New-York tribune., 1869-02-26
PROTECTION.
LETTER EIGHTH.

II
"a to Tho direction in which they might ma hlstOrlc
fyptb vour words would probably have been asiolows
"From 1s45 TO IsGO. fellow-citzeDs' the eomOiheu
amount OF onr exports and imports had as you see oIo
than trebled the great change thus exhibited having o0
Cured however, not consequence OF groWlngPo""
,r maintenance Of foreign commerce, but because o au
absolute necessity for seeking abroad market lOr cO
modities that we had not permitted our people 70 uo -
home At the first OF these dates, our cotton pr"u"0
little exceeded 100000 bales and tho domesuo 0o'"np
zion under the protective tariff OF lSA@ was hen 50
randy growing as warrant belief that the uy was
,ast annroacng when would call for more than hat
the crop thereby relieving planters from all necessity
for forcing their product on foreign markets. anu Io SUD
ntting to the arbitrary will OF men whose pronS gre"
es tbey were more and enabled to fix for themselves
the prices at which they would consent 70 purchase o
s4o3 10 1878 the homo demand, NORTH and Sou had
grown from to bales but at the close OF the
dozen free trade years Of the tariff OF sG 1t had SO sghy
grown have required but 755eo although our num-
had almost 10 per cent Increased AS consequence
had then required to seek ABROAD market Io
nuapy twice greater that of the Thote crop OF the
period for 1872 the dependence Of cur planters on tho
foreigner becoming greater with each succeeding year.
Under such circumstances our shipping grew OF course
with great Iapidy, did the quantity OF colnmodes
carried abroad TO changed In FORM aud then returned
TO rs for consumption, but our soil became Iron
hour TO hour more exhausted the general result OF THIS
extraordinary course OF operation having been that
while possessed OF soil aud climate unequaed Tor pro
duoton OF this great staple the total contribution 10 inc
commerce Of the world abroad and at hone OF States
with population Of sOOOO0, territory OF hundreds OF
millions of acres adapted to the cotton culture and so ar
as applied at all so applied less than that Of single
Northern States and could scarcely be placed at sum
exceeding S300,000O00.
"seeking now another item OF the cost at which had
been obtained this growth OF foreign intercourse VIC fDd
the great manufacture TO have been down
that whereas the period from ls42 to l4S 1t had so
rapdly advanced as TO warrant the belief that but few
more years would be required for enabling it to stand
fully side by side with that OF Britain the closing years
Of this period Of growing foreign commerce had exhibited
1t as having remained entirely stationary, notwithsand
ing great increase Of population above described
'Iooking once again. felow-citizens, you will find
fearful item Of In this that while exports gold
excluded scarcely exceeded OOo our farmers and
planters being taxed for the maintenance OF feo
and half millions OF registered tunnage employed In
carrying their really insignificant quantity Of rude
products 10 foreign markets Add to the capital repre-
sened by this domestic shipping that represented by the
vast quantity foreign tunuage likewise employed,
and you will find. my friends, that ne total capital
employed IN The trOrk Of transportation must hare closely
approriGted The annual value Of the commodities carried
Reflect then pray you, the fact that single ship
could bring from Europe cloths and silks sufficient TO pay
for the cargOes Of dozen carrying cotton and that it
must therefore necessarily have followed that the whole
burden Of maintaining this machinery was being borne
by farmers, oar o,rn planters, our oirn land
NiHPSSSO
the belief that part Of the cost of this great foreign
commerce, might set down tax Of transportation,
within and without own limits, greater than would
have then suficed for maintaining all the armies OF
Europe
Turuipe your ewes now in another direction you find
our commerce with the outer world to have been sweed
in these closing years OF the prosperous free trade period
by an export OF slsOOCO Of gOld tho withdrawal OF
which had been accompanied by paralysis so complete
that mills and furnaces had been closed that thousands
and tens Of thousands of working had been reduced
to state Of alcness that immigration had tended al
most 10 disappear that small had been the production
of commodities for whose production either cotton or iron
had required the supply had been greatly In excess
OF the deRnd that power to contribute to the puDc
revenue had become much impaired as to render
necessary the negotiation Of large amounts OF Treasury
notes and bonds and the annual cost Of thousands Of
millions OF domestic commerce We had added couple
ofhdred millions TO the quantity OF goods sent abroad,
aud as much to which had been thence received.
Throughout this unhappy period. fellOwctzens, rail-
had largely increased in numbers and extent Its
closing years presenting the extraordinary spectacle Of
community possessed of than 10000 miles Of rail
road, NIL Of which it had been required TO maintain In
working ORDER Its internal meanwhile having
declined that shares In most important roads had been
almost wholly without price, while for the great majority
the most that could have been obtained was from q
fourth half Of their original cost That in the pic
presented OF the cost at which had much
Increased dependence foreign markets do not
In 1885, accurately. think, presenting the facts Of
those British free trade years as follows:
Looking, FIRST TO our internal commerce, we find a
help OF bonds bearing interest the of g. g. 10
per cenbOnds that have been disposed Of in the market
at CO. TO- or Soper cent Of their nominal value and could
not now probably be eSOd at moro than half the plce
at which they originally bought. Half made, and
little likely TO be completed, these roads worked
Rt great expense, while requiring constant and great
pains As consequence Of this IL s that the original
propretors have almost wholly disappeared, the stock
belng OF ltto worth inc t9al amount APPLIED to the
tho present value scarcely exceeding 40
any period Of history have been in this
respect utterly helpless present Nevertheless
the policy Of the Central Government looks steadily to
the dlspeTson Of our people TO the occupation OF new
duetOn Of necessity for further roads. That Mr. IreS
dent is me road 70 physical and moral decline, ana po9th
C1l deGt t0tH be prOped, unless ICE change
course
"The more carefully, fellOw-cltzens you shall study
the picture hero presented, the more, think will you
become satisfied Of the perfect accuracy Of the predic
tion with which 1t closes and which since has
70 being realized. With every that you shall
give to its consideration the you must become salts
fed that the nation which sacrifices its internal com.
in the hope Of creating q great foreign one. is
building inverted pyramid that must IN time toppe
and fall to utter rup, as had nearly proved TO be
the with the close Of the dreary British free
trade period which your attention has been now In
ylted."
Having thus presented what as 1t appears to me- you
might with perfect regard to Historical TRUTH" have
said Of the years preceding the Rebellion Ipropose in my
next to review what you have said of those by which
has been since succeeded Yours respectfully,
HENRY C. CAREY.
Hon. D. A. Wells
Philadelphia Feb. IL, 1860 0..---
Atths moment here referred TO- Franc. wa, .r,orss 70 p a..
te.sd S5goO0 OF Ak eo.icDs and ether huhd articles