The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1859-04-05

msnse piles Of hides, which have been gath.
erod up in this State Of Iowa, and are ship.
ped Of in various directions. Most Of them
We presume, find their wayto New England
and in due time they return to us in the shsp,
OF boots and shoes. Has the producer Of
hides ever traced out tho circuitous and
slightly expensive process Of converting hil
hides into boots and shoes? II not, let him
follow bale of hides to New England and
keep an accurate account of the cash pait
for transportation, and for tho profits Of al
the middle men. When the bale 10 set dowr
in some Tannery near Lynn, Macs, the low,
producer discovers the Yankee tanner ant
shoe maker must be fed while they conver
the raw produce into merchantsble goods
So back de comes and gets lot Of corn anG
wheat and other edibles, which he also car.
ries to Lynn, at no small expense fer freights
insurance, profits of middle men, &c. And
| then, when the boots and shoes are ready fol-
him, he finds he must have more wheat and
corn to buy them with, which also cost some.
thing for transportation. AT last having
bought and paid for his boots and shoes, he
starts them on their long journey to Iowa,
fighting his way through an army Of shippers,
commission men, and middle men Of all
sorts.
What deal of trouble to get pair Of
boots or shoes? Truly, in view of such q
hnu tad I'D
one might think that the producer would, in
sheer despair, resolve to go barefoot, or
clothe himself in the untanned skins OF wild
or tame beasts, like our first parents. But
then this process is the very perfection Of
free-trade doctrines, and Democracy teaches
that it 10 all right. So we have to submit,
and with unfathomable wisdom VIC continue
to keep our shoe maker in Massachusetts,, our
iron-monger in Pennsylvania, our cabinet
maker in Cincinnati, and sundry other arti-
sans in various distant points, while in the
meantime we are irresistibly tending to the
direful but necessary consequences of free
trade, to.wit: no trade bat barter, little mo-
ney and that hard to get, no work, low wa
ges, high rates Of interest, and linsey-
sey and buck skin for clothing.
The natural and unfailing remedy for all
this is, Of course, that system which neoes-
sarily brings all productive operatives into
close contact. The pillow, the loom and th'
anvil are not only convenient, but very profit
able neighbors. No State, no city can coun
opon any reliable progress without bringing
them oil together. That is the true polio
of our city, as well az the State Mt large
We must hold out every possible induce
ment to encourage productive industry.
These remarks are suggested by the enter
prise in which our fellow citizens, Messr
Wolcott, Amsden & Hobart, have just er
gagged. They arc building Tannery Q
Main-st., between 18th and 18th, and
J they command an ample capital, and a,
first rate business men, we expect to see thel
succeed, and we trust they will DO able
furnish large market for the surplus hide
. of the country. They will use chemic'
! process for tanning, by which hides can
4 put through in about thirty days. We ha,
! seen some specimens Of leather made by th
: process, which are just as good as leath
. can be.
: BY the way, the Journal noticed this q
: Establishment the other day, and in the cour
! of its article expressed and endorsed, pc
haps unwittingly, the very quintessence
khe protective system.