The voice of freedom. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1839-1848, 1848-02-17

CfcaSe your ihdrliiuNiyi ou"'O 'S" i"I WI ''
stimulate competition, increase supply, and
YOU reduce price. This, sir, is law of trade
Us certain in its operations as the ebbing and
am not practically acquainted with these mat
tens. l am cotton-grower, l wish TO make
money plenty, AID prices high abroad where
| sell, and make it scarce and prices low at
home where | buy; | want to sell i'll a high
and buy in low market. l have not now
time to discuss this question further. | am
very busy, | must 90 to the Treasury, but
beg you to believe that am the special friend
of the American mechanics, workingmen, ano
particularly the c0teyS-Good bye, l must be
Off"
But Mr.. Walker has not only reduced the
duties on the productions Of American me-
chanics, but he has reduced still more the du
ties on the luxures of the rich. Among the
rest, he has reduced the duty on forei on bran
dy and spirits distilled from Grain nearly one
half; and this, too, is done to increase the
revenue. We must therefore import anC
drink double as much brandy and spirits a;
we did under the tariff of 1872 otherwise
Mr.. Walker will lose revenue Yes sir, i'm
port and consume double as much brandy tC
get the same amount OF revenue. Instead OF
reducing, he should have doubled those du
tics, and if he and his friends will drink for
eign liquors, let them pay for it. But Mr.
Walkers revenue has gone down, and he now
calls on Congress to make up for the loss OF
revenue on brandy, fine cloths, and other lux
uries, by taking the poor mans tea and cQ0ee
Let him restore the duties on the rich mans
brandy, and other luXuries and then talk OF
taxing tea and coffee, and not before and
till he does this, he will never succeed in
perpetrating this outrage on the American
people.
Knowing that low duties always invite ex.
ceSsive imports, resulting in large balance
of trade against the country, ending in bank
ruptcy and ruin, Mr.. Walker undertakes to
show that an unfavorabe balance of trade is
OF no Importance; that the balances against
us have been frequent and heavy. Yet, he
says, our country has survived and prospcrcd.
But does not MIR. Walker know that eX-
cesSive imports, and an unfavorable balance
of trade, are always followed Ivy the exporta-
ton of specie, with all its disastrous conse-
4Uences?
Mr.. Walker might az well tell farmer in
Pennsylvania, who sold his whole crop to a
merchant from whom he got all his supplies
for his family, that it made no difference to
him, whether, at the end Of the year, the bal
ancc was in his favor or against him. y ma
ton is a family upon large scale, and the
same principles Of industry and economy that
secure wealth and prosperity to the one, will
secure them to the other. The great error, Or
this point, consist, in the assumption Of a fact
that is not truc-that the foreign goods We
purchase are to be re sold, whereas they are
imported for consumption, and are consumed
and the balance against the country has to be
paid in cash.
must hasten on-but cannot omit to
notice, for moment, one Of the greatest ab
Surdities of this extraordinary Report. Mr.
Walker grayely tells Us, that our domestic
products amount 10 100000 900 year; Of
this we exported last year $3.50 900 600, the
balance being required for the supply of the
home market; but he says that by adopting
low duties, we might increase our exports and
imports to 900000,000, and orr revenue to
500 900 year. This he makes out BY
against all experience, that foreign
would take from Us three times rs
much as they now do F.; but s,pp0sing what
has always happened, that by loW duties you
break down and paralyzc yoar own national
industry, export your specie, involving the
'ountry in ruin and bankruptcy, destroying
both exports and imports, then what? IT.
stead of 800, 100000, your exports sink down
to less than two and ha f, the or1iinsr,
amount. But Mr.. Walker goes further still
he says, by adopting absolute and unqualified
Il cc-trade, rcsorting, # course, TO direct tar.
1tion for reyenue-lcyying the taxes on the
1m"rican peop'e instead Of .)oreiyn goods-
Mr.. Walker SAYS we would "measure our an
lual trade in imports and exports by thou
,G7ds of millions" Who can but smile at
urh insanity run mad. Mr.. Walker might
MEASURE his imports by thousands Of mil
ions" had he money to pay for them, but when
he tells us that the whole of the specie in the
United States does not exceed ninety millions
If dollars, not enough to pay for one months
IMPORTS under his " frce-trade" sys EN-, how
ong would it last? His " frec-trade" engine
would blow out before it got fairly under way.
Dur imports may depend upon ourselves, but
ur exports depend upon the disposition of
oreign countries to purchase; and they will
lot purchase from us when they can supply
themselves. II Mr.. Walker can devise plan
O create famine or the potato rot in Eu
Ope, he may, to some extent carry out his
heory, but not otherwise. We can purchase
S much as we please while we have money
II credit but like the reckless spcndtnri t,
when these are gone, we must quit, and 90
o work. or starve. There is but one way in
which Mr. Walkers plan Of making our i'm
'orts and exports amount, under " trec-trade,"
o thousands of millions" and that is the
Ian, no doubt, he has in view. That is, to
xport our ore and coal to England, and bring
uT,l- n lnr Sh
nd anchors. Export our wheat and corn,
nd bring it back in flour; or what is worse
Or us, and better for them, worked up in
ostly manufactures. Send them our hogs,
nd bring them back in Bologna sausages
Send them our raw hides, and bring them
ack in leather, shoes, gloves, &c. Send them
ur wool at 80 cents per pound, and buy it !
gain at ten times that amount. in cloth
aying, not only for the wool, but for the for
ign labor, and the profits of foreign capital
,,,ploVnI in itr to,, 81