The daily national Whig. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1847-1849, 1849-04-21
DAILY NATIONAL WIG.
WASHINGTON, ID. G.
THE TRADE WITH FRANCE.
SATURDAY MORNING. April u, ie4a.

i The Cincinnati Chronicle oil The 18th
instant publishes an interesting letter from
gentleman Of that city, who writes from
Paris under date the 24th ultmo. The
subject Of the letter is the trade of the Uni
ted States with France. With the doc
trines Of the writer the Chronicle does
not agree, as they are ultra free trade. He
would have the Americans to modify their
tariff upon French silks, cashmeres, velvets,
artifcials, pearl and ivory, gold and silver
ligintine, marble and house fabrics, sculp-
lures, and wines, to such an extent, as to
make the duties nominal. In return, he
expresses the belief that the French would
promptly reduce their tariff upon American
provisions and animal products to the same
standard.
j The writer makes some curious state
ments, which it may not be amiss TO repeat.
4 He says, that at Lyons alone ninety thou
sand operatives are engaged in manuiactur-
4 ing silks, velvets, Grape, &c, TO the value Of
fifty millions Of dollars year,-that at st,
Etenne, city twenty-five miles from
Lyons, thirty-two thousand persons are EN-
ployed in the manufacture Of ribbons alone,
equal in value to twelve millions Of dollars
annually that in Paris, ten thousand peo-
Pile turn out cashmere and other shaws, to
the annual value Of two millions of dollars,
fifteen thousand people produce jewelry val
ued at twelve millions Of dollars year,
eleven thousand hands manufacture twelve
millions of dollars worth Of bronzes, includ-
ing clocks, yearly, and nearly as many more
persons are engaged in the production Of
pearl, ivory, marble, fringes, artificial flow
ers, mirrors and wearing apparel, whose
aggregate annual value il is difficult to
ascertain---that there are FIVE millions OF
acres Of land devoted throughout the Re-
, public to the culture of the vine, one-flth
, Of whose product is now exported to the
United States-that the rearing OF domestic
q animals for the table is not sufficient to sup
: ply the home demand, because the flesh
cannot be cured, in consequence Of the al
most prohbitory duty upon salt, the gabelle,
. which in January last, was four times the
market value of the artcle--that hams, ba-
con, sides and shoulders, lard and beef range
in Paris, at an average price oftwenty cents
per pound the year round-that the expense
Of transporting wine from Cette and Mar
settles to New York and New Orleans, is
no more than transporting it thence to Paris.
j Upon the basis Of these statements, this
advocate Of free trade would have the Amer
leans to throw open their ports to the above
named twelve articles, at a nominal duty,
provided France will admit our provisions
and annual products at the same rate of du-
ty, which lie AYERS lie is authorized to say,
would be promptly done. He anticipates
the objection, that we should be obliged to
extend the same privilege to other nations
who have treaties with US placing them on
the footing Of the most favored countries, by
urging, that the manufacture Of these twelve
articles, is SO exclusively confined to France,
that no other nation could avail itself of the
advantages thus granted. The arguments
Of the writer in favor Of the proposed modi-
1 fication OF our tariff, are drawn exclusively
from the interests and wants Of the provision
producing States Of the great West He
contends that the trade which would springup
between the two countries, in the event Of
their tariffs being modified according to his
f. : 4 L. \.
both nations, that the Western cattle growers
andprovision producers would find steady
and profitable market for the commodities
which glut the avenues Of Western commerce,
that France would receive in exchange for
the products Of her industry and mechanical
skill, what she is now furnishing for, and that
\ French Republican Institutions would be
consolidated by the influence Of such an in
+ tern atonal trade between the two Repub-
lies. Such is rapid resume of this politi-
cal economists points of argument in favor
) Of uniting the United States and France
under one commercial flag, so far as the
above enumerated articles are concerned
ihete ID biea' ueai VI piausipIitS ABOUT
the proposition, and the Arguments by which
| it is sustained, but it appears to us, neither
it nor they will bear investigation, The au-
thor would have the Americans to open
the way, and then he says, the French will
follow. In none Of the propositions, which
the free trade party have urged upon the
country for the last five years, has there
been any offering to meet us halfway, on
the part Of other nations The argument
has always been--let us reduce our taxes
on foreign articles Of commerce, and other
nations will follow our example, because Of
our lib crafty. The country was hectored
into this policy, and the tariff of 1876 was
adopted, but our example has not yet been
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