The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1885-01-14

positions and the technical duties of
the Office of president. There would
seem to be no reasonable grounds for
fearing that the constitutional powers
of congress would become obsolete by
such insidious methods" and the
country should welcome the day when
the executive, submissive to every clear
constitutional right or privilege of the
coordinate branches of the govern
ment, shall display the practical states
manship which the negotiation of advan-
tageous commercial treaties involves.
Senator Morrill,, in showing that little
foreign trade will be acquired, that re-
ciprocity with any inferior country is
impossible, that American agriculturists
will lose, that few spectators and adj
venturers may gain by the treaty, and
that the bargain for us is " wretchedly
bad and pitiful," strikes at the real
objections to reciprocity. eve are
asked" says the senator, to throw
into the sea greater amount of bait
than will be returned in the catch of
fish. Since the abrogatien
of the Canadian reciprocity treaty, our
trade with the Canadas has been greater
and more advantageous than ever be-
fore, being even larger than that of
Great Britain" He shows that in
1856 our exports to Canada were about
twenty-one million dollars, that in
twelve years under the influence of re-
ciprocity they dwindled to about fifteen
million dollars, while the exports from
Canada increased from twelve millions
to forty-six millions. When reciprocity
began the balance of trade, paid in
specie, was eight million dollars in our
favor; when it was terminated the bal
ance against us, to be paid in specie, in
single year was thirty million dollars.
Senator Morrill, believes the time is long
past when nations can be enormously
enriched by their foreign trade. Ma
tional wealth must now and hereafter
be mainly created at home; and the
home market is the only one of value
over which any nation now has abso-
lutte control. While foreigners, handi-
capped by our tariff, are still able, as in
1888, to send us annually manufact-
ures to the amount of $3.50, 200, 900, we
cannot expect to rival them in other
markets upon equal terms until wages
in America shall have been raced and
brought down to the miserable level of
wages abroad. A large amount of COM
merce with a country like Mexico,
three-fourths of whose people are non
consumers of any foreign merchandise,
is impossible. Their trade, if we have
it all, is hardly more than that of an
American city of the second class. Out
side of the precious metals, Mexico's
exports in 1888 were only about twelve
million dollars. Of her entire popula-
ton of less than ten millions, one
million is of Spanish lineage, holding
labor beneath its dignity; three or
four millions of mixed breeds, and five
and one-half millions are of the old alb
original Indian stock, tribes of wild
savages. These main facts, and others
which are incidental, forbid reci-
procity treaties which, with us, must al
ways involve, as they do now, an equal
exchange, no better than would be that
of the American Lexington or Morgan
horse and Jay-Eye-See for the Mexican
mustang and stump-tail mule" Still it
is seriously proposed to give to Mexico,
having mixed population of nine
million six hundred thousand, an OPP
portunity to enjoy, on terms of equality,
the trade with over sixty millions
of the American people. This kind
of reciprocity reminds the senator
of two men who sat down to drink
brandy and water-one drank the
brandy, the other the water. Here
Mexico takes the brandy and the United
States water only. st. John, the sena-
tor thinks, would not accept water on
such terms. The treaty admits Mex
lean agricultural products free of duty,
including beef, sugar, tobacco, wood
and timber. Mexico is country with
immense pasturage for sheep and cat
tie. Her climate and soil admit of the
production of sugar and tobacco. These
products and Mexican beef, Mexican
barley, wheat and corn are to be
brought into unrestricted competition
with similar American products on our
own soil. Not only our own people,
but other people will be, as they al
ready have been, tempted to transfer
their capital and machinery for the cul-
tivation of these specialties to Mexico.
Not only this, but American agricul-
tural machinery is admitted to Mexico
free of duty to make, by augmenting
the means of production, the COMPETE
ton more disastrous to American agri-
culture. All textile fabrics are ex-
cluded from the treaty. No general
class of iron manufactures, like cutlery,
| saddlerv and household hardware is adj