The People's vindicator. [volume] (Natchitoches, La.) 1874-1883, 1877-03-10
Extremes.

The cpithet applied to the Bour'
hons of learning nothing, nor for
getting nothing" seems we'll adapted
to some who have the idea "Soutl
prn INTEREST," on the brain.
The South, with peace and loca
governments sustained by the home
citizen, and not Federal sol'licry, has
before it a hi Git future. 1mmigra
ton is to be encouraged langnid az.
ricnllural interests invigoratrd, mines
Of mineral developed, and mannfac-
tories built mp Int to make these
and other industries permanent, and
paying to the South and the country
at large, extremes must be avoided.
1t hardly seems polite to say of Il
protectinniSt that, he is an ass, but
the epitlet is as equally applicable
to him as to the fee trade maninc.
We are panied to See those Journals
which StradiaStly and ably advocate
the South and its material advance
ment pirate of protection, when It
would only clog or break down our
desired prosperity.
The persons who would and do al
vo'atc q free trade, are not so much
at fault, looking at the question in a
"prosperity" sense. as those confirm
ell harprrS Of the Bourbon school of
high tariff.
The free trade mar, shonll his
doctrine prevail. would I'll the conn.
try with business as far as BUYERS
and sellers are concerned, and con-
sumers w"n't he happy in purchasing.
but miserable iii sales. The nigh
tariff man would make our trad" and
prosperity canaha]lStic, so to speak :
that is, he woula propose to have the
Iron miner, the Cotton spinner. and
Sugar grower, live off the agricultu.
ral'sts of other products, by cutting
off competition from other sources ::
and he expects to build mp Il trade by
barring ont party to 1.-THE foreign
er; for prosperity, real and unadn|.
terated, will, and can only come with
the exchange OF commodities between
nations, sections, and peoples.
Does it not seem strange to see
Il journal advocate, for instance, the
policy Of the government suhSi,|isin.
lines of Steamships to Brazil, and
ably talk of the trade which won1d
be developed thereby, and in the
next column demand high tariff to
drive out that very trade they so
fondly desire? Oh but labor is
cheaper in foreign countries, and we
cannot compete with them :! exclaims
your high tariff advocate. The very
act he desires consumated-protec-
ton (as it is improperly ca||ed) is
what keeps labor mp.
1t is very well for dcmasogues to
talk from the hustings of "how much
more the laboring man gets for a
days work in this country, under the
protecting pgis of tho high tariff
laws," but we have never yet seen
one of these men 60 farther than
the wages c)anse; none of them ever
say to the laboring man, "this Is all
trne that You get more money for a
days work here than 10 Europe, but,
at the same time You pay as much or
more for a weeks board here than
You do for a months there" What
cares the working man for IS per
day wages, when it takes it all to
pay for fo"d aud clothing, while his
European brother lays by half his
daily So wages. High tariffs protect
but one class, and they are tho curse
of all countries, monopolists. Give
us simply Il tariff for revenue, and
let us open to competition with the
world.
We would be ashamed to prate of
America, her power, glory and wealth,
and at the same time sneak up to
Congress and beg them to protect a
"hair~pin factory from the cheap
scoundrels of Europe, and allow US
the high privilege of gougeing our
own couutrymen."
We beg of our people to keep from
extremes now that we are starting
out anew. Don't ask for Subsidized
lines to foreign countries in one
breath. and then scream n1t fnr q law
to drive ont the trade those lines are
supposed to encourage.