The mountain sentinel. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1844-1853, 1850-01-31
For ths Sentinel.
Tariff Buhes and Protection.
No. 8.

The ordinary methods of creating State
revenue, often prove insufficient to meet
State expenses, and recourse is sometimes
had to 4 direct tax on property. But this
is SO intolerble to extensive property hol-
ders, that some scheme must be devised to
shift this too, unto the shoulders of labor.
For this purpose when surplus revenue
accrues in the National treasury, extorted
as it chiefly is from labor by tariff duties,
this surplus must be divided among the
States to pay State expenses while labor
is again TO be taxed to replenish the ma
tional treasury. and to operate as protec
tive.
Again the price of the public lands has
been sought to be diverted from its legiti-
mate use, and to be applied to State pur-
poses, and leave the National Government
to be supported by tariff duties paid by
labor. These schemes however having
been foiled for time by an honest nation
al administration, new plan has been hit
upon, to divert the public lands from the
use of the National Government, for the
purpose of creating necessity for tariff
duties, to operate as protection TO capital
and to defraud labor. This is TO feed av-
arice and speculation by giving to particu-
lar States or corporate companies, dona-
tions of the public lands, 10 make local
Improvements the berefts of which can
only extend 10 capitalists in particular To-
calities, to the exclusion of all others.
Now if the public lands are TO be taken
from the use of the people of the whole
country, and to be bestowed on individual
interests il would be more in accordance
with the spirit of the age, to distribute
them, as the God of nature intended them
to be distrbuted-to the poor and landless
whose natural right TO part of the Lords
}, earth to live upon, is equally as valid as
:. that of the most wealthy.
4 Another means to create necessity for
tariff duties to defraud labor of the benefi
individual States, and particular localities
is to commerce is 4 system of local i'm
f provements, by the National Governments
which must tax the labor of the whole
!, country to accommodate individual and
local interests. In short every aim
of the protectionists is to squander the
public isoney to furnish pretext for lev
S wing tariff duties TO operate as protection
and the blind zeal which obscures theil
vision in this matter, prevents them from
seeing that if they were permitted TO carry
out their measures OF protection they
would destroy the revenue altogether anc
|, compel a return to direct taxation.
:. But what, says the stupid defender o
i this thieving policy, does "the fellow wan
y to get at!'' Why he wishes to oppose tn,
downright frauds and robberies of tn,
whig protective policy, and to sanction NJ
law that Will not protect lin the words o
that Tariff Meeting at Ebensburg) "alik
l. the manufacturer, the farmer the mechan
e and the laboring man. To do this w
IS must indeed modify the protective policy
y and modify it until we modify il out o
existence, since il is its peculiar "provinc'
to rob ':alke" the merchant, the farmer
II the mechanic and the laboring man, for tn,
S exclusive benefit of manufacturing capital
l. isis, ldlers and spectators.
If Mr.. Justice is hostile to home manufac
It lures says somebody. There is not on,
s word of truth in any such charge. Blu
d | wish to see manufactures placed on equa
d footing with other ''interests." and am hos
b tile only to the principle of defrauding al
d other interests for their exclusive benefit
: and | would be equally as much opposed
to any measures that would wrong then
IS for the benefit of any other business"
Y JUSTICE.