The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1871-10-05
Pnuperism in England.

England is the only country that has aban-
doned the hope Of making home industries
prosperous by tariff protection, and her ex-
pererce is regarded as the crucial test OF
the wisdom or folly of that experiment The
American Protectionists, who maintain that
it would be folly in US to follow her example,
assert that England, under the Free-trade
policy is 'sgoing to the dogs" her workers
becoming more miserable and her paupers
increasing enormously in numbers. This is
| the stock in trade of those who uphold pro-
lection as wise national policy. They are
met BY incontrovertble facts, whenever they
attempt to show that high tariffs are bene-
fetal to the people at large. They have
nothing to say, when it is proved that the
protected manufacturers grow rich at the
expense OF the toiling millions. Their one
telling argument is founded on English ex-
"perience OF tho results Of Free trade"
The report OF the English Poor-Law
Board is the only trustworthy authority on
the subject of English pauperism, and that
for ls7O-7l, just published in the New York
Eoening Post, completely disproves this pro-
tectionist assertion, showing, in conjunction
with previous reports, that the proportion OF
paupers to the whole population was in 1884,
s.3 per cent; 1s4S, 6s per cent; 1849, 6.2
per cent; 1850, ST. per cent; 1868, 5.3 per
cent. ls70-'7l, AZ per cent
After 1884 the Poor law came into opera
ton, and for some years there was much
irregularity in the rate, till ls4s, when 1t
was 6s In 1868, after comparatively
steady decrease, it was, though raised some
what BY the cotton famine, only 5.3, and in
1871 it has fallen to 4.2, or lower than it has
been for forty years.
The percentage OF the paupers that are
able bodied has similarly decreased from
twenty-ope to sixteen, showing either that
work is more plentiful and better paid under
unprotected competition, or that the people
are less inclined to be paupers than they
were under protection.
The expenditure tells the same tale. Per
head OF the population, it was
In 1884. 50 20, with wheat sll 81 per quarter.
In 1913. 81 IS, with wheat $l2 62 per quarter.
In ls70'7l, 81 67, with wheat $l4 II per qaarter.
Thus with wheat, the barometer OF the ex-
pense Of support, averaging for 1884 sll 81
per quarter, the rate was 81 20; in lS4s,
with wheat tenth higher, the rate had
fallen TO 81 10; aud in 1871, with the cost OF
support one-iourlh higher, the rate was one
fourth lower. or course, with so many dis
turbing elements at work, this decrease was
neither of unbroken continuance nor
equable; but the fact is not the less incon-
troyertible that the expenditure In pauper
supp or. now, after many years OF experience
OF unprotected competition" is much less
per head OF the population than it was in
the palmiest days OF protection. The de-
crease OF the percentage OF assessment on
property for the support OF the poor is even
more decided, showing not only that the
amount of pauperism is less, but that the
burden is lighter. Thus, from whatever
point viewed, English pauperism is not in-
creasing with tho duration OF unprotected
competition. So often, however, have the
American advocates Of protection asserted
the contrary, that they now seem really to
believe this creation OF their own fancy, and
to see no absurdity or worse in the asser-
ton above cited, that so appalling has the
increase been that England has now three
paupers to every four families.
But it will be said that, in addition to
what may be called the permanent paupers
there are the casual poor. Or these, in
1869, there were 55,6l7 in Massachusetts
and 95, ISL in Scotland. The interested pro-
teclionist writer's and speakers take these
casual-reliei figures as representing sepa-
rate and distinct individuals, which they do
not do. They simply represent the number
Of persons relieved, and the same persons
may be counted two, ten, or twenty times,
according to the number OF relefs each re-
ceived. The ninety-fve thousand in Scot
land were made up on an average OF 64l7
for three separate days, and probably did
not number more than one to two thousand
individuals altogether, in place of ninety
five thousand, as protectionists assert IN this
magnifcation Of British pauperism. The
number OF such relieis given last year, ac-
cordipg to the several official reports, was:
Boston, for every Of the population.
New York City, for every l6 OF the popu-
laiion.
Massachusetts,, for every l6 of the popula-
tion.
Scotland, for every 35 OF the population.
Ireland, none.
Now, it would be just as unreasonable to
assert, from the returns supplying these
figures, that half the people OF Boston, or
one-sixteenth Of the people of New York
City, were the recipients Of charity last year,
as that every fourth family in England, and
every seventh in Scotland, had one peripa-
tetic pauper, while Ireland had no such pau
pers at oil.
It is, however, as the Eveninq Post e1-
plains, by such Interpretation OF official re-
turns that the number o. English paupers is