The republic. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1849-1853, 1849-10-12
pulitifal.
From the Neo York Tribune.
mr. H.ri6 Queation I'm 1919.

any body wants to live out Of the profits of others
labor bv contriving, directing and bargaining-no
body ''bones down" TO hard work who can manage
10 live any other way. II is matter Of social re
spectabty-a mark of caste-to be able to con
sumo much and produce nothing; and the noisiest
bawler for Democracy and equality at the polls or
in the bar room lodges into a custom house, OF
some other well paid, lazy berth, the first chance
he can get, and leaves productive industry to those
who can't avoid it, Whoever thinks at all can hard
ly fail TO perceive how this general tendency con-
duces to and insureSan extravagant, bloateo, mon
strous stimulation and expansion Of trade Every
body is keen for speculation; very lew nave any
confidence in patient, Flooding industry as means
of acquiring wealth From baby Jumpers 70 grave
yard accommodations, every thlhg lnat man can
use some air and less water excepted Is the loot
bali of traffic and speculation And, while nine
tenths of the more especially trading class die bank
rupt or in penury trade STILL absorbing most OF the
financierng talent Of the civilized world, con-
trives to absorb most OF the realized fruits OF toll
Successful commerce Pounds the colleges, and they
teach the doctrines il loves To hear; II patronizes
authors and the books of political economy are
mainly written to prove that whatever s is right,
in the mercantile sense OF the axiom. The gospel
of supply and demand-the law Of ''Buy where you
can cheapest, sell as dear possible" Is funda-
mental to the recognised commercial ethics, and,
every body being in fact or in aspiration trader,
is the law of modern society. Yet the very men
who adhere it, preach it, live it, revolt at once at
any novel yet perfectly Legitimate application Of 1t,
which bears severely on themselves or others, and
does not conduce to filling their own pockets. Let
a doctor say to- morrow to rich man who has Just
had his leg cut Off ''Sir, if the effusion of blood is
not stopped in five minutes you are dead man;
yet there s no other person who can stop 1t within
half mile, and | must have ten thousand dollars
or / won't do t''-and ninety nine out OF every
hundred would kick the law of supply and demand
TO the kingdom come, and execrate the doctor for
acting on their own cherished principles. The
world ia just reasonable as this
We have now nearly closed the third year OF an
ayowedly revenue, anti protective tariff In fact,
il is on points protective, on others its hos
tility to protection is carried to extreme suicidal
TO 1t is the child OF various party neces-
sites and their contradictory traits are stamped
on it's ungainly features. 1t tries to be sweet on
sugar and strong with hemp, because its authors
feared the producers of those articles but is full
of deceit, and the poison Of asps IL under It's hps
The hemp which il pretends to subject to thirty per
cent duty, il lets in cables, cordage, &c. at
twenty five the wool on which 1t also processes TO
impose thirty per cent. it lets IN as hannels,
baizes, &c. at twenty-hv and as blankets at
twenty The farmer, thus duped by pretence OF
favor is driven from his own markets by South
American wool made into British blankets, and
thus admitted at rate onehaf less than Is charged
TO the American importer OF just such wool, who
must pay higher for his labor, and contend against
ripper experience and larger aggregations OF capt.
tai Yet the farmer is told he has twenty per cent
on his wool, and that ought To content him, when
in fact the foreign wool Is extensively admitted at
twenty per cent. in such shape as TO deprive the
American farmer of market not only for wool
but for the fuel, meats, vegetables, &c. which
would be consumed by the cloth makers if the
fabric were made in this country, even out OF for
eign materials. The act is full of such juggles.
This tariff is consistent IN a single feature-lts
adherence throughout to ad valorem duties. Every
article charged at all pays 30 much per cent-no-
thing is specific One effect OF this IL to create ana
preserve a glaring and indefensible inequality of
exactions at different ports OF the Union At two
ports only twelve miles apart, the same article has
been entered this summer, at one valued at , %
and paying 45c. duty-at the other valued at soc
and paving 24c duty-a difference of 81 per cent.
