The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1885-03-18
Free Trade in England.

Mr.. Editor In your paper of December
81 you had an interesting article under the
heading " Free Trade the Cause" If such
men as Mr.. Cooper, there mentioned, would
come to this country to establish their in
dustries and become American citizens, the
country would welcome them. England is
getting into difficulty all around, and un-
less she can cajole the United States into
free trade her sorrows will multiply. Mr..
Cooper declares frankly that free trade
drove him from England to establish his in
dustry (hosiery) in protective America. He
affirms that for ten years there has been GO
ing on decline in the whole line of English
manufactures, and that free trade is the
cause. And yet we have other Englishmen,
and also Scotchmen, who have come to this
country for the express purpose of breaking
down that protective system which has
made us the greatest manufacturing nation
in the world, as well as the greatest agri-
cultural. The great Golden Club, composed
of the manufacturing millionaires and great
men of England, is at the head of this
the sinews of war. They would break
down our industries and force us to take
cheap English goods or pay our workmen
the pauper wages of England. The most
offensive course pursued by any journalist
is that of Mr.. John Dougall, Scotch-Eng-
lishman, and editor of the New York Wit
ness. This is religious and temperance
paper. But the animus of the whole thing
is free trade. The editorial department is
quite largely made up of clippings from
free trade papers and writer's, with suitable
remarks and connecting links thrown in.
Nothing too vile in the way of insinuation,
or direct affirmation, for protectionists,
while the gospel of free trade is the cure
all. One is disposed to suspect that the
paper is gotten up in the interests of the
great Golden Club. 1t is offered at one dol
lar year, and'many gratuitous copies are
furnished. We know nothing about its
affairs, but our theory is that it is a Golden
Club paper. If so, its course is ineligible.
1t may deny all connection, but there are
secret channels through which that club
knows how to work. Whether that be so
or not, would like to correct one of the
false statements frequently put forth in
that paper, namely, that free trade is a great
success in England and that pauperism is
constantly diminishing. Let us see what
English statistics reveal to us on that point
have before me the great Reform Almanac
of the Golden Club for 1884. The fullest
statistics on pauperism are there found, but
as to the number Of paupers Ireland and Scot
land are left out. In thirty-tive years it
shows that in England and Wales. the num-
Der of paupers have diminished by 135 ,000
or 3,S6S year. Very well. So far this
looks like a diminution. But let us now
turn to the statistics of the expense of pau
! perism. In 1916, just as free trade was well
inaugurated, the total expenditure for the
]
thrty-seven millions of dollars. In 1882,
after thirty-siX years of all the rich blessings
| of free trade, the expenditure was eighty-fve
millions. Under all the glorious blessings
of free trade, the expense for paupers has
doubled and gone on eight millions towards
trebling! Now we are left to conjecture as
to the sources or causes of this vast in
crease of expense. The British government
and private societies and municipalities have
carried on for years the expectation of pau
pers to this country. 1t has put upon them
| the mild name of "assisted emigrants !"
Ninety-five thousand came through from
! British America in 1882. Most of these
were " assisted emigrants," and the Golden
| Almanac frankly remarks that it is we'll
known that most OF the emigrants to British
America, whether assisted by government
or by private aid, are designed for the United
States. How many come direct to our ports
it is impossible to tell. If they are not OBJ
viously insane or imbecile they get through,
so large portion of them finally lodge in
our almshouses and jails. Now we will
suppose that England, Scotland and Ire
land, taking government, municipalities
and associations, send us 100000 paupers a
year. Then pauperism, on the best show
! ing England can make, is increasing by
1912 annually. No wonder she wants the
more than forty millions for work outside
of England and Wales Our good-natured,
benevolent, generous government and Off
Gals are sleeping over the increasing tide
of this vilest degradation and woe. And
now the increasing depression of industries
in free trade England is such that the gov
eminent is openly advising the weak people
to emigrate and promising assistance to do
so. The whole past teaches us that Eng
land will lose no opportunity to distress or
destroy us in war; and in peace she wants
us to support the paupers which her paupeT
wages produce, and to abandon our indus.
tries for her sake, that we may become her
raw producers, her hewers of wood and
drawers OF water. If we shall pursue our
own business and have as little as possible
to do with England, we shall be safe and
prosperous. SENEx.