New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1851-08-13
Faliacics and Frauds Of british Free
Trade.

If evidence were needed of the error Of
our present commercial systcm-of that
system which looks TO the maintenance Of
the British monopoly of machinery for the
producing of cloth and 'front.' miaht be
found in the utterly reckless character of
the assertions perpetually made in the jour
nails that, under the mask of free trade, de-
vote themselves TO the maintenance OF
British power and influence.
But short time since, The Journal Of
Commerce, in endeayorlng to account for a
pressure that is the necessary consequence
Of closing the mills and furnaces of the
Union, and booming TO ldleness thousands
and tens of thousands of the people hereto
fore employed therein, while running Ill debt
for the cloth and iron they might have made,
gravey assured its readers that d" the change
which sweeps over the fortunes Of the mer-
chant begins with lis customers In the ill.,
terror and that therefore there was 10 pre-
sent reason for alarm It was resolved to
see no danger in the working of the tariff of
1916 The passage is altogether 50 remark
able, that we deem it expedicnt to lay 1t be-
fore our readers, as the first of series OF
British free trade "talacicS," 10 which we
purpose to call their attention.
The great trouble began IN Wall-st Here were
men without means. Who had subscribed Tor stock,
and invested IN bonds and spoculalei IN produce.
and dealt IN arg fabrics, all With capital borrowed
" on call" or rCturnaolc at short date. When the
surplus cash which had been thus employed
called for, the parties obtained It for the moment else
where but gradually The circle wherein they could
borrow was narrOwed stocks must be sold u meet The
deficiency. The movement, once begun, reacted upon
uSefContlnuay, until he pressure has been seriously
felt everywhere. OfcourSe those who are dong le-
climate business are Affected by this Stringency be
cause they have TO pay higher rate for the accom-
mediation they aecd but they have not oeentae chef
cause of H. and need no, be permanently affected by
H. 4 pressure IN the money market mere never
operated 10 break down our merchants when they
had been selling their goods Il q ldlr prott 10 safe
country buyers. The change winch sweeps Gown
the fortunes of the merchant begins Ia MS custom
eIs III the interior, as the stream II drei ht>l Up
among the rllls distress among buyer> n the IN
tenor runs The country merchant his ial Affects me
obi er this reacts upon the importer and commission
merchant. Blu, loca. pressure IN these deep "a-
tiers Is seldom the FIRST occasion OF serious mischief
Directly the reverse of this was the fact
in 1887. The pressure began IA New
York. and thence extended to Phllaiel-
phia and Boston, and finally TO 81. Louis,
but it did not reach the latter place until
1885 How could it, The pressure re-
suited from the fact that hundreds and
thousands of men like those described IN
the above paragraph had " subscribed for
stock" and had invested In bonds large
sums of money to be applied 10 the making
of roads through the West and South, pre-
ciselv as men are now and have been doing
during the past two wears and 1t began
/ az the place Of business 81 tie men lch0 had
contracted 10 furnish the money-the City
OF Newly ork-Gad not al The piece al
.caich Il ,caS 20 BE- spent. those places al
which were to be formed "the nils" re-
ierred TO in this article.
Our citics are filled with bonds OF North
ern and Southern States and counties,
cities and towns and the people of the West
and South are made happy and rich by the
power 10 obtain cloth and iron without paving
for them in any other form than that of the
cheaply-proeured evidences OF debt. Some
bedy. however, must pay; ard II Is among
those who have to pay for the stock and the
bonds, by aid OF which we are making the
improvements, supposed to indicate the vast
prosperity now existing among US that The
pressure must be felt and so Ion. as they
continue to pay, the rills" that feed the
stream will continue to run. but ma longer.