Herald and news. [volume] (West Randolph, Vt.) 1878-1943, 1890-01-23
BIaine's Great Reply to Gladstone.

tha free trade school Of polllca ecol oiiiia'1 =
he apoleizes for his apparent interisre enc
,yitb our affairs He may be assureu 'i -,
anoloqy is superfuous Americans % az
-ifesses lola him ia honor. Free trade ne Do
leves advantageous for England, tnereioi .
,,-;tl,o,,t the allowance Of any modify ing CON
,,;s;on GREAT or small, the English economist
'I,sla,,es il 70 be advantageous for the Oniteu
$3.50 fnr Brazil. for Australia; IN snort, lor
III ,.e,',f.ies with which England can estao
~. - rs,...i,5..s I. TsoEia b a;iiiS'iii' q
,,,t irnrossible. for Mr. Gladstone TO ma any
,,rircinle Of administration or any measure OF
- - exactly fitted to the varying needs
Of all countries as be ASSUMES lhs Po"oJ =
free trade 20 pc. ~ 80
The American proteetionlst' leD y hos ~
discourteous TO urge, Is broader m M s'g"s
than the English free trader, 10 ih'e.i
protectionist IN the United states piet'ii1'
that every country would ALIKE reaiize an
vantage from the adoption OF me protsetlNs J,
system. Great Britain and the Chitsu
States certainly resemble one anothef III
more WAYS than either can be said 70 res III
ble auy other nation in the world yet, when
we compare the two on the question az Issue,
the differences are 50 markell that we almost
lose sight OF the resemblance
THE TWO NATIONS coNrRAsTED.
Great Britain is an island less than ninety
Thousand square miles in extent It's lie de-
nends upop its connection with other coun-
tries lis prosperity rests upon its commerce
with the world. On the other hand, single
state OF the Union is nearly three times as
large as Great Britain Several other states
are each quite equal to it in area The whoie
Union is well nigh forty times as large.
With these fundamental points OF difference
between the two countries, | assume that
varied financial and industrial systems
wrought hy the experience OF each, would De
the natural and logic result Hence do not
ioin issue with Mr.. Gladstone on both OF his
propositions He defends free trade in Great
Britain. He assails protection IN the United
States The FIRST proposition ! neither deny
nor affirm.
On many points and in many respects it
was far different with Great Britain hun
dred years ago. She did not then feel assured
that She could bear tie competition of Con-
tinental nations She was, therefore, ag-
gressively, even cruelty, protective She
manufactured for herself and for her net
work Of colonies reaching around the globe.
Into those colonies no other nation could
carry anything. There was no scale Of duty
upon which other nations could enter a
colonial port. What the colonies needed out
side Of British products could be furnished 10
them only in British ships
WAS GREAT BRITAIN MERELY sELFIsHi
During the last thirty years Of her pro
tective system, and especially during the
twenty years from 1895 10 1916, Great Bri
tain increased her material wealth beyond all
precedent la the commercial history Of the
world Finally, with vast capital accunu-
lated, with low rate Of interest establish
ed, and with a manufacturing power une-
qualed, the British merchants were ready to
underbid all rivals in seeking for the trade Of
the world
At that moment Great Britain had reason
TO feel snprenlely content The traslc Of the
world seemed prospectively ia her control
Could this condition Of trade have continued,
no estimate OF the growth Of England's
wealth would DO possible
But England was dealing with an intelli.
gence equal t. her own. The American
people had, by repeated experience, learned
that the periods Of depression in home manu-
features were those in which England most
prospcred in her commercial relations with
the United States, and that these periods Of
depression nal. With a single exception,
easily explained, followed the enactment by
congress OF a free trade tariff, as certainly as
effect follows cause One Of the most suggest
i've experiments Of that kind had its origin in
the tariff to which nave just referred, passed
in 1916 in apparent harmony with highlands
newly declared financial policy AT that
moment southern president Cir. Polk aud
southern secretary OF the treasury tSIr
Robert J. Walkerl were far more interested
in expanding the area of slave territory than
in advancing home manufactures, and were
especially eager TO make commercial ex
changes with Europe on the somewhat difii.
cult basis of cotton at high prices aud return
ing fabrics at low prizes
Under ordinary circumstances the free
trade tariff OF 1916 would have promptly
fallen under popular reprobaton and been
doomed to speedy repeal But it had a singu.
lar history and for time was generally ac.
quiesced in, even attaining in many sections
a certain degree Of popularity. Never did any
other tariff meet with 50 many and so great
aids OF an adventitious character to sustain it
as did this enactment of 1876: California;
gold, our war with Mexico and the Crimean
war. The export Of manufactures from Eng
land and France was checked. the breadstulfs
of Russia were blockaded and could not reach
the markets of the world An extraordinary
stimulus was thus given to all forms of trade
in the United States For ten years-lS46 to
lS56-these adventitious aids came in regular
succession and exerted their powerful influ
ence upon the prosperity Of the country.
The withdrawal or termination of these
influences, by a treaty Of peace in Europe
and by the surcease of gold from California,
brought widespread financial panic, which
involved the ruin of thouso.sis, including
as many IN the souta as in
he north.
AMERICA has BAD AMrLE EXPERIENCE.
The American people nad twice before
passed through a similar experience. On
,he eve of the war of 1s12, congress guarded
he national strength by enacting a highly
protective tariff. By it's own terms this
jariR must end with the war When the
new tariff was TO be formed, popular cry
arose against war duties, though the coun-
Try had prospered under them despite the
effect Of the struggle with Great
Britain. But the prayer Of the people was
answered and the war duties ware dronnad