The daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1873-1877, 1876-03-11
80 81. FN5ysS TT
UAe Chilly Arons.
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Continued from second page.
of overcoming these natural Instructions.
The unnecessary labor thus expended, and
by legislation encouraged, has resulted in
no product which is entitled to be called
reproductive capital. 1t is, in fact, lust
as Improbable labor 10 the long fun as
though expended in digging holes in the
ground and then filing them up again ):
and the loss of absolute capital and the
waste of labor as consequence of This
policy has. more than anything else, in nv
opinion, made us poor, and will powerfully
contribute to keep US SO as long as it is con.
tinued. In short, the whole aim Of pro-
lection as carried oet In the United States
since l86O-and I might include in This
statement our whole fiscal policy-has
been to endeavor to supplement and cir
cumvent natural laws, but we are begin
ming to find out that there is something
that won't pay, or, as Lowell puts it ia the
mouth of Hosea Bigelow, "a man has got
to get up early that expects to get around
God.
A word or two further in respect to the
percentage OF our population engaged in
the great leading industries. 1t is COM
mon idea, fostered by the protectionists,
that it is necessary to build up by protec-
ton certain great industries in order to
secure market for domestic agricultural
produce; but the bulk of our manufac-
turers, or the general consumers of farm
products, are not dependent on or connected
with the productive INDUSTRY. There are
thousand who use steel, and waose interest
it is that steel should be cheap,to one who
makes steel and whose interest it is that it
should be dear. In 1870 the number of
persons in the United States employed in
manufacturing and mechanical industries
were returned at 2.053, 996. Out of this
number IS, los were returned as engaged
10 the manufacture of wool, not advanced
beyond cloth; 129,93l engaged in the
manufacture of cotton, aud 1878 engaged
10 the manufacture of iron, pig, blooms.
bar, and rolled, or 200,767 at the aggre-
gate. Of course heseindustries required,
or were supplemented by, other industries,
as mining and transportation. &C., but al
lowing that each iron, cotton and wool
manufacturer or worker had another sup
Elementary worker to help him prepare his
product, and the workers in the three great
Industries represent less than one fifth of
the total number Of manufacturers. On
the other hand, there were $4,000 people
employed in making clothing, or $4,000
more than were employed 10 making wool
en- cloth, and 96,739 engaged in making
and repairing machinery and casting
stoves and heaters, or q, 900 more than
were engaged in preparing the protected
raw materials on which they worked.
There were in addition $1,000 wagon
makers, ZOO carpenters, $4,000 harness
makers, $4,000 millers and grist- mill
workers, $4,000 brick-makers $4,000 max
ers of agricultural implements, and many
others, none Of who can be to any great
extent benefited by protection, but who, on
the other hand. are the great users Of the
raw materials on which protection levies
heavy duties, not to gain revenue, but in
order that an infinitely smaller number OF
manufacturers ia mills and mines may he
benefited
l have thus sketched briefly the results
ot protection as they are at presen: ex-
emplifed ia the United States, The
energy of our people and our
immense natural resources, which in
| turn have caused a wonderful influx OF
labor and capital from other countries,
have thus far enabled us to prosper, and
this prosperity j. universally assumed by
the protectiouist to have been tao direct
consequence Of the application Of his
| theories; but the Truth is that the Whole
system has been such drag on our pros
perity and development. that were it no,
| Tor these same peculiar catural advantages
the impoverishment and industrial paraly
SIS which are now upon US would long age
| have been experienced