La sentinelle de Thibodaux. [volume] (Thibodaux, La.) 1861-1866, 1866-02-17
The Great Discussion.
From the New Orleans Crescent.)

A very good sign Of fhe times is that
the newspaper organs of the Republican
party are already disputing the great
question of free trade or protection. The
Republican party in the process of its
formation absorbed a large portion of the
old Democratic party, and thus there
we're introduced intorhe new organization
elements, the antagonism of which was
bound to manifest itself whenever the
immediate purposes of the party should
he achieved. No difference of opinion
could be wider than that between the DOM
mating New England element Of the Re-
publican party, and the Democratic
recruits from New York and the West on
the tariff question, and all other questions
relating to financial policy. During the
long contest on the slavery question, and
on the issues arisingo out of the recent war,
this difference was smoothed over or held
in obeyance. The revival Of financial
questions, in a more important form than
those questions ever before assumed, has.
naturally led to q revival of the old differ
ences and the old antagonists. Already
the Democratic allies of the Republican
party have pronounced in no unequiyocal
terms against the enormous e3actions
and still more enormous p~retcnsioiis o fthe
New England m~onopolists, and against
the whole theory of protection whichfis
assumed by the New England radicals to
be the settled policy Of th~eacountry. All
over the North the discussion enlists the
efforts of the public Journals, and, as we
have said. the debate is not confined to
the Republican press on the one hand and
the Democratic press gu the other hand,
but among the Republican papers them
selves are to be found some of the ablest
supporters Of free trade doctrines, and
some of the most determined enemies of
the New England oligarchy. In New
York the Tribune and the Post, both
leading Republican organs, have, for some
time past, been carrying on a heated dis
c9ssion on this very point. In Chicago
the protective views of the Republican
are stoutly combated by the Tribune,
whichis a Republican organ.
But it is still more gratifying, and a
still further indication Of the progress of
sound doctrine even under the most adj
verse circumstances, that the opposition
to the tariff system is not confined to the
allies of the Republican
party. On the contrary, the New York
Times and the New York Commercial,
both traditional organs of the old Wing
party, are strongly committed to free
trade opinions On the other hand, the
Express, an old Wing accession to the
is just as thoroughly hostile
10 New England domination and to that
protective system by means ofwhich New
hopes to maintain a material as
veil as q moral supremacy IN the country.
The New York Herald, which journal
has an extraordinary knack Of going
wrong on the slightest p~royocation, at.
to dispose Of the question in it's
usual absurd and illogical style. 1t says,
Of the discussion now going on
n the columns Of its ~cotempories :" These
Rip Vans Wrinkle journalists do not seem
o understand that the free trade idea Is a
hing Of tbe past" Now, if there is any
hing ossentiallysta thing of the present
md Of the future, it 10 the free trade idea.
fthere is anything essentially q thing Of
he past, it is the protective idea. The
act that there are still to be found i~ntelIi-
rent men to adhere to the fallaeies of pro-
ection only shows the tenacity with which |
r maintains her hold on the human /,
mind. That the ~monopolists and all,
Fhether intelligent or Ignorant. who ex-
Get to grow rich and powerfully lerying t
on the industry Of others, are in a
svoolr. Of maintaining the protective sys- q
I'm is, Of course. nothing astonishing.
he Herald says that the idea Of free
ado has been put aside by the war just
i the necessities created by tile war, /
ayolving Us they do tho ability to endure 9
high rate of taxation, did not logically '
ad to the adoptiMns Of the system which n
i'll enable US to bear such a rate af taxa
on. The fact is that there never has
zen d time when the country stood so
UGH as now in need Of the in~yigorating q
ID stimulating Influences of free trade.
illustration If its proposition that free y
ade is an obsolete idea, the Herald treats t
] to the following refreshing bit 0 flogic !: J
This country Is bound to become the h
manufacturing country in the
orld. This fact will be established, If q
! nothing else, by the very existence Of Il