New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1851-09-19

| able fact, that the domestic consumption
OF cotton has fallen off 10 less than
one hundred and slxty-iour thousand
bales since the tariff Of 1916 became
fairly operative Equally certain 5 the
fact. that the increased export of cotton
in the form Of domesii, cloth. l. far greater
than the increased import III the form Of
foreign cloth. and thus do we arrive It
tie great fact, that trade il cotton goods
foreign and domestic, throughout the coun-
trv. has diminished in amount 10 the extent
# more than 10000 bales. and in propor-
ton more than twenty-five per cent, not
withstandlng al addition to our population,
amounting to almost two millions
To this fact it Is that We invite ne A.
tanuon Of our merchants. The power Of
consumption diminishes under the iniu-
ence Of the tariff of 1916, because there IS
q dqily diminishing Yo'rer 10 pay far goods
10 he consumed Under the influence Of the
/ tariff of 1912. the domestic consumption OF
cotton grew from 267, 900 to more than
100000 bales, ard the power to pay ior
cotton cloth grew 50 rapidly as to render
necessary an import that increased more
rapidly than did the export and had that
| tariff continued in existence, the domes-
tic consumption would be now ab-
sorbing little short of a million OF bales,
whereas. it Is now less than half million.
If further evidence be desired Of the des-
tructiye character of the existing system.
il NAV be found in the fact, that diminished
as Is the production of cloth, the power TO
paw for It has diminished 50 much more
rapidly. that everywhere the markets are
flooded with goods that cannot be sold at
home. and that must therefore seek mar
ket abroad. thus increasing our exports, be-
cause the growing poverty of the mass OF
consumers compels them to dispense with
the clothing they would desire to purchase.
Our contemporary finds, nevertheless, IN
these exports. evidences of growing pros
perlty, and yet he elsewhere says that the
power Of consumption is the test OF pros
perlty
Why it is that the power to purchase d.
FINISHES with the progress of the British
free trade system, established in lSi6. may.
perhaps, be understood by our readers. after
peruslng the following paragraph from one
of the latest British journals
BRrrIsH TRADE WITH AvERlci-A parliamentary
paper has been issued IN London showing the trade
Of the United Kingdom with the nted states 81
America IN the last four years In ls47 the declared
value of British and lnsh produce and manufacture
exported to the United states OF America was
fl0qi7 l6l in 1873, fq564 900 IN lsi9, All,y1l,-
e2s and an 1850. ga sol ,96l. The imports from
the United States have increased In the three
wears lasi years account not beng made up the
official value of the imports was, respectively, go
Bag SO, 81 t25 ,55i94l
Properly to appreciate the facts here
given, it is necessary that our readers
should understand that the declared value
means actual market value, while Official
value remains always the same, and Is.
| therefore, only a measure of the quantity
of commodities imported.
1t IS here shown that the quantity Of COM
n0ditles, exclusive OF coin, sent to Great
Britain in the three years 1871, : and 9,
grew first from twenty to twenty-four, and
then to twenty-five and a-half millions and
thus we appear to have sent in 1919 one
f.urth more than we had done IN ISL.
The ratue receired in these years grew from
fIO,9l7 900 to fll,90O,000 that is to
say, about ten per cent. to set against an
increase of export amounting to twenty-five
per cent. And vet, during all the period
that has elapsed since ie47, we have been
exporting coin and evidences debt. the total
amount of which has, by this time, reached
probably hundred and twenty if not even
hundred and fifty millions. Is It not
obvious. from tins, that We are driving
losing trade, and can 1t be matter OF sur
prise that anv merchant feels that the bank
ruptcy of his customers. and perhaps OF
himself, is staring hlm IN the face Inc
more commodities We send, the more we
find ourselves in debt.
The tariff of 1912 was repealed that the
trade ruth Britain might grow. The duty
on raw materials from other parts OF the
world was increased while that on manutac-
lures was diminished. and trade with pro-
ducerS of those raw materials was thus
sacrificed TO the trade with the middlemen
OF Manchester, and Birmingham. and what
have we obtained Our imports from that
country. as here gwen, have increased,
from ls47 TO 1880. four millions of pounds,
or nineteen millions Of dollars. in exchange
fer which we sent in the last year coin and