The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1871-01-19
rnE HOWE nAHKrr HusrpUe.

includes the actual products and the
value of the services or earnings OF
every man, woman, and child. OF
these products there were consumed,
or used, or saved during the year 1869
no less than 3,540 millions at home
that is, within the United States-and
AGO millions, according TO the Bureau
of Statistics were exported to foreign
countries. In other words, the peo-
ple of the United States themselves
consumed over 95 per cent. of their
own products, while 5 per cent. were
sent abroud. Or, in still other words,
we had a home market for 95 per
cent. of our products, while 5 per cent.
went TO foreign markets. Ofthe gen.
eral truth of these figures every read-
er can easily convince himself who
chooses to be at the pains The wants
of the whole people are only the ag-
gregate of the wants of all the indi-
Vidual households; and the wants of
each individual household consist of
what?
Shelter. Rent in ninety-nine cases
out of hundred absorbs % per cent
of every fam;ly's expenditure, and
rent is the interest on a house con-
siructed almost wholly of domestic
material. .s fs...s11. Hos
3. Food. Bread, meat, vegetables,
milk, butter, are all domestic products.
| OF all our food, only tea, coffee, spices,
and q part of our sugar are imported.
Yet food constitutes in the average
American family fully one half the
yearly expenses. Our light, our
warmth, almost the whole of our cot.
/ ton clothing, all our common wollen,
| clothing, our boots and shoes, our
| furniture, our stationary, our books
and papers, all our domestic produces !;
even the bulk of our wine and spirits
and tobacco are of domestic origin.
| A few silk goods, a few fine cloths,
! tea, coffee spices, and a part of our
| sugar, constitute the sum. total of for
eign goods consumed by the average
American family and that these make
up even a smaller proportion OF the
/ total consumption than the 5 per cent.
/ calculated from statistics every one
may see for himself. Every ones in
dividual experience illustrates the sta
tistics; confirmation they do not need.
| The fact is that 95 per cent. of every
ones consumption consists of Amer
ican products; or, in other words, 30
per cent of all American products are
consumed at home. 81 9lsiIi-
The theory of the 'home market
1 proteetionist is that they should all be
consumed at home, because their trans
portation abroad involves q loss to
i the producer which he Woutd suffer
if his product were consumed athome!
1t is not necessary now to prove that
this loss is an imaginary one. 1t Is
only necessary to prove that it is I'M
possible to consume everything at
home. We must pay for imports
and unless we pay for them in specie,
which the protectionists dread if pos
sible even more than what they call
the loss of the home market. we must
pay for them by the export of some
of our other products; that is to say
there must be some of our products
which we capnot afford to- have con
sumed at home.
Of our imports, amounting in al
for the year 1869 to 450 millions O
dollars, Dearly 250 millions of dollars
!, consisted of articles which it is prac
ticallv impossible to produce in tht
United States, and which we mus
import under any circumstances OIL
else do without. To pay for these
} articles we must export some of oul
t products; and unless the protection
/ lists can induce our people to give uI
tea and coffee and spices and silk
! ane linnen, or the use of dyes, drugs
/. and chemicals, or to do withou
l whalebone or oil or the fifty othel
/. articles needed. for our comforts o.
9 luxuries. or which are indispensable,
l to manufacturing industries, we mus
: to the extent of these $50 millions
: worth of products abandon all hop,
e of being able to consume them at hom
e or to make a home market for them
e There would then remain about 20t
9 millions of our products which w
Y might possibly, if we imported moth
e ing but the articles named, consum
e at home. This 200 millions, be it OBJ
: served, constitutes about taco per cent
t of our total annual production; and
: is this two per cent. which there is
g bare possibility we might be abie t,
n consume at home, to make shom
), market fora percentage so small a
: to convince every one that the import
It ance of whole home market the
: ory is enormously exaggerated.
d But can we consume at home ever
# this small percentage of our annua
i product? Let us see what it was tina
we exported. OF 460 millions export
ed in 1869, 1S8 millions was raw cot
Il ton. We used up all the cotton W
|. could use, we used up all the cotton
4 necessary to furnish Us with all tn
v the cotton goods of every description
e that we required, with the exception
# of about % millions worth Of cotto
d goods which we imported. Supposini
if we had manufactured all of thes
| l. pI
Is sumed 10 millions more of raw cotto
and should still have l7S million
ii worth to export. Can we make
.e home market for these ITS millions {
:, raw COTTON? Only by making thel
p into cotton goods. But what to q
70 with the cotton goods ? We alread
1s mako all we want. How is the cotto
manufacturer to get 'home marke
C. for his extra goods? 1t is eYidentl
t. Impossible to make home marketf fl
m hlm. We must either stop raisin
d. two-thirds of our present cotton cro
or we must manufacture it at hon
g. and export the product, But, if "
IS export the product, how are we to
IT. paid for it? We must import som
thing to pay ourselves, and whatev'
r. we iTaport will be something to ca
a. drink, wear, or consume, and will i
to eyitably take the place of some 9th
he American production, and therel
deprive the American producer
he that article of his market. 1t IL ey
or dent that it is totally impossible
Id make a home market for all our cottC
til whether raw or manufactured, al
is that the only way we know of to s
zee cure home market for all the cottt
q we produce, is to raise just about on
in third of what we are producing noy
of course which we advise the pr
er- tectionists to urge strongly upon the
lth friends at the South: e-,
DIV We also imported in 1860 about
- millions worth of breadstuffs--abo
six per cent. of our total products
of 1900 millions. Suppose this S
sc, per cent. had not been exported b
ces had been consumed at home, and h
,ry just sufficed to supply the home ms
be ket. Next year we plant as ma
lm acres, and the crop turns out as GOO
hn