New-York tribune., 1885-02-16
NEW PUBLICATIONS.

IL \
,sorrcTIoN TO YOUNG INDUSTRIES as spPIstar HstorT
the United states. stuny IN in naitcai economy in
iI:sryard College. 12mo, PIP. AZ. w. r. 'u'"''A
Sons u.. ,rr;.,or IN
This treatise it seems, was orlgihaiiy "i".0m -
competition for prize IN ponlic" sc'onU % ..i
Yard in october 1882. 1t is singular Illustration
~. .ort of ,oltical science which at the present
t;re nasses current In that and some other uhVois
tjes Not ill-written much superior III courtesy u
to,e and in decent regard for truth, to many Poi.
,roduct,ons on the ee-trade sde ana haiho'
more fairness of reasoning than Is "sua AZ ~.
treatise, this essay nevertheless eh'HeiS '
.ro o,ni ,t issue In the minds of practical men oo'
&C., the advocates and the opponents Oh the pro'
tectve SYSTEM 1t is true that the scope OF the essay
did not seem to the writer to require any oo",
henson of the practical question as IL cAis''
II Is substantially brief review of the early hs,ois
.s a.. oonnt,v nrior TO lS40 and of few Leading
,ndustr;cs and il considers the historical CAUSES
which led 10 the adoption of the first distiho'neS
nrot.ctive tariff TO the circumstances whch thon
r.ndered the appeal for the defence OF young ihuu'
tries particularly strong, and TO tho ,.'a,o.
.roo.s Of tho nolicv then adopted upon the develop
ment of the country Ia manufactures ".
carly wears Ii Is the impression OF the "i'''i '
what he calls L" the young industries arsuinon'
Sieers in some essential particular from the arGu
vnonf
yeliss and that if there in the earlier circun
- &c the country adeouate reason for the pro-
lection of Young industries, those reasons can no
Ioogsr ex,st. The writer therefore supposes that
wbat he calls tho young industries argumen'
can 10 longer have proper place In discusSion'
psrha,. il is due to this impression, Ill part tnat
<be writer treats with much courtesy the reasoning
that in early times the defence OF infant industries
was necessary lie cOnceiyes that the Hansi'ioh
from purely agricultural state to more diVersi-
fed system of industry was retarded uhuuiy ~
these earlier years, and that great improvements -. ~
the arts of production, which had been MADE IN
England. were held under practical monopoly
there and were revolutonizng the methods OF man
ufacture Hence he admits Up. ~ that" under tnese
circumstances there would seem to nave eAistoo
roo for the legitimate application OF protectioh ioi
voung industrles.' Tho writer comedies lha' 'h0
no,cv adopted by the founders of the Republic was
not without reason, nor wholly wlthou' eHooV'
though the tendency of his argument throughout -
60 minimize us mucb as possible the results
nv defensive legislation. In respect to this branch
of his reasoning ii is enough to say that he las W
give due weight to the enormous advantage Which
the possession of abundant capital and cheap apor
nave 70 English manufacturers at time. when the
nroc-sses of manufacture were undergoing COM
plete revolution. This advantage was so vast thae
no candid and competent inquirer Will deny thaV
e. won1d have enabled the English manufacturers
20 crush out competition in this country altogether
in important branches Of industry and 10 suppress
II for long period of years, had no defensive ieet'
lation existed. 1t does not appear that Mt. IausSe
himself clearly denies this, though he seems 10
greatly underrate the influence "nioh '"0 "oA'"
siye duties exerted.
The historical question is OF trihing Importance.
It is the chronic vice of the docrnaire in pohtioai
economy that he insists upon devoting his ihteiect
either 70 an ancient state of things, which long ago
ceased to exist or to an imaginary state OF thlhgs
which never existed and never can exist. Living
and thinking 10 this dead or unreal world, alto
qether apart from the conditions which practlcai
men have TO mest In their every day duties, he
laboriously teaches set of theories whlch might
have been of some use half q century ago. as hind
aht Is generally rather clearer than foresight. or
which might be of use in an imaginary Kingdom OF
WeissnichtwO inhabited by " the economic man,
and other unreal creatures OF the same species oue
have nothing at all to do with the wofu III
which we live Young men furnished Win such
stock Of theories 90 cut into the world to be laughed
at or left in dignded secluson for few years.
untl they get the nonsense knocked out OF Them
Protection for infant industries stands upon exactly
the same ground as protc ton for any industry
Infant industries are starting into existence IN TINS
country every year and have been since INC
Declaration Of independence. Every new lnven-
tion, II of practical value, rings into operation
within its range all the conditions which are
admitted to have once justified the defence Oh
;nfant industry. Every panic abroad, every great
disturbance of industry, or financial convulson,
brings into operation in kind though not in degree
precisely the saioe reasons for the defence OF nome
Industries which existed in the days when capital
In this country was most greatly needed, when
labor was most scarce, and when the process OF
diyersifcation would have been indefinitely
deferred had unrestrained competition been per-
mittcl At this hour, one of the very industries
which Mr. Taussig especially mentions as needing
no protection the manufacture Of silk goods, would
absolutely cease to exist in this country with total
loss of the large capital invested and great suffer
ing to the army Of working people engaged therein
were the duties Oh Imported silks removed, or ma
teriallv reduced A thousand volumes of theory
would not teach student halfas much as an hours
walk through the mills at Paterson.
o.