Raftsman's journal. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1854-1948, 1857-11-18
A CORRECT PREDICTION.


On the lst of March, 1855, Hon. Wm. H.
Seward, U. S. Senator from New York, made
a speech in opposition to the proposed allow
ance of Credit for Duties on Railroad Iron, in
which he foretold this years financial history
with most fearful and signal accuracy. We
direct the special attention of all who believe
our hard times to be accidental, unaccounta-
from that speech -
ssMr. President, we are told by the Hon. Sem
ator from North Carolina, Mr.. Badger,) that
We must adopt either the tariff project before
US or his amendment because the railroad in
terest requires relief
sThis brings me back to the precise ques
tion which discussed here few days ago.
think, Sir, that the restoration of the business
of railroad building TO a healthy state requires
either to leave it to work out its own cure,
or else to adopt remedy very different from
what is here proposed-a remedy which will
stimulate production OF the raw material and
of fabrics by manufacture. Anything short of
this will fail to give any tone TO the general
financial system of the country, now SO much
deranged. The troubles with which we are
contending arose from excessive importations.
The project before us tends to reduce duties,
and so to encourage and stimulate imports
q
You propose to add fuel to the fame that is
consuming us. ...-.- la-
ssLet us look backward for instructions. In
1884. by excessive importations, by unex-
ampled enlargement of credits, We had brought
on great fiscal embarrassments. Property OF
every kind was depreciated; everybody want
ed relief loans; credit paralyzed. The
Bank of the United States exerted itself and
gave relief; the crisis seemed to have been
passed. Importations were Immediately re-
sumed, credit was again expanded. Wheat
rose to two dollars per bushel; prices of all
descriptions of property were inflated. The
relief obtained was only temporary. The en-
barrassments of 1884 returned in 1887, aggra-
waited tenfold. And then came that fearful
convulsion which carried distress and ruin
throughout this broad land-distress and ruin
from which we have required twenty years to
recover. Sir, 1ve, az 1854, just passed through
The pTeD7oni07.y symptoms Of q crushing pres
sgre, irhich IS 10 come in 1857, or some year
not isag thereafter. Let not this be thought
strange. 1t is near twenty years since the
last revusion. Commercial revulsions come
once in twenty years. The circumstances OF
our condition now correspond exactly with our
condition previous TO the last revusion. Gov
erment then refused to stimulate production
by tariff of protection, and, on the contrary
stimulated Importation. 1t went on to the
the bitter end.
tion now by tariff for protection, and gives
fresh impulse to importation. The results
must, unayoidably, be the same. Those who
| think otherwise rely upon the fresh contribu-
tionS TO our currency which are derived from
the gold mines of California. l grant that
those contributions may delay commercial
revulsiOn for a time, and may modify and
break its force when it shall have come. But
they can neither postpone it indefinitely, nor
can they break its force that it will leave
the country harmless. What Will be the linn
its of the influence of those contributions upon
commercial revulsions in mere speculation.
After the severe revulsion of 1887, produced d
by excessive importations, Government re-
turned to system of protection in 1912, and
so restored the prosperity Of the country. We
shall return TO the same policy. for the same
purpose, in the present case. The only ques-
tion is.whether We shall adopt that policy as a
preventive, or wait until the distemper Las be-
come otherwise incurable. l am for applying
protection now. Nevertheless, | stand alone.
Congress is not prepared TO raise the duties
npon imports. All that remains for me is, to
do all that can to prevent the reduction of
those duties.''