them,
being women and children allowing 10 each one
OF Them 10 bushels OF wheat, which IS liberal
estimate, they would consume 9o4,6lO bushels.
Now The surplus wheat oil Ohio alone, which
is raised to sell, amounts annually 10 more than
IL 100000 bushels.
Il thus appears, that The single Stale oil Ohio
can supply all the cotton and woollen operatives
with breadsruf7s, and then have surplus OF more
than | |, 600, 600 bushels of wheat. What is 10
become OF this surplus2 Where is all The grain
of the great States OF Indiana, Illinois, kentucky,
Tennessee Maryland, Virginia, &C., 10 COL
There is but one answer. We must export it
il must seek market across the waters. The
protective system lends 10 destroy, or impair, that
marker, and thus 10 Insure, instead OF benehtlins,
the producer
The practical operation OF The system confirms
this view. Let us examine few facts.
For space OF several weeks, mmedi lately al
ter The harvest OF 1910, The average price OF flour
in Baltimore and New York, was over SIS so pei
barrel
10 lS4l The average price was more than Sc
in New York.
On The 9Th of August, 1912. the price in The
same market is quo'ed at Sc. ;
These were ihr prices during, the existence OF
lO,r duties, under The compromise. The auhori-
" from which these statistics are drawn, is
miles Register Wing publication.
On The 20h August 1912, just as the high
Tariff OF that year was passing through the Wing
House OF Representatives, the final vote being
daily expected, we find this entry in miles Re.
gislei":
"Flour prices deeliaed-S4,75 would be will
lingy taken al Baltimore"
The bill became law, on the Both OF August.
and on The l7lh Of September, eighteen days there
AFTER We arc informed by The same paper that
-four was selling in The New York market al
4,56 and al S4G2 per barrel.
In ls43, whilst this glorious Wing tariff was
in full play, The price OF -four in New York and
Baltimore, averaged only "a so per barrel. being
81 50 less Than The average price, in i04l ana
1912. when Inc duties were Al the iolcca p0inf
On the 231 OF July, 1874, the Wing Tariff
and hi2h duties still prevailing, The best aour
was sud in New York, for S43li per barrel
In 1888 80 10 and Al, The price OF Wheat
ranged from ! ,25 10 li5. This was during the
operation Of low duties. But after the passage
OF The high tariff Of 1912, il was worth only
from IS 10 90 cents.
These are facts that cannot be shaken BY all
The Wing theories in the world; they prove in.
con,es,ibly the soundness OF our proposition,
namely, that the foreign is superior 10 the home
market Whenever our ports are opened to The
entry of foreign fabrics, celeris paribus the price
OF produce will rise. But when they are exclu.
ded by high duties, the foreign market is cut off,
for the reasons already given,-and as a natn.
raj consequence, prices decline. So much for The
home market.
II this were The only injurious effect of the Ia
riff policy upon The farming Interests, il might be
borne with better grace.
But this is but The commencement OF the evil
II each man in The community could see in dol
lars and cents, the sum paid by him annually as
bounty 10 The manufacturer OF The norm, he
would be startled. And this 100, while the manu-
fac urer is receiving profit OF from 10 10 ~ per
cent. upon his immense investments, and the
agriculuralist is receiving from 3 10 6 per cent.
only.
Perhaps many will still close their eyes to the
truth. They may not believe that they are pay
ing this enormous stipend.
II will not be denied, that every possible device
which ingenuity could suggest, has been employ
ed by The advocates Of this ruinous policy, 10
hoodwink its unsuspectng victims-and 10
great ex.ent they have succeeded. II shall be our
task 10 tndcavor TO sip The subject If all its dis
guises. and % presenil IN view 50 PLAIN as 10
strike The humrles' cap2cny.
We say then, thai hi dniy laid upon any arti.
Gle, enters in'o, ani forms par, Of The p'1ce oil
that article, ard lha it is paid by the consumer.
Mr. Jefferson. in his letter 10 MIR. Giles, alrea-
DIV referred a., uses This language: "Under the
power 10 regulate commerce, they" Ohe Federal
issl "assume indefinitely that also over aericul-
lure and manufactures; and cal! II regulation, 10
take The earnings nt one Of these branches OF IN
duslry and that, too, The most depressed, and put
them into The pockets 81 the Cher the most flour
ishne OF all"
Even Mr.. Clay himself the father Of The sys-
tenn, admits, 10 his speech in the Senate, oil the
18th February, 1888 ,ha sin general, il may be
taken as rule, that The duty apOn an artieie forms
PARTON Of as prlcc
And what does John Quincy Adams say2 In
his Report from The committee on manufactures,
made in 1892. he declares hat The duty lis
bounty upon the domestic manufacture, and
burden upon he foreign"-and that, "lhe repeal
Of The lax must operate as an equivalent reduc-
tiom Of N. price Of Tic articlc, 1caeder foreign or
domestic"
The Yeoman, ofApril, 1910, published in Rich
mond By John S. Gallaher, under Inc supervision
OF The "Tippecanoe Club" admits the same fact
Bnl why introduce authorities 10 prove that HIGH
every mans common sense must teach him =
IL The price oil The foreign Article is not made
higher by The duty which is laid upon il, in what
way is The domestic manufacturer projected q
Now The very end and aim Of protection is 10
raise The price OF The foreign article so high, as 10
enable The home manufacturer 10 sell. Ii is not
proposed 10 accomplish il in any Other way Fur
ins ance-an Il mericsn hal will crsi "a Euro
pan laboers can make il Tor 80 50. Now the