Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1880-08-17

predlcted that, as soon aS t"Vy
cease producing. foreigners would ho'
only put up the price but SEND US al
;nfer,or article, and poor, Quaking Amer
lean humanity would have TO pay more
,hon ever for worse Guininc. Well, the
the dnty WAS abolished, and Powers y
W,iyutman did not stop importing oarS
and making ouinine. Tn the contrary
they have since increased their iinporta
ZION of bark, and, presumably, the pro
duction OF the drug The rIlce did bo'
fall Immediately after the aoollshmeh'
of the dtuy, for the reason, 1t may De
that foreigners were not then prepared
IN supplv the American market. Bu'
before long the price did fall and Powers
Il Weiphtman are still in business al
the obi stand, and ague shaken Amerl
cans are not paying a higher price iol
an inferior article.
In 1872 the duty on salt in bulk was
reduced from Is to Scents per lOo IT'S.
and on salt in sacks, barrels etc, IRON
u 10 II cents per 100 lbs. American
salt.makers protested, and insisted thai
Canadian competition would ruin them
under the lower rates OF duty. They
were not ruined, but are still as busy as
ever. Their workmen have not been
discharged. and the American people
have not had to paw higher prices than
befnre for salt. In 1872 the duty on
pi,.iron was reduced, and the manu-
iacture did not cease. On the contrary,
il was greater in 1873 than in loI2 by
1870 tons. The next year, the Old
rates OF duty having been restored, pro-
duction fell off LIS, 500 tons.
When it was proposed TO abolish the
English corn laws, or, IN other words,
,o abolish the duties on Dreadstuils im'
ported into Great Britain, English farm
ers were panic stricken. They did not
believe they could holt their own IN
free completion with the farmers oil
other countries. They verify believed
rhat without the corn laws their Occupa-
ton would be gone, that the smiling
fields of England would grow rank with
weeds, and that the stalwart forms OF Its
farmers would grow lean with famine.
There ont be no more nuthin, was
their terrified cry. But the corn laws
we've repealed, aud the farmers found
there was some more something. Agri'
culture prospered as 1t had not done
before, and the farmers found that,
alter all, freedom of exchange was about
/ as good "A thing as freedom vi speech.
/ Foreigners did not pat up the prices OF
agricultural products. British consum-
rrs did not have to pay more for their
/ ioDd than ever. On the contrary, they
! had To paw so much less that they were
enabled TO increase their consumption
enormously. Free trade discovered TO
the English farmers a home market Tor
their products, and especially Tor beef,
mutton anu pork, the existence oil winch
they hal never Suspected. Free trade
ant low prices enabled multitudes who
before had not possessed the means IL
buy animal iOod more than once week,
To- eat such food two, or three, or even
seven times week. Commercial
| freedom, so lar from running the iarm'
rrs aud increasing the manner oil living
generally, impraved the condition oil
rhe farmers. AMI greatly diminished the
cost of living; that is, enabled the peo'
pie to live in the same style with less
labor, or in better style With the same
labor.
The TIMES does not dOgmaticaly as
Sert that commercial freedom would al
first improve the condition oil all those
Tor who's special benefit the tariff laws
are enact Il. IL does not assert that ne
branch of manufacture would cease i
those laws wer, instantly abolished. II
presumes that the system OF Commercial
obstruction does benefit some few
branches cf industry, though at the eN
pcnse OF all other branches. lt pre-
sumes that, ii the whole system were tC
be suddenly swept away with it. But i
enterta rs the belief, and has reason:
ipr believing, that no industry would bt
swept away which ought to survive. L
is had economy 10 maintain an unproilt
able industry at the expense OF profit
able industries 1t would be foolish
waste ri energy for a man To attempt tC
make for himself everything he wants
when by making one thing only and ex
changing il Tor other things he can sup
ply his wants better, and with less thar
half the labor and trouble. 1t is al
equally foolish waste of energy for {
community 10 produce everything IL:
members want when by producing some
things and exchanging them for other
| il can supply all wants with much les,
/ labor.
Possibly under commercial freedom
/ the iron industry OF America would sui
r: very likely il would in some local.
/ I es, where the conditions are uTavor
able to economical production. But i
| i, should cease entirely, the fact woulC
only prove that the iron industry wa
An Improbable one in this country.
/ would prove that the conditions wer,
substantially the same as they were il
/ 1924, when Daniel Webster said: 9Th,
true reason why il is not our policy I,
compel our citizens to manufacture on
own iron is that they are far better EN-
ployed. 1t is an unproductive business
aud they are not poor enough to b,
Obliged TO follow il. ii We had more O
poverty, more Of misery, and somethin,
/ OF servitude; ID We had an ignorant, idle
starving population, We might set NJ
Tor iron-makers against the world"
But the Times does not believe tina
commercial freedom would be destruc
tive To our iron industry. 1t is incline,
to the opinion that our iron manufacture
ers are afraid of commercial freedom
for the same reason that some peOpl,
are afraid OF the water-because the,
have never been in it," Once let then
plunge in or be pitched in, and they viii
find that they can swim without sup
port. OF course they should not b,
pitched in with leaden weights on thei
persons. The tariff laws must not loaC
them down with the burden OF other in
dustries. Ii the public is not taxed 70
| THAR sunnort. thsy in turn must not b