The republic. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1849-1853, 1850-08-31

tcays been compelled himself TO pay the in
creased duty, and thus overcome the Difficult
ties which stood in his way TO market, precise
ly as does the distant farmer.
In common with another editor TO whom we
replied some days since, the editor of the Ledger
seems at loss TO understand how II is that the
manufacturers are TO be benefited by the adop-
ton of measures that must iReDitably be fol-
lowed by reduction of prices; but we think he
will find little difficulty in understanding it, if
he will reflect that increased demand is nvaria-
bly, following reduction of price. The high
priests Of the Manchester school will, however
deny this. They will say, :" Our cotton spin
ming friends in England know that, having their
feet on the necks of the cotton planters, the way
TO keep them there is to run short time, and
thus diminish demand whenever there is any
attempt to raise prices If your assertion were
true, they should run double time" This
would be an answer worthy of the men
who see prosperity in high prices consequent
upon deficient returns TO the labors of the
farmer and the planter but it is one we
are not disposed to expect from the Ledger,
whose owners and editors have at home such
potent evidence of the truth of the assertion we
have made. They know well that when the
demand for their paper was small, the paper it
self was small that they sold it at high price
for It's size, and that yet it yielded them little
profit AS the demand increased, although the
paper was enlarged the price was maintained
and yet the owners made large profits. The
demand is now very great, and the consequence
is that they enabled to give for the same small
price paper containing probably five times as
much as the original one, and yet its owners
are rapidly becoming rich.
We beg Of them now to take the same view
of the cotton, and woollen and iron manufac-
lures, and they will see how it is that prices
fall, as with increased demand the producers of
newspapers, of cloth, and Of iron, are enabled
to use better machinery, and to do larger bust
ness, yielding them constantly increasing
quantity Of profit out of constantly diminish
ing proportion taken out of each newspaper,
each yard of cloth, or each ton of iron. In
1912, the maker of piece of cashmere was
almost ruined by being obliged to sell at
ST. SO per yard In 1916, he was becoming
rich by selling itst 81 80. So is it with the
propretors of the Ledger. They We're poor
when they sold a sheet, little more than seven
by nine, for cent They are now being rapid
ly enriched by selling for the same price sheet
as large as was but few years since that Of
the principal papers of the Union. The reason
in both cases was, and is, the same. Increased
demand had enabled them to obtain improved
machinery.
If, then, we wish to have cheap newspapers
cheap cloth, cheap fuel, and cheap iron, we
must do what is needed TO increase demand
Such was the effect of the tariff of lS42-it
increased demand. The consumption of coal
and iron trebled in the few years fits existence
The consumption of cotton doubled, and that
Of wool increased sixty per cent; and the rea-
son that consumption increased was that the de-
mand for labor increased and with il the pow
er to obtain the commodities required by the la
borer, his wife, his sons, and his daughters.
Our contemporary speaks of the consumption
Of iron at the present moment. Is Il paid for?
Does not his New York correspondent, almost
at the same moment when he was writing Of
prosperity, tell him that unless. something be
done TO lessen the amount Of importation we
must have crash? Have we not, at this mo-
ment, the evidence Of It's approach in the refusal
of the banks of his own city 10 furnish silver for
expectation?
Let him examine the history of 1886 and
compare it with that Of the present hour, and
he will find resemblance that cannot fail to
convince him that the present system cannot
stand. We then imported food in the forms Of
iron and CLOTH and food in the form of wheat
so do we now. We then paid for our CLOTH
our iron, and our grain, by certificates of debt
so do we now. Money was then abundant in
the cities; so is it now. The cities grew rap
idly; so do they now. The city workmen
were turbulent; so are they now The mines
and furnaces were being abandoned so are
they now. The mines and furnaces were un-
employed; 50 are they now. All was then as
prosperous" as now, and yet the lapse Of a
few months at that period brought an awful
change; and such change must now come, un-
less some measure be now adopted that shall set
in motion the abandoned cotton and woolen
mills-the mines. the furnaces, the forges, and
the rolling mills of the country.
We beg our contemporary to examine these
facts for himself He is placed in commune
ty that. more than any other ~ the Union, is
dependent for its prosperity upon the success Of
mining and manufacturing operations-the one
that suffers most heavily from general depres-
sion. and advances most rapidly when the cause
Of that depression is removed. Let him study
the facts for himself, and we feel assured that
We shall speedily see him advocating the true
Wing doctrine, that the only road to perfect
freedom of trade lies through perfect protec-
ton.
The Macon Meeting.