National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1884-01-07


The Reign OF Humbug.
Honesty and virtue in tho people arc not
alone competent 90 secure good government
there must be intelligence a5 well. Tho CO.
pacity Of honest people for being humbuqGcd
has no nscortaiucd limit This is shown by
the condolences displayed By Tho charlo'an5
who for ycnr3 have deceived the people thot
they can continue to deceive in the same way
on the ,arit question In order TO undCr-
stand clearly the process By which King
lIumbug bears sway, 1t will be well 70 state
with some precision the Calhoun method OF
misleading thcsouthcrn mind. Ncmudc south
crnors believe they raid not only ali the tascs
Of the nation, but three Or four times as much
moro to northern manufacturers. lis first and
main proposition that the exports actually
pnid tho duties ON imports WIS supported by
saying substantially: ''iho price Of cotton is
made in England and governed by the wants
of English manufacturers We got ten cents
per pound for it, We should get
tho sane wero thcrc no American
tariff. We export say SlO0,OOOo0O Of cotton
and other products and take ourPay in $780,
O0)worth of made goods on which our govern
mcnt levic5 60 per cent, and which VIC have to
pay in order to rcmunerate US for the cotton.
Then VIC sell cotton AT Lowell and Providence
and have to take nay in goods Mt prices ac-
ttiously raised 60 per cent. by the Ubiquitous
tariff, and hence We have TO give away sixty
talcs of cotton every time we sell forty bales.
Were there no tariff we world save sixty
bales on every trade Of 100 bales"
This statement had the form of absolute
demonstration, and carried conviction to
millions Of minds yet it was rank humbug,
as we will now prove. There are several ways
of doing it, each conclusive.
1. II the planters continued to raise cotton,
and sacrificed GO per cent. to get their pay, it
is clear that the cost of raising it did not ex-
coed 40 per cent, of the price at which il was
sold, because they could not or would not
have continued, and all the limo extended,
the business of planting without the tempta-
tion OF profit. 1t was not true that cotton
could be raised at 10 per cent. of its market
price. The price was 10 cents, and cotton
see! A single slave could cultivate an
average of five acres yearly, and five acres
yielded an average of $50 pounds per acre, or
100 pounds in all. At 10 cents this yielded
SIS, and 40 per cent. of SO is $50. Now, If
slaves cost $500 each, and they did, and
interest was per cent, and it was not less,
then the interest on the slave that took
charge of five acres amounted to the entire
proceeds of 40 per cent. of sales, and the
planter lost the interest on cost Of land, on
cost of tools, on cost OF transportation, on cost
of ovcrscor, and on entire cost of food and
clothing of his colored brother while he lived,
and total cost of him when he died, 1t was
said triumphantly that cotton was king.
Nothing in this country is king that doesn't
pay. You might as well say the poor house
is king as to say any business is which runs
people in debt ut that rate, Did the planters
WHO WCIC CobbluhhJ iO7lnB iuuicg dJ tHuL
rate keep increasing their acreage each year
and buy moro land, and grab all the new
lands of Mississippi, Arkansas. and Texas for
the sake of losing more money? No one can
believe that Did they fight to preserve an
institution that was eating them out of house
and home? No one can believe it for mo-
ment. Cotton never became king by running
everybody in debt Humbug was king,
2. Tho total expenses of tho government
were about $25OOO,OCO in round numbers UNI
der the tariff of 1921, mostly raised by the
tariff, and paid in part AS follows;
On sugar and molosscs exclusively
southern products, and taxed tor their
beuCf. entirely. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS. S2,WOOJO
ON tea, principally consumed at tic
north Observation-Disclosures. 100000
! ON spirits, principally consumed ~ the
! north, the south using whisky.....,.. 1000, 600
/ On wines, principally consumed AZ the
north NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS., 100000
.. &C.,.