The Daily times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1886-1889, 1888-09-27
THE FARCE OF A HOME MARKET.
lFOr the Times

| Ont 81 lut ldNOIlic tHtOIltc VI tue itt
publican party is what they denominait
a Home Market" BY this can ohly bt
meant that legislation should be so
framed, taxation so adjusted, and matters
generally so arranged, that manufactur-
ers in the United States would, in The
main, be limited TO our own country for
a market and our people put under duress
TO buy exclusively from them. The
words, LET US build up home market"
are constantly heard from their speakers
and seen in their papers. Then is il not
pertinent TO enquire what is a home
market" How will it affect both sellers
and purchasers viii ii or can it ever
| afford a sufficient market for the capacity
of our manufacturers Can the growth
Of population and the wants of the peO-
pie keep pace with the expensive and
progressive capabilities Of machinery and
inventive geniusY And which is best
and most likely to add to our wealth and
and power to cabin, crib, confne' our
market to our own territory, or to extend
it to foreign countries as welly
These questions ought not TO he hard
to answer A nation is only family en-.
larged, and how would a home market
work in a family? A man, with dozen
children, settles them around him and
says to them 81 am a good Republican
and believe in their doctrines. pro-
pose to sell to you what | have to dis
pose Of, and you must buy only from
me" That would be a home market
reduced to practice but would the farm
er or bis children flourish under IL;
The growth Of population must necCs-
sarily be slow aud slower the older the
world grows; but who shall apply any
limits 10 invention and 20 the productive
capacity Of machinery Mir Carlisle, in
his speech on the tariff, has illustrated
this point anG ! cannot do better than
quote him
"ln order to form some idea Of the
magnitude Of these natural and mechan-
zeal forces, and the efficiency of manual
labor and skill when connected with
them, let US look at the situation in six
OF our own manufacturing industries
in the manufacture of cotton goods,
wooden goods, iron and steel, sawed lum-
Der, paper, and in our Touring and grist
mills, there were employed, according to
the latest statistics, 1899 persons-not
all men, but many OF them women and
children. This labor was supplemented |
by steam-power and water-pOwer, equal
TO 2,49G,299 horsepower. This is equal |
TO the power of 14,977,794 men; and thus !
we find that little over 1900 persons,
of all ages and sexes, are performing, in (
with steam and water power, /
the work Of IL, 49j, 093 adult and healthy |
men"
he arpends table to his speech show ,
ing that in the year 1913, when colt |
was spun by hand, one man could only /
make three pounds of cotton thread, No !
TO- in a week, worth seyenty-fiye cents
pound, or 1926 in all, while in 1880, by
the use of machinery the same man can
produce 5000 pounds, worth $3.50 And
hat taking the same year lin 1879, one
weaver could weave forty-tve yards of
cotton sheeting by hand and in 1880 by
machinery ,440 yards-lhe product in
he one case being worth Sl70l, and in
he other sos.
At this rate it would not take MANY
men long to supply all the wants OF the
American people, provided that those
men had machinery and regular employ
nent. What would England be to-day
{ she had adopted the theory of home
market Her population is only about
IS, 100000, yet she has machinery and
appliances 10 manufacture for 10000 600
If people. Her manufactures go 10 all
parts Of the world, and she skins the
'Feam of all nations, and the money of
All peoples goes into the pockets Of her
citizens and makes the one-half Of lit
lie island the richest and, commercially
aud finan ciely, the most powerful ma
ion that ever existed. She gathers raw
material free of tax from all quarters
and gets the prof, of manufacturing and
,arrying H. We send tw0-thirds OF our
'olion abroad to be made into cloth and
bread, instead Of making il into these
utices ourselves and selling them else.
where.
After all, the best test Of a law or sys-
EN- is TO see how il works, and an exam /
nation Of the practical results Of the |
present tariff system must throw much !
light on the subject.
The United States excells all nations |
he intelligence of her workmen and ,
here is vast field near at hand in which |
o bring these things into profitable exer-
Use and use. South of US and joining
'ur own territories is Mexico, Repub. )
ic; south Of her are the four Central {
american Republics, and south OF them
S the vast continent of South America, .
among others, Peru, the 7
Argentine Republic, and the vast En- |
ire of Brazil. All of these are nearer I
nd more convenient to US than 10 Q
europe, which fact alone gives US great /
dysntage IN the way OF intercourse and |
rade In all these countries are things !
We need-gold and silver, dye slufis, .
Medicinal plants, wool, hides, coffee. val
able woods, etc. Close to US is the great |
slsnd OF Cuba, which, geographically. is a
art Of this continent, and ought to be- \
ong to the United States Across the q
'aciic is Asia, the trade of which has i
IA .t....N q 1.