Railroad iron of like quality has been entered the
same week at 81 sterling at one port, and at o. los
at another, paying 20 more duty in the one case
than in the other. OF course, on fancy goods and
articles of less definite value the disparity must be
still greater. And such inequality, any practical
man may see, is nseparable from the existence and
operation of ad valorem duties Every man engaged
in importing goods naturally wishes TO get them IN
as cheaply possible for ten per cent in the valu-
alton may make the difference between a profitable
and losing adventure. If sternly upright import
ers will not undervalue, they will be undersold and
driven out Of the trade by men who will And
custom house valuations always do and must de-
pend in a great degree, upon the invoice; for who
can tell, upon casual examination, how much a
barrel Of watch movements, for example, IA really
worth Ii might be worth 3 100 ,OOO and may not
be worth 8 5000 Competent appraisers can come
within stones throw Of it; but independent, accu-
rate valuations at the custom house cannot gene
rally be made.
his E,reign rival under system of adj valorem du
n,s In the first place, the foreign manufacture
OF goods honestly swear that they cost him less
Counting his rents, machinery, fixed salaries, per-
.onal services, &c, nothing, since these must
have been paid if he bad not made this particular
invoice Of goods) than he will sell them ior-less
than the American importer can buy them Tor
Suppose he swears the invoice Of goods oost him
TO inake) $50, 900, while the American importer
cannot buy them for less than $4,000, and the
duty il twenty five per cent; here II S26OO clear
profit 10 the foreigner and loss 70 our revenue IN
the difference Of dutes-the foreigner paying
s22 500 duty, while American importer OF a
like invoice must pay $4,000. How many repe-
litions Of this per annum could the American be
expected 10 standg .
strict honesty but il is notorious that invoice vaua
tons are often--we might say oitener-nOf honest
A bookselling friend ordered an invoice OF books
from London. The books arrived, and an invoice
bv letter in the same steamer, which he paid the
duties without hesitation scrupe. On opening the
books be found enclosed another invoice, charging
the books much higher-the real invoice; the other
being only intended for the custom house He wrote
10 the London house for explanation, not choosing
10 be pve-lnled rogue without warrant beyond the
fact that he was IN trade. The London house eN-
planned that IL had only done what was customary
and what it supposed would be agreeable-mean
no offence, certainly, but good turn in the com
way.
In this game Of undertaking, the American, i
d,po-ed 70 play IT, has no chance with the foreigner
The formers character property, business, are al
staked and all lost if be il detected in viu fraud
the former IL safe in a distant land, while his agen
in this country has nothing 10 lose, and may b
started at another point next season, If "uniortu
nate" here. Can any man ak why ~ large shar'
of our importing business il in the hands OF Euro
peans,
Home industry finds blight in these ad valoren
duties when a great staple-iron, for example
bears high price, then the duty is high just wheI
Our iron makers have least need Of II. But the de
mand falls off, the market IL glutted, and iron als
until onya few Of the most favoraby located work.
can afford 10 make it all Now, a. fast az the prices
fall the duty also falls, that the thirty per cent
duty, which was ample when iron was high, sinki
almost 10 nothing az iron gets lower and lower. u
bar iron was worth 500 per ton, the duty would
be- $50 but the price Of iron falls 10 40 and nov
the duty IL but ! ~ Thus the highest amount Q
duty IL exacted where the least IL needed, aud ~ th
price IL pressed down, the duty sinks also, and IN
American producers Of iron are thrown out OF worl
by their own country's tariff, which s contriyed q
n expressly 70 derange and destroy their business
When the price and duty are high, iron works ar
,et in motion but AZ the price ias on, IN
duty falls of as well. and the iron business y thu
doublv kicked down.hill. The British producer 70
our market finds some compensation ior The deoin