The Valley Virginian. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1865-1895, 1888-08-30

ploleCtiVo uuIicS tudt Iile LAX, Whatever IL
may be, increases The cost of the foreign
as Well as the domestic product to the ex-
tent OF such lax or duty. and that IL IS
wholly paid by the Consumer. This Ohjec
ton would be worthy vi serious cuuslu. IA
tiUn ii it were true, but, AS has been dem
Onstrated over and over again, it is with
out foundation i'll fact. Wherever the
foreign product has successful coInpatl
tl0n at home .he duty is rarely paid hy
the consumer. 1t Is paid from The profips
Oh the manufacturer, or divided between
h,m and the merchant or the importer.
and dimshes their profits to that extent.
Duty or 10 duty, Without home compel ion
The consumer would fare worse than he
fares now. There is not in the long line
OF staple products consumed 10y The peO-
pie single one which has not been CHEAP
ened by competition at home, made pos
slble by protective duties. There is not
an arLlcle That enters into the every day
uses of the family which il produced in
the United States that has not been made
cheaper and more accessible as the result
OF home production and development.
which was 10 be secured only by the sturdy
maintenance OF the protective system
~ hlle thlS IS true of protective Tariffs,
exactly the opposite is true of revenue
tariffs. They are always paid by the Goa.
sumner. A duty lut upon foreign pro-
duct. the like of which is not produced at
home, and which enters our markets free
from home competition, The cost TO the
American consumer is exactly the foleigli
cost with tire duty added, whatever that
may be, much or little. Surprising. for
example, there was a tax upon tea and
coffee. There being no production of
these articles in the United States. and
reAfp "a no
the American public would be the cost
abroad and the duty added. We imported
last year 526, 4S9, 600 pounds of coffee. A
duty OF ~ cents a pound would have pro
duced to the government over S52 900 900.
which would have been paid by the II 600,
600 families Of this country, consumers OF
This article. Eighty seven million five
hundred and eighty-fOur thousand pounds
Of tea were imported last year. AT 10
cents pound IS 600 900 and upward
would have gone INFO the Treasury, every
dollar of which would have been paid 10y
our own people. Take sugar AS another
example. We produced last Year in this
country about eight per cent. of what our
people consumed. The duty collected
from imported sugar amounted to $5S,-
600 O09. The domestio production WAS
80 lnonnsidefahle as compared with the
domestic consumption as to have had little
il any. appreciate effect upon the price to
the consumer, aud therefore this sum was
almost wholly paid by cur own citizens,
! and the cost of sugar to the American
consumer. because OF the inadequate home
supply. Is practically the foreign price
duty added. the domestic production being
50 small contrasted with the domestic de-
mand that it in no wise controlled or
| Influenced the price
The revenue tariff periods of our history
have been periods of greatest financial
| revolutions and industrial decadence, want
and poverty among the people. private
enterprises checked. and public works
| retarded. From 1881 to 1912, nnder the
low tariff legislation then prevailing. bust
ness Was at a standstil aud our merchants
| and traders were bankruped: our indus,
| tries were paralyZed. our labor remained
| idle, and our capital was unemployed
! Foreign products crowded our markets.
| destroyed domestic competition, and, as
| invariably follows. the prices of comm obi
! lies to consumers were appreciably raised
| 1t is an instructive fact that every panic
| this country has eyer experienced has been
| preceded by enormous impOrtati0ns. From
| 1916 to 1861 similar situation was pre-
sented under the low tariff of that period.
Contrast this period with the period
| enue tariff the latter under prot ective
tariff. In 1860 we had lf3 600 .00r acres of
| improved land. while in 1850 we had 2S7,-
000. 900, al increase of "a per cent, In
| 1850 our farms we're valued at 81, 200, 900.
| 600. In 1850 the value had leaped to
| $50. 1871 600 900. an Increase of over 400
per ce,t La 1860 we raised 113.0n0 GOO
bushels of wheat; in 1850 1858 600 600 In
| 1860 we raised SIS 900 900 bushels nf corn,
in 1850 Lii 600 00n bushels. In 1860 we
produced $1,000 900 bales of cotton; III 1850
| I 900 600 bales. an increase OF 40 per cent.
| In 1860 We manufactured cotton goods to
the value of $ll5.6SI ia; in 1880 the value
| reached S211 900 900 an increase of up
| tured Of wooden goods $tl 600 coo; in 1880
$267 100000 an increase at 333 per cent.
| In 1850 we proinced 10000 600 pounds of
wool; III 1850 240 GOO tHlu pounds. AN ill
crease of nearly 800 per cent. In 1860 we
mlnea l5.O00,0O0 tons of coal: IN 1880
| 10 O00, 900 tons. an increase of over 400 per
cent. In 1860 VIZ made 9S7 900 tons of
| pig iron: in 1880 3 IS 600 tons. In 1860
we manufactured 235 600 tons of railroad
| iron. and In 1880 20S000 tons. In 1860
our aggregate of national wealth was
SIG 159 900 .0G0; in 1850 it was $i3 ,000,,
| U00. 600.
From lsts to 1860 during the low tariff
period, there was ut single year in
VIII CHI We exported in excess of what we
imported. The balance Of trade during
| the twelve of the thirteen Years was
| against us: Our people were drained of
their money TO for foreign purchases
| We sent a"rOad. over and above our sales.
1896, 2l6, 1871. This vast sum was drawn
from The United States. from its business
| from the channels of trade. which would
have been better employed in productive
enterprises and thus supplied our wants
for which we were compelled to go abroad
| During tine last thirteen years, under
| protective tariff. there WAS but one year
that The halahce of trade was against U.S.
For twelve years we sold to our foreign
customers in excess of what we bought
| from them the sum of 81 6l2 $40, 100
This contrast makes al inter+s ing ex
| biuit of the work under the two systems
| You need not he told that the government
and the people are most prosperous whose
balance of trade is in their favor The
government is like the citizen: Indeed it
| is but an aggregation of eli liens: and
when the citlZen buys more than he sells
he is soon cons ious that his years bust
| ness has not been a success.
Our wealth increases 1915 1000. 900 every
I year. while the increase OF France is
1878 600 OOD Great Britain 1926, 000,O 900
and Germany 5000. 900 900. The total car.
rying capacity of all the vessels entered
and cleared from American ports during
the year 1867 in the foreign trade was
| g, 900 900 tons. The amount of freight
transported by the railroads of the United
States was alone $4,000 900 tons during
the same period.
The sum of our industries exceeds that
of any other people Or tribe or nationality
Mulhall, the English statistician, places
the industries of the United States at
$ll ,405 600, 900 annually, which is 50 BOA
000,0n0 greater than those of the United
Kingdom of Great Britain. nearly twice
that of France or Germany. nearly three
times that of Russia, and almost equal to
the aggregated industries OF Austria, tally,
Spain, Belgium. Holland. Australia, Canada
| and Sweden and Norway.
This advancement Is the world 8 wonder
The nations of the earth cannot furnish
such i. splendid exhibition of progress in
any age or period. We defy revenue
tariff policy to present such an exhibition
of material prosperity and industrial de-
yelopment. Arts, science and literature
have held their own in this wonderful
march. We are prosperous today beyond
any other people. The masses are better
cared for, better provided for. more self
respecting and more Independent than ever
before in our history. which cannot be
| i'll of no m accuS nf nj h or ooupfr1oo