The Kanzas news., 1858-05-22
The Home Protective Union

This Is the title of an Association re-
Gently organized in this city for the pur
pose of diffusing information concerning
the workings of the Free Trade policy,
which has SO often prostrated the business
of the country; paraly zed industry and dis
couraged every species of useful enterprise.
It is intended to show the farmers of our
country that they are pursuing suicidal
policy IN attempting to force market Tor
grain in Europe, while they might have a
sure and profitable one at their own doors.
The patent absurdity of sending cotton
across the ocean to Manchester To be spun
or woven; of sending flour to Manchester
weave the cotton; of paying freights and
commissions to middle men and traders,
who return the cotton cloth to Us to be con-
sumed; while the Industrious working MEN
in our country are driven to pauperism and
crime to avoid starvation, ought to be ap
parent to ever one. Does not the farmer
who raises grain know that tie small pro-
portion of his produce which finds pre-
carious market in Europe, determines the
value of his whole crop at home. and that
while he is buying cheap English cotton
cloths, he is depriving the working man in
his own neighborhood of the power to buy
his produce Does not the cotton planter
know that while he is forcing constantly
declining market for his product in Europe,
he is depriring his own neighbors of the
means of purchasing cotton manufactures,
and spolling better market at home p
Does he not know that the amount of cot
ton goods which the people of our country
consume is just in proportion to their abili-
ty to earn wages; and that home market is
a steadily increasing one; while foreign
one constantly fiuctuates and declines
Can any one fail to see that that policy
which makes a small crop more valuable
to the producer than large one, is unnat-
ural, and injurious to the planter? Penn
sylyania farmers send grain to England to
feed miners and forgers, while they pro-
duce iron to be brought back and used in
Pennsylvania; while iron ore, coal and Eme-
stone, are in abundance at the farmers door
The amount of American property which
European capitalists have accumulated with
in the last ten years, should startle every
one who cares for the independence of our
country. Should this policy continue for
thirty years more the European aristocracy
will ot0p us: and we shall be but rent payers.
1t is time for working men to look to
their own interests, and to remember the an
cient proverb: ''Jupiter helps those who
help themselves Twenty years ago it
was acknowledged as principle of the
dominant party, that ''the Government
should take care of itself, and the people
must take care of themselves" They have
shown their utter inability to do even this;
and at fba bo
to the most wretched expedients to avoid
the consequences of their own blindness
and folly, while they obslinately refuse to
adopt the only policy which can free the
Government from embarrassment, and re-
store prosperity to a suffering people. The
present income of the General Government
is about thirty millions, while its expenses
are over seventy millions, and constantly
increasing. Every arrival from Europe
brings intelligence of the dullness and decline
in breadstufs, and within two weeks cotton
has declined two cents pound. These are
however small matters compared with the
losses of the working men and women who
have been all the winter without employ
ment. The loss to the working people of
the United States during the past half year
from want of work, has been .fs0e times great
er than the whole uolue Of all the cotton. grain.
tobacco and provisions exported from this
country to Europe sCithin tie past gear, at a
very moderate calculation.
Who can fail to see the evidence of the
rapidly growing decentralization of large
portion of the people ? Even New York,
callous and mercenary as she is, begins TO
be alarmed at the number of gross out
RACES committed there; and our solons at
Washington are asking for patrol of one
hundred men to protect life and limb in the
Federal city. The result of our present
policy is so manifest that tshe who runs
may read" but Notwithstanding the dis
tress, destitution, embarrassment and want
of business, the people are slow to move.
Whom do they wait for? Who is more in
terested than themselves
There is no one in the community who
desires to get his living by honest means.
who is not directly Interested in the estab
hshment of the protective policy. Is is
not the protection of particular interests that
we require. 1t Is protection of the home
market for the farmers produce It is the
protection of the capital so necessary for
every business enterprise. Il is the pro-
o~~eOu va q maj net AOI the hOThliiSIlon . IA
Dor. We want to free ourselves from the
coils of European monopoGes. and to make
our own clothes, to eat our own bread at
home, instead of robbing the soil by its ex-
port; to make our own iron and cutlery, and
to give employment to every man and
woman willing to do useful work.
Let the dealer, who has been selling
cheap imported merchandise, and now is
idle for want of customers, ask himself if
ne is not concerned in protecting Amen-
can labor? Ii the thousands and tens of
thousands of mechanics and working men
aud women, who have been without EN-
ployment for the past half year. had been
at work, where could the thousands and
tens of thousands of dollars daily earned