Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1875-02-26
r p1r1sRURy 0y FREE TRADE.

RI pJLLSBURT O-y FREE TRADE.
The Bangor Commercial contains a re-
port of the speech of Mr.. Pillsbury at the
democratic celebration iii Bangor on
Washington birthday. We republst
the speech in order that our readers may
see Tor themselves what Mr.. Pillsbury s
views in regard to Free Trade are.
Mr.. PRESIDENT Free trade is TO com.
merce what liberty is 10 persons. Sc
called protection is nothing more nor les:
than a species OF slavery. The slaves be
fore they were freed. were held by force
of law to render service to their masters
but under that law the masters were
obliged to care for them. both in sickness
and old age. Under this protection sys'
tenn, the masses are compelled to yield,
large per centage Of their earnings TO inc
corporations, which the corporations 90
not return. To my mind. of the many
evils flourishing. this system is one OF the
worst and most injurious, except the sys-
tenn of Capitalization. That system would
engulf all. Next to this, the system OF
robbery by which the masses are impov-
crished for the benefit of few is bad fol
nations. However much We may admire
the beauties of liberty. the thought strikes
mems minds with little force ifslavery. so
TO speak, is upon them. Without business,
no people can arrive at science. And ii
is 80 in all respects. Inasmuch rs BUSH
ness is prostrate on account OF protection
it is one of the gigantic evils to which onl
attention should be called.
Protection eats by night and day. reach.
ing the masses BY robbery. in more ways
than human wisdom can comprehend
Take the tax upon iron. IT makes the
fiour which you eat, higher. The iron in
the pillow, which turns the soil, in the
chains which attach the horses to the pillow,
the threshing machine the machinery by
which the -four is pressed into the barrels.
and every foot Of iron rail over which
your -four is brought in cars, costs almost
double by this system of protection. 1t is
tho leading cause OF the paralyzatlon in
business. The leaders Of the party in
power tell us the country will soon be-
come prosperous once more. Instead
we shall become poorer than ever, ant
continue so Just as long as this system o.
giving without receiving anything in re
turn Is continued. When the Fourth o
March comes in we shall have the power
l trust that among the earliest acts OF thu
new Congress will be the freeing
of the country of its protection shackies
and let trade flow free as water, which
will put us in the foremost ranks OF the
foremost nations Of the earth.
If Mr.. Pillsbury is sincere in what he
said above, then he would have every cot
ton factory, every saw mill and other lum
Der mandatory, every iron making Oh
working establishment. every shipyard, ii
fact large portion of all our industries
entirely wiped out, and a mortal blow
struck at our agricultural interests by the
destruction of the home markets which
manufacturing operations create wherevel
they are established.
He would not only oyertuin our large
manufacturing industries and reduce far
mers to starvation; but he would bring the
laborer down to the level of the pauper Ia
Dor of Europe. 1t is one of the best fea,
lures in our American civilization that Ia
Dor is fostered and protected by it, that
laborers here are better paid, better fed
lodged and educated than the same class
in any other country in the world. But to
bring the labor of America in competitors
with the pauper labor of Europe through
Free Trade, will be inevitably to reduce
wages of labor here to the starvation
prices existing there.
In this city cotton factories have been
erected and put in operation, giving EN-
ployment to men, women and children. OF
which they are glad to avail themselves.
and whose earnings are exchanged with
the farmers of our country for their pro-
duets. pass into the hands Of grocers, dry
goods dealers, milliners, and all chan
nels of business, but Mr.. Pillsbury stig-
matizes these operatives as SHARES and
their employers as Robbers, and would de-
molish the factory buildings to inaugurate
Free Trade with the factory owners of
Great Britain.
We have also important manufactures
of lumber OF various kinds, also of iron
and steel into articles for general use; I'M
der Mr.. Pillsbury's classification the oper-
atiyes in these are Shares and the employ
ers Robbers, and according TO his views
the sooner such establishments are abol-
ished the better for the place. Over in
Canada they are exceedingly DESTROYS that
we shall inaugurate Free Trade or Reel
procity (the same thing) with them, in or
der to crush ont our industries with their
untaxed productions created by cheap Ia
bor. Americans who would cooperate
with them to accomplish such a purpose
ought to be considered enemies to their
country.
Maine is becoming manufacturing
State of importance. The production Of
her mills and factories is on the increase
Every interest she has is in harmony with
The growth of the great industries rising
along the banks of our rivers and drawing
toward them wealth and population. The
awnara af those are MT /,OIIeT.S