The state chronicle., 1888-10-19
NO. 81.
cotton is the history of the Western farm

cotton is the history of the Western farm
er's wheat
The reasonable amount of prosperit,
which the country has enjoyed since tn,
war has not been participated in by The
agricultural classes, and little wonder
when we consider how they are heeced or
all sides for the benefit of the others. The
records Of mortgages, of declining prices
amply testify to this. Nowhere has the
| decay Of agriculture been more marked
and lamentable than in several of the New
England States where manufactures most
| abound. The statistics of these States
completely refute the idea that manufac-
| lures furnish home market which en-
riches the farmer. An intelligent and
painstaking gentleman of this city has
| carefully collaborated the figures which
illustrate this subject, and show beyond
all question that whilst the cities and
towns Of New England have grown and
become wealthy by the protective policy
1T has been at the expense and decay of
| and conclusions:
"The protective policy has built up a
number of considerable towns in Massa-
chusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island ;
and these towns have doubtless given en-
couragement to gardening in their immed-
late vicinities. But it is manifest that
the incidental good has not reached be-
yond their immediate neighborhoods 1t
has been shown that the system, while
enriching the capitalists and building the
towns in these favored States, has at the
same time depopulated and impoverished
| their northern neighbors. And not only
are Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont
| injured by the artificial stimulant given
! by protection to manufacturing IN the
three more southern New England States,
but 1t appears from the census returns
that it serves to rob the country in the
favored States themselves of population,
and thus to ruin agriculture. which fos-
ters the best citizenship, for the purpose
of enriching the towns.
The tendency of population in all our
Northern country to rush to the cities is
one of the social evils of the times which
legislation should do nothing to encourage
if it can do nothing to check. This ten
dency in New England is particularly
noticeable Massachusetts,, the richest and
most populons of those States, is under
going this process of popular congestion
this rushing of the social blood to the head
at a galloping rate. The population of
that State in 1870 was / ,457, ,351, and in
1880 it had risen to 1888, ,0s5. The in
Of the census report of 1880 shows the
population of cities and towns in the Unit
ed States of 4 600 inhabitants and up
wards. From this table it appears that
in 1870 the towns and cities of Massachu-
setts, of this description, contained ,004.
600, Or not far from three-fourths of the
population of the State, and that in 1880
the towns and cities of the State had
gained 356. 600, 22,nOO more than the
State at large. In other words, that the
population of the country had diminished
to that extent besides having been strip
ped of its natural increase.
1.-The population of Connecticut in 1870
was 537, 454, and in 1880 it was 622, 700.
The increase was, therefore, S5, 246. Dur
ing the same years the population of the
towns and cities of Connecticut rose from
2o9, sol to $40, ,057. The increase of the
city population was therefore SO,255, or
only 5000 less than the gain of the whole
State. In other words, the cities absorbed
all the natural increase of the country
population, except the 5000, together with
what they drew from Maine. New Namp-
shire, and Vermont, and other sources
'Rhode Island in 1870 contained PIT, 1913
inhabitants, and in 1880 the population
was 276 531 The increase was, there
fore, So, The city and town popula-
fion of Rhode Island increased between
those years from 159, 900 to 236, 800, or
30 300 The cities therefore gained 81, 900
inhabitants more than the whole State, or,
iii other words, the fields and farms lost
population to that extent. Instead of
fostering agriculture and increasing the
number of independent yeomanry, the
effect of the protective system is TO con-
vert independent yeomanry into dependent
factory operatives, liable to be locked
out at any moment from the factories and
elected from the tenements occupied by
them.
THE depicting effect of protection upon
the factory hand, "breeding States is
capable of further illustration. Thus the
population of Maine in 1870 was 626, 915,
and in 1890 it was 64S, ,936. The increase
was therefore % 2,O21. The city and town
population of Maine in 1870 was $50 $50.
and in 1880 it was III, 52S. The increase
was therefore 18, 89S. These figures show
that the aggregate gain Of the State was
a trifle greater than that of the cities, but
the proportionate gain WAS thirty fold in
favor of the cities. Indeed. if We deduct
the increase of city population from that
of the State at large the balance in favor
of the country will be only 3,123.
1.-The natural increase of the country
alone would be something like 100, O0O
The population of New Hampshire in $40
was 31S, 800, and in 1880 it was BAG, 991.
The inc ease therefore was 90, 691. Dur
ing the same period the towns and cities
of New Hampshire increased from SO, ,456
to 1O4 105 The gain therefore was 2o,
$40 This was s, COO less than the aggre
gate increase of the State. But it must
be remembe red that the 5000 represents
the gain of the country, and that proper
tionate gain is vastly in favor of the cities.
"Nermont in 1870 had population of
$50 551, and in 1880 it was 332, 1885, show
ing a gain of 735 inhabitants. The towns
and cities of Vermont increased in that pc
| riod from 80, 504 to 50, 141. The gains of the
towns was therefore 2,63., or 900 more
than the State, and shows that the agri-
| cultural interests had been robbed by the
protective policy of that number of citi-
| zens over and above the natural increase.
| The natural increase of population in
| America is at the rate of % per cent. in
ten years, and the healthy vigorous popu-
| IatiOn of Vermont at this rate would turn
out 80, 900 new born Green Mountaineers
| in that time"
1t thus appears that while protection
does protect, and make nabobs of the
| capitalists engaged in manufacturing, 1t is
| destructive of agriculture, and that of all
the people in America who support the
protective policy, the last to give it aid
should be the masses-that is to say, nine
ty-nine in a hundred of the people in New