The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1877-1885, 1880-10-14

What do these figures mean? They mean
that the prices which the Western farmers
/ land the American people generally now
pay for their woollen cloths and stufs are so
excessive that the British woollen manufac-
turers can afford to pay from 81 to II per
cent import duties for the admission of
their goods into the States, and still get a
profit. That is to say. that taking the
average duty at 90 per cent? the estcrn
farmer could, if he were allow ed to buy
where he could buy cheapest, get the same
quantity and quality of woolen and worsted
stuffs for - dollars for which he now has to
pay 20. Eight dollars out OF twenty thrown
away
They mean that the prices which the Wes-
tern farmers now pay for the cotton and linen
goods are So excessive that the British
makers OF the same goods can afford to pay
from 80 to g. per cent. import duties fol
the admission Of their manufactures into
the States, and still get profit That is
to say. that ttaking the average duty at 80
per cent the farmers's wife could, If she
were allowed to buy where she could buy
cheapest. get the same article for 6 dollar
for which she now has TO pay 9. Three
dollars out Of nine thrown away
They mean that the American railways are
constructed of iron which costs SO dear that
the British makers pay for the admission OF
their goods into the States, and still get
profit so that the railway companies are
compelled to charge the Western farmers
proportiorately excessive rate for the cpn
veyance of his produce to a market. The
burden Of the difference, OF course, falls Oh
the patient back of the Western farmer
Those figures mean, in short, that the
same enormous artificial initiation Of natural
prices runs through every article Except
food with which the farmer has to provide
his family.
The American has extraordinary aivanta
ges over the British farmer. He has, first,
a soil SO fertile as to produce treely with
cheap tillage aud no manure; second eli
mate highly favourable to agricultural ope-
rations; third, abundance of land SO cheap
that the fee simple costs less than is annu
ally paid for rent in England. But, on the
other hand, the British farmer enjoys for
the present one decided advantage: he sells
his produce in the dearest. and buys his
clothing, iplplments, &c. g., in the cheap
est market in the world.
Let US, however, continue our inquiry as
to the total annual amount taken out Of
the Western farmers by exorbitant protec
tive duties These duties have very wide
range. They are as low as 10 per cent, on
diamonds which the Western farmer does
not use, and as high as 90 per cent. on clean
ed rice which he does use. They are levied
on no les. than | 500 different articles some
Of them yielding less revenue than 1t costs
to collect it, and the whole producing a
complexity which gives comfortable employ
ment to swarms of clerks, &C.. at every sea
port. The heavist per centa9e rates are
those imposed on articles Of general and
necessary consumption by the people, which
accordingly contribute very nearly three
fourths of the total amount collected. But
let us strike ap average. By careful COM
parison of the total value Of the chief dutia
ble foreign articles imported in the year
1878, with the total amount Of duties levied
in that year or the same articles, it has
been clearly ascertained that the average
rate of duties PAID on their value was 42a
per cent Were the average confined TO the
table at p. 9, it would not much exceed 424
per cent, but, to be within the mark, we
will adopt the general average. This aver
age then (424 per cent J, is the measure OF
the difference between the prices which the
Western farmers now pay for what they con-