The Valley Virginian. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1865-1895, 1884-10-30

TOT the DEMENT, OF wool SpinnerS, &C., t.
destroy the whole navigating interests Of
the United States. We find representa-
, tives from New Bedford, Cape Anr
, MarDleheaG, Salem and Newburyport vot
ing TO throw the naolasses overheard t.
tighten the ship, Tariff. She lisa pirate
under black flag. J. r. OF RI
Mr.. Randolph writes that at the date Of
the ABOVE letter land was selling for a dol
lar an acre that ten years previous would
have commanded ten dellors per acre, Ter
years previous to this time the protective
tariff Of 1916 was in full force. and the
country from one end to the other was in
prosperous condition, and land and pro.
ducts commanded satisfactory prices. The
Iarln OF 1915 became law in spite of Mr..
randolph and his free trade friends. New
Ork representatives in Congress gave &c
votes in favor of the tariff of 1916 : Penn.
sylvania II, and Virginia IL votes against
II. PREVIOUS to 1928, the ee-traders sue
ceeded in repeating this progressive tariff.
and the result was that lands that sold for
ten dollars per acre in 1920, are sacrificed
for one dollar in 1880. Mr.. Randolpb
labored in and out of Congress to destroy
the tariff and American industry. and he
got his reward-''abject poverty and dis
tress OF this whole country .'As We
sow so shall We reap"
MT. Randolph was elected to Congress
IN 1873. and between that period and 1929.
heserved in that bodytwenty- -four years and
during that long service he devoted himself
IN opposing q tariff that gave protection
20 American manufactures. His chief
desire was to make Virginia and the
southern states exclusively agricultural
1 Ia character and to trade exclusively with
England instead of the manufacturing
cupidity and oppression of the North and
East" He, and his free trade followers
succeed IN preventing the superior activ-
lty and intelligence of the manufacturing
| North and East" from crossing the classic
P0t0mac; but mark the result of this ex-
ciusion, and rely on agriculture alone to
govern the growth and destinies of State.
In 1893, when Mr.. r. took his seat in
Congress, Virginia was the Empire State''
OF tne Union. in population, wealth and
representation In Congress, and continued
IN that proud position up to 1915, when
New York took the lead, then followed
pennsylvania. then Ohio, then Illinois,
then Indiana, and Massachusetts and
Missouri became her equal in population
and representatives. In 1880 New York
had population of l,918,55S: Pennsylva.
MIA .34S ,072; and Virginia .O2S sos, in.
Guiding her slave population. In 1860, a
period or thirty years, New York had a
population of 1881 500; Pennsylvania
2,s02 sos Illinois 1,704 ,291 Indiana
1888 ,yl0 Massachusetts j ,22i ,432; Mis-
souri, ,063 ,489, and Virginia l. O47 .299
with her slaves added ,596, 31S. In thirty
years New York increased her population
t.co millions, while Virginia with her
slaves only half million. The former
believed In extending every encourage
ment to agriculture and home manufac-
Iurlng, and the extension of free schools.
Virginia believed in agriculture exclu-
Slvely, and in making liberal donation In
money in support of universities for the
exclusive use of the sons of the rich
bankers. merchants and planters, and 10
schools for the ''poor white trash.'' Such
IS the difference between Virginia with
out concert and combination, and slow to
and oppression of the North and East, ];
In Mr.. Randolph's calculations great was
the descent from the sublime to the ridic.
ulouS!
Ihere is cause for the ups and downs
OF life for the advancement and decline
OF Nations and States, and to what shall
we attribute the rapid march of improve
ment in the political and civil affairs of
New York, and the extraordinary slow
progress of Virginia? Was it because
n allure has been more bountiful in bestow-
ing ner fayors and means of advancement
on new i ork than she has on Virginia
Let one of Virginia's most eminent
sons answer this question. Hon. Henry
A. Wise, in speech delivered at Liberty
Hall, Alexandria, February. 1856, thus
eloquently and truthfully described the al
most unlimited resources of Virginia.
Il was saying when interrupted that the
State of Virginia has every element of
commerce, agriculture, of mining and man.
nfacturing. On Chesapeake Bay, from the
mouth of the Rappahannock to the capes,
we have r0adsteadS and haRbOrs sufficient
to float the navies of the world. From the
river OF Swans, on whose margin we are.
down to the line of North Carolina, you
have the Potomac, Rappahannock the
Piankatank, from M0biack bay to James
river, and the Elizabeth rivers all meeting
in the most beautiful sheet of water of all
the seas of the earth. You have the bow
els OF your Western Inenntains, rich in
iron, in copper, in coal, IN salt, in gypsum,
and the very earth is rich in oil, which
makes the very river fame. You have the
line OF the Allegheny, that beautiful Blue
Ridge that stands there. placed by the. AL !
mighty, not to obstruct the way of the
people to the market, but placed there in
the very bounty Of Providence to max tie
clouds, and to make street Springs acltch are
the source Of yokr rirers. (Great Applause. ]
AT the head Of efery stream is the water
fall murmuring The very music of power. |
[Applause.l And yet commerce has long
ago spread her sails and sailed away from
you. You have not as yet dug more than
coal enough to warm yourselves at your
own hearths. You have set no tilt ham,
mer of Vulcan to strike blows worthy of
Gods in the iron foundries. You have not |
yet spun more than coarse cotton enough
In the way Of manufactures, to clothe your
own slaves, you have had no commerce, no
mining. no manufactures. You have re-
lied alone on the single power of agricul-
teri Instead Of having to feed cattle on
thousand hills. you have had to chase the
stump-tailed steer through the hedge |
patches to procure tough beef-steak. |
tGfeat Applause']
po with all this plentitude of power Vir-
|ginia has been dwarfed in the Union. But
by the Gods I say. she has the power now,
the energy. the reSOurces-lnay say the
men to be put upon the line of progress
to eminence of prosperity, to pass New
York yet faster in the Union than ever
New York has passed her. [Cheers.l You
have been called the odd Dominion - let
US, Is Virginian, implore you, this night
resolve that a new era dawn and that
Dominion' tChsers.l The present con-
diti0n of things has existed too long in
Virginia. The landlord has skinned the
tenant, and the tenant has skinned the
land until all have grown poor together
How different this famous speech reads
compared with the speeches, in and out of
Congress, by the Democratic free-trade
element of Virginia during the past sew
enty years. The very means Gov. Wise sug-
gested ito place her on the line of progress,
to eminence and prosperity these de-
scendants Of Pocahontas and disciples of
Randolph have labored necessarily to ex-
clude from the State. Have always re-
commended the single power of agriculture
and by such agriculture Virginia has
been dwarfed in the Union! 1.-THE land
lord has skinned the tenant, and the ten
ant has skinned the land until all have
grown poor together
Now let US compare Mr.. Randolph s and
the Virginia advocates of free trade the
ory with the British Colonial System"
copied from Pitkin's History of the
United States. There is nothing surpris-
ing in the scheme advocated by the Edin-
burgh Review, and Hon. Joshua Gee.
'sThat Americans should not be permitted
to man ufacture bob-nail, y but it is sur