Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1848-07-06
THURSDAY, JULY 6, 1913.

lNN'"SN' AAH'O' ''iN''" ~ N"'0'ii'~NA 0'AN
expended before lis produce is ready for the market, and
before Il can be known what price the produce will
bring. How then can it be said that "he value of Ia
Dor is necessarily proporoned to the value of its pro-
duclions?"
In fact the price of labor depends upon the ratio
which the supply Of and the demand for labor sustain
to each other, and this ratio depends upon the many
circumstances other than the price produce which de-
ponds also upon the proportion of demand and supply
to each other and not at all upon the cost producing
The laws Of trade are such that when "produce is
scarce its price is high, if abundant its price is low"
as S. says in his second proposition, SO of labor
again, prices do not depend solely upon the supply
in the home market. Ifcrops fail in Europe, provis-
ions are taken there to supply the deficiency and pr
ces here depend very much upon prices there There
is a sort of mutual dopedcnce, Community of in
tcrests" throughout the world. Tariffs cannot pre-
vent this, and do not promote it. Where there is a
vacuum, thithor there is rush to fill it. "Noture alb
hons void"
But S. asserts that "protocton sustains the demand
for labor by keeping all its departments in profitable
operation" Protection cannot do this unless it has
power to distribute the labor among all the "depart-
mons" so that each shall produce Just enough to sup
ply the demand and no more.
need not say, it never had this power, and
have it. 1t cannot know what the demand will be
and therefore cannot sustain the demand for labor
tits not in the power of human wisdom to devise o
put in operation a regulating system of this kind
Again S, says, Gree trade begins in our countr,
by grinding poor people, and ends in another by turn
ing them out of employ" Now will s. inform II
lyhcn, where, and under what circumstances free trad
has been tried. do not know that it has ever had
trial in the whole civilized world fnot, his opinion
is merely speculative.
We need not conjure up phantoms to frighen chill
dren. 1t will be soon enough to condemn free trad
when it has been tried and found guilty. When
has had as long trial as the tariff policy has hat
and found to work greater evils it will be soon cnoug
to cast it away.
BY the term foderal," hope to be understood j
its fullest sense. | do not mean half tariff and ha
something else, but no kind Of tariff
S. has supposed a case, "a cummunity existing III
der certain circumstances, and says, "Now let TIN
community open such free trade as will ntroduc
foreign articles and certain results which he specific
will follow. This supposed case is nothing more NJ
less than true picture of the state of things which
and has been in existence from time imnonorial
Just such results he points out have been produce
by tariffs and are passing daily before our eyes like
scene in panoramic view. "Foreign articles" a,u
come here and ''cOmpae" with the home articles
They do come, have come, and will come. And ia
if regulation which would prevent their coming ,cto
f cut of the revenue, and could not stand moment.
is obvious that no kind of tariff except such as ADM
Of this competition, could exist The genius of con
, mcrcc has spread her wings over the whole earth
nation people, will shut itself up, and refuse int
, course and communion with the rest of mankind.
But if such results should follow from free trade
S. points out, it is no argument in favor of tariffs,
they never have prevented them and never can. L
tariff be so high to exclude foreign article al
the market would soon be flooded with a home su
ply. The higher the grade of protection which it +
ccives, the greater will be the temptation to inve
money in its production, and the sooner these rosu
will follow. Too many rush into the business, and
p their haste to get RICH manufacture too much. Th
uIC lncu uDllSGu 10 crowd ulCr goods upon mark
e already gluttod, and force a sale at any price T
), many loborcrs are drawn from "othcr employment.
but they find that Gall is not gold that gliscns" The
=, are those who "trade on borrowed capital" who
r. SNAKE fortune" hire money and labor; but the
# comes a revolution in the money market they ha
gone the length teirrope; they fail go into CHANGER
bankruptcy, or get rid paying their debts in sol
other way. What then? The laborors are thro,
IS out Of employ, with loss of wages loss of spirits
i undertake either old Or new employmcns, and oft
J., with loss of health. These arc the legitimate resu
it of "protection." They owe their existence to
o temptations held out. The past Is full of them P
c cscy the same results as S. ascrbcs to free trade
or inadequate market and reduced prices"-"precar,
W employment and low wages" to the poor This is {
of the deceptive features placed in the back ground
of tariff protection Though it ought to occupy the ro
,c and kept out of sight much as possible And it
Or small objection to protection that holds out ten
&c ations which are never realized and proves the tr
| of the proverb, that "They that will be rich, full i
IN temptation and asnare"
/TIn bo oo,f;,,,oJ