The Portland daily press., 1878-02-13
Mr.. Frye On the "Subsidy" Resolution.
Letter from Congressman Frye i'm Rela-
tion to his Action en- this Question.
WASHINGTON, Feb. 9th, 1873.

WASHINGTON, Feb. 9Th, 1873.
10 the Editors Of the LeaoiSton Journal:
The Gazette calls me to an account for voting
against the Subsidy resolution" OF this i
make ne complaint, for it will be unfortunate
Tor the nation if the time ever arrives when
members of Congress shall be above criticism,
Nor do write in defence, for beleve my con-
stltuents will trust me until woucd their con.
hdence more deeply than by voting "no" on
one OF Mondays meaningless couundrums
That day here is called washing day." After
the morning hour" any member who can get
the floor, may offer any resolution which cum
ming, sagacity, partisanship, demagoguery or
stupidity may suggest, and compel US to vote
upon 1t without any explanation or chance for
amendment. The gentleman from Podunk
moon and that it is made of green cheese"
We must vote AYE or "nO," either vote in
volving an absurdity. Monday resolutions
here mean nothing. The one referred to was
offered by demagogue, sustained in the same
spirit, and affords a very slight indication of
the real feeling of the House. as you will find
before the session Closes L cared nothing
about it, preferring to act as my conscience and
Judgment should dictate whenever any measure
Involving the principle was before US. and 1
have little doubt but that shall vote before ad-
Journment directly or indirectly against both
the letter and the spirit of the resolution. The
Northern Pacific is now asking for extension of
time in which to complete its road. Singularly
reported in favor of the proDosition the ensu-
ing day, aud yet this directly aDtagonizes it,
And why shouldn't the House grant the exten-
sion? There are probably twenty thousand
citizens OF Maine interested in that road all of
whom.directly or through saving banks paid one
bunored cents on dollar forther interest aud
none OF whom have the slightest resoonsibilitg
for the delay. The extension would greatly
benefit them, and in my opinion do no harm to
the governments. / have never seen the ian,
familiar with the W who1a hst0rv 0f hat ptor-
prise, who does not assent to the fairness of the
proposition, yet this subsidy resolution bars it,
What Is the trouble with us to-day? Why
are men out OF employment wages low, times
hard, business dull? 1t isn't paper money, nor
silver, nor gold, nor imitation, nor contraction,
Dor resumption. All these may be incidents
but the real trouble, in my opinion, comes
from over-production, from Limitation of mar
ket. Look for a moment at facts. A war
came upon US, millions of men suddenly be-
came consumers and destroyers, consumption
and waste were tremendous, pro iucers could
hardly respond, laborers were scarce, wage,
were high, and the inventive genius of the
North was drafted into service. What was the
result? The shoe factories of Auburn and the
cotton mills of Lewiston can answer; so, too,
can the farmer with his reaper, his mower, his
litter, his seed sower and his rake. Tue statis-
tics show that in Massachusetts IN 1865 20, 600
operatives produced about 200, 900 900 yards of
cotton cloth; while in 1875 the same number
would produce nearly 300,000,000. In 1865,
nineteen Thousand operatives produced 46 mil
lions yards of wooden goods, in 1875 the same
number produced ninety millions, In 1865 fifty
two thousand hands made 81 millions OF pairs
of boots and shoes, and in 1875 48 thousand
made nearly sixty millions of pairs. Go back
to 1860 and the difference would be still greater.
The war ended, the consumption and waste
stopped, the soldiers came back workmep, pro-
duction increased amazingly while the market
didn't open up to receive it, men were idle,
wages began to fall, mill reserves melted, then
the stocks shrank-and as yet there is no relief
Panaceas of all kinds, schemes of every color
and projects of every name are literally poured
upon us, and yet the disease is not cured. The
present capacity of our manufacturing estab-
lishments for producing metallic, textile and
woolen goods is fifty per cent. beyond home
consumption, and yet the world would readily
take the whole, but we cannot carry it to the
world. Do your readers realize what has be-
come of the carrying trade of the ocean? Our
exports for the year ending June, 1877, were
$202, 100000; our imports $492,000, 900. Our
vessels carried about twenty-s,x per cent. of
the whole, while foreign, principally English,
took the rest. During the last decade we act
ually paid foreign bottoms 339 millions of dol
lars for doing our freight and passenger busi-
ness, over thirty millions year, taken from cur
people and given to those who carry another
flag, and yet we are nearer to the great mass of
consumers than England or France.
lnx &re lsafn,