The republic. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1849-1853, 1850-08-06

times spread through the community, and come at
last ON the farmer, who furnishes us food and
thinks perhaps that nothing can hurt his business
Tor all must eat about such an amount, one way OF
another But he finds his mistake at last; he feels
the hard times with others-partly in the dimin-
lshed quantity actually consumed by workngmen,
but mostly from the fact that consumers of food
have been driven TO become producers, and sellers
also-thus interfering seriously with his market.
Gin this way il could be shown that every man,
Except perhaps the capitalist who does not employ
his money, and to whom low prices and hard times
are alone beneiical,) becomes directly interested
in the question Of protecton-in keeping o,on
market for OF" ot0n people, for that is the point"
The journal Of Commerce, in the same arti-
Gle, presents Ia comparative statement Of the
exports of cotton goods from New York for
five months ending May %, 1850, and the cor
responding time last year, to Mexico, the West
Indies the South American States, the East
Indies, &c; also the amount exported from
Boston for the same time. From this it APP
pears that more than twice as much was eX-
ported from New York in the first five months
of this year during the same time last year
and just about the same amount from Boston
show that the power to compete with England
is undimnshed. But let us see how it bears
on the question of consumption. 1t is known
that the importation of raw cotton into the
northern ports had not increased; and if the
exports Of the fabrics wrought from it are in
creased, and the mills are stopping, it proves
that less is bought and worn by American con
sumers. We have before us the London Econ
omist, of July 6, containing the British Trade
and Navigation Returns for the five months
ending June 5, corresponding very closely with
the period to which the Journal refers.
The Economist states that zone Of the most
striking facts shown by these returns is, that
while the price of cotton has been, in the pres
ent year. nearly double that Of lS49 the ear
ports of that class of goods have greatly in
creased, not only in quantities, but of course
even more in value" Looking to the table Of
imports, we find that for the first five months
Of lS49 set down at 1929, 1872 cwts.; for the
same period in 1850. 2,G75, 6S5. In the table
of exports we find them to have been: Cotton
manufactures entered by the yard, exclusive of
lace and patent net-in 1919, $50, 644 ,SS7; in
1850, 564, los, 703 yards; and the total de-
clared value of the cotton manufactures exported
for the five months of lS49 is Il ,S57, 1877; for
1850, f8,9l3,722.
England and the United States are the most
industrious regions Of the globe, and both of
them testing the effects of what is styled
by its advocates free trade. The two journals
from which we have made these quotations
have been laboring together zealously and cor
daily to recommend their system to the cotton
planters. We find them at the same time de-
monstrating the fact that the power of their
countrymen to purchase and wear cotton is di
minishing with great rapldity under its inhu-
ence, and that both OF them are forced to send
away their cotton goods to such countries as
Mexico, the South American States, and the
Fast and West lndies-regions where the eli
mate is such that the necessity of clothing is
the smallest possible, and the Incidence and
poverty Of their inhabitants such that they are
least able to buy the little that their wants re-
quire. In other words, that the cotton planter
is being compelled, by the free-trade system, to
exchange the best customers in the world for
the worst