The Lancaster gazette. [volume] (Lancaster, Ohio) 1863-1886, 1870-01-27
Decline of Free Trade Doc
trines in England.

While in this country tho prop
agandists of free trade doctrines
arc making fresh and powerful ef.
forts to push them into popular 10.
yor, It appears that in England,
where free trHdo tiIe0Fivs bavc
heretofore stood almost unquestion-
ed, the people are getting very
sick of their practical results. The
subjoined article is copied from the
London Times of Dec. Goth, 1869:
THE STAGNATloN IN TRADE On
Thursday q meeting of the electors
and ratepayers OF Bermondsey was
held to consider the effects OF Free
Trade on tho British workmcn.-
Mr.. Roberts, who occupied the
chair, in opening the proceedings
dir ected attention to the fact that
a vast proportion of our supposed
home manufactures came from
abroad. He specially referred to
Bryant and Mays matches, which
were made on the Continent, and
all that remained to be done when
they arrived in England was to
get them dipped. When work.
men complained of certain oppres.
sion to which they wero subjected
they wese not unfrequently told
by the employer that the work
could bo done on the Continent at
a cheaper rate should the English
workmen refuse to comply with
the demand made. There was not
a trade in England that had not
suffered from Free Trade, and it
even went so low as TO affect the
wood>splitter, who found bis trade
ruined by the foreigner making up
wood for the English market in
penny bundles, The true way OF
finding out what were the real re.
suits of Free Trade in England was
to look at tho imports and exports
of the country. He found that
Rcssia imported into England an.
nually EGO, 100000 sterling of goods,
and England sent TO Russia e..
0OO,O0O. What was true with Rus.
sia stood good for all the Cont.
nent. There were oil kinds of OK.
cuses given for the depression in
trade. and these were our Royal
Family, our aristocracy, and our
system of doing business; but the
real cause was the freedom given
to tho foreign trade and denied to
the English. He was of opinion
that the French would repudiate
their treaty with England when
the time agreed on had EXPIRED
No doubt the wine trado was GET
ting rich; but the cotton grower
was the loser. The French nation
favored the cotton grower, and
would not allow the vine grower
to get rich at the cost of o large
proportion of the French working
people. England took different
view of tho question, and it was 10
his mind most remarkable that the
arguments raised against Free
Trade at it's outset had become
painfully true. 1t was argued that
emigration was necessary, but he
denied that, as there was plenty oi
work in the country for all work.
men if they had fair play with the
foreign workman. Mr.. Brooks
moved resolution in effect thai
the existing system of Free Trade
was Objectionable and injurious tc
the interests of the British work
man. He pointed out that pau.
perism had boen on tho increase
since 1859 TO the extent of 139, l65
persons, and the rates were pro.
portion0tcly on the increase. Since
1860 emigration had also largely
increased, and he gave as an in.
stance that England was sending
annually since 1860 no less than
46G, ,l27 persons in increase of for.
mer years, and President Gran,
took credit in his last address for
tho rapid growth of manufactures
Was not that the intellect of the
English nation of which no was
boasting2 He then referred to the
importation Of carpenters work
and said that it had moro than
doubled itself during the past ten
years, and would be on the increase
if no check was put to the foreign
trader. Mr.. Maclure seconded the
motion, which after some discus
sion, was agreed to, and the meet
ing closed with a vote Of thanks tc
the chairman.