The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1879-01-15
Pke Distress in Emgland-America'sI n-
fucnce I'm the Politics OF the World.

Oui Louuou correspondent, ioiio"ihS tno
line of comment which marked the letter
We printed on Monday last sends us an
other letter, showing how the present dis
tress in England begins to affect all classes.
His description of the suffering in Man
chester will be read with especial sorrow in
the United States Manchester has always
borne peculiar and friendly relations to the
United States, and during the war the kind
LEST words that came to the North were
from those gentlemen who represented
Manchester ideas and were called in
mockery the Manchester school. In
Kent the farm laborers are in mutiny
against the farmers, and meetings are
held, in which the farmers are told by
angry orators that unless they stop their
pranks the orators will emigrate to New
Zealand More ominous than al is the
proposal of q hundred thousand golfers in
the North to strike. The Golfers are the
only laborers who have no substantial griev-
ance with their masters, and public opinion
looks upon their strike as hardship,
especially now when there is so much real
distress among workers in cottons and iron.
Unfortunately, movements of this kind are
not amenable to reason or argument, and
we can well understand why the sudden
abandonment of work by hundred thou
sand golfers would create anxiety. The
feast Of the Pixies in Paris may be supple
mented by feast of Pickaxes in London.
While we all wish our English cousins a
speedy relief from their distress, and no
violence, no disturbing the laws, it is inter-
upon Europe as cause and On effect.
When we are asked what is the cause of
this distress, the answer is "America."
When We are asked for o remedy, among the
answers is America" 1t is pleasant to
know that if we have unconsciously been
the cause Of 30 much sorrow in England
we are among the influences to relieve it.
An inquiry into the causes of the distress
shows, as our correspondent points out,
that the main cause is the advancement of
American credit and American enterprise
since the war;
For thirty years England has enjoyed On
amazing prosperity. The repeal Of the
Corn laws enabled her people to buy food
cheaply, and her enterprise made her mis-
tress of the commercial and financial world.
This dominion was challenged by the
United States. Twenty years ago the
United States was steadily advancing on
England, especially in maritime supremacy.
Then came our civil war, and in ten years
America fell from her high rank as com.
mercial and financial nation into the
lowest rank. England in the. hour
Of our trouble did all she. could
to help the Southern people destroy
the commercial and financial supremacy
Of the Union. We should not complain, as
there is an adage that there is no affection
in business. If England, through the folly of
our people, could take away our trade, it
was not in human nature to suppose she
would not press her advantage. The civil
war left England mistress Of the seas-arbi-
great industries as iron, cotton, clay, wool
and woods prepared to sell the world
everything at profit, carry everything.at u
good freight rate and exchange money at a
fair commission. A.
If the world could have gone on in this
fashion, England doing all the business
and the rest Of mankind providing food and
raw material, things might have turned out
otherwise But America did not mean to
remain in the subordinate relation imposed
upon her by the war. It will be a matter
of surprise to demagogues and Communists
to know that since the war America has
bean making such rapid strides in enter
prise and prosperity as to menace the
supremacy Of England. In other words,
while these demagogues have been
blathering and lying and going
about the country trying to make
mischief and ruin our credit, the
honest, patient, hard working masses have
been steadily lifting the nation into its
proud, supreme position. What a COM
mentary upon the insincerity and rascality
and imbecility Of SO much TINT is known as
craftsmanship" among our public men
In iron we have multiplied our product
twelvefold. We now send iron abroad,
porter of iron. This underlies the de-
preston IN the Engilsh iron trade. In cot
ton we are beginning to dispute
Englands supremacy. Twenty years
ago, and England monopolized this
trade India, China and the United
States were her great markets. Now
we make our own cloths. In China we are
driving out England. because we make
better and cheaper goods. India makes
her own cloth and raises her own cotton,
and will soon be in the Chinese if not in
the English and American markets As
consequence the cotton trade in England is
depressed. What is worse, it is q depres-
sion from which there is no recovery.
English business men see that their boosted
invincibility was o sham, and that once
American enterprise met them in a fair