The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1884-01-30
BREAD and WAGES.
THE FOLLY OF THE PARROT CRY
OF FREE TRADE FOR CHEAP
NESS.
, s,ndx of the Case OF 30 100000
People of Great Britain Who
Have Fixed Income-Cheap
Corn and Cheap Labor.


or Emigration.
"SIg: The operatives OF Lanca-
shire have not far TO look ior an
example of what their fate will be
ifthey follow the advice Of the Cob
den Club, and sit still whilst Their
markets are slipping from then
qrasp. Let them turn their gaze 10
The sister isle. What is the cause OF
the ruin of Ireland? a? Why Is she
,naoaos inter opes inOpesy Why Is
she the only nation in the world
actually the only one, that Is steaolo
ly sinking ia the scale OF nations
Look at her her millions OF acres
of waste but cultivable land her
rpined commerce and manufactures;
her houses uninhabited, her viliage
deser,ed-discontent, insubordina-
ton. insecurity, crime stalking un-
disturbed through the land-her
people crying for work and wages ;
but idle, ragged, pauper-strl' Ken,
deriving a wretched existence from
half cultivated land, flying from
their country like Lot from the CIT
les of the plain
What is the cause OF this great
ruin? Why is it that race OF hVe
or six millions of people, in no de-
gree whatever inferior to the other
races Of mankind, who formerly
stepped boldly along the great high
wav of I rogress and civilization, are
now rapidly shrinking back to the
wilderness of barbarlsm and de-
cay
Wnat is the cause of the ruin OF
Ireland? 1t is very simple. 1t Is
what we falsely style free trade, and
nothing else. 1t is over competl-
ton. Ii is because England for ility
wears has been able to manufacture
everything cheaper than Ireland
and has forced her cheaper goods
into the Irish markets, and at the
same time excluded Irish goods from
English markets. It's by that means
she has killed every industry III Ire
land. Irish industries were destroy
ed. and Ireland was ruined by Unfair
English competition, and tins Is
exactly what is happening to
English industries. English indus
tries are receiving, at the hands OF
Europe and America, exactly the
same treatment Irish industries re-
ceived from England.
ENGLAND's RUIZ FoREsHADOwED.
English manufactures are eXclud-
ed from American and European
markets, and American and Europe
an manufactured goods are forced
into English markets. What reason
is there to doubt-in fact, can there
be anv doubt-that under similar
industrial conditions England will
suffer the same industrial ruin that
has fallen on Ireland? In every
country in the world, out of England
it is preached aloud, rs the great
canon of political economy, that in
an an industrial community the
interests of consumers and produc.
ers are identical-both pull in the
same boat both must sink or swim
together. 1t was for Mr.. Bright and
his followers to preach the fataI
nonsense, that the interests of con-
sumers and producers were not only
not identical, but were naturally an
tagonistic; not only did they preach
alas ! with ruinous success this evi
dent economic herssy, but they
actually persuaded the producin!
classes, those who earn their daily
bread with the sweat of their face
that in every case the interest of th,
consumer should precede that of tn,
producer.
In an industrial community ther
can be no hard and fast line betweeI
consumers and producers. 1t is i'm
possible. All are, in some way o
another, directly or indirectly, con
sumers, and all are in some wa,
or another, directly or indirectly
producers. II is folly to attempt {
draw a hard and fast line betweel
consumers and producers, wher
such q line cann0t exist; but if GU
economic philosophers will insis
upon drawing this line they can onl
draw it in one place-between thos
who have fixed incomes and thOs
who have not. Well, then, hoy
will their theory of the superior in
terests of the consumers bear tni
test? There are in Great Britai
only 100000 out of a population {
34.00O000 with fixed incomes cfove
el00 year, and there are 80 10000
without fixed incomes, or with fixe
incomes of less than el00; anC
therefore, if you compare the rela
tive numbers of those who are trul
producers, and those who are cor
sumers, you fad there are thirt
producers to every consumer. s
much for the nonsense of sacrificin
the interests of the producers to III
interests of the consumers. 'Th
wealth of a nation is the value ,
what it produces, SAYS commo
sense Protect, extend, encourag
production in every possible wa,
has been, and is, the cry of ever
industrial community in the worlt
except England; but in Englan
our economic solons have replace
this universal axiom with the foo
ish paraphrass, take care of cor
sumption and let production tab
carse of itself" For nearly fort
years the working classes have bow
ed their heads TO this ridiculor
oracle. There are signs, j hor
that they are at last coming to the
senses.
THE PARROT CRY OF FREE-TRADER
Chsapness, cheapness, cheapnei
and competition These have bee
the parrot cries of Free-traders an
excellent cries they are for the ]
100000 lucko individuals with the
fixed incomes but how about Il
32,700000 without fixed incomes
how does it affect them? VII,
does competition and cheapness mea
in their case? 1t means this
means that when by home compel
tion starving needlewoman is foun
to stitch stitch shirts at 4d. dozeI
StralOhfwav sf.rvinO farai~p trf