St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1890-04-14

FREE TRADE.
Rev. II. Nj. Simmons Discusses 1t

Rev. H. Nj. Simmons Discusses 1t
From the Pulpit Standpoint.
At the First Unitarion church yester-
day morning Rev. Il. M. Simmons
preached on Free Trade From the Pull
pit Standpoint" He said from the
moral standpoint there would seem to
be no objection to free trade. If two.
men both want to make An exchange,
why should they be forbidden? If it
is cOmmendable for them to make
it across the Mississippi, why should
it be crime for them q to
make it across the St. Lawrence or even
across the Atlantic. Morality is notta
matter OF longitude. From the ethical
standpoint. at least, it is just as proper
to buy in Canada as in New York, and
just as proper to buy in Europe as in
either, and even duty to ones family
to buy where he can do it with least
loss, Government can interfere only IN
the name of public eXpediency.
And civilized governments themselves
seem to agree that public interest calls
for easy, and extensive internationai
trade. All are trying to make this
trade easier by diminishing barriers
between nations. The dividing rivers
are bridged and mountains tun-
neled, railroads are aided to join the
lands and steamship lines to narrow the
ocean, and enterprises of every sort to
help commerce are encouraged and
praised as great blessing to the world.
Why then undo this effect by restric-
ton? Why be at such expense to make
trade easier. and then impose tariffs to
make it more difficult? Why spend
millions to clear our harbors for the pro-
motion of commerce, and then build
custom houses for its prevention? Why
tax mankind so heavily to remove OBJ
stacleS to trade and make goods
cheaper, and then tax more to set up
other obstacles and make goods dearer?
1t is evidently an unwise policy for the
human race taken as a whole.
And is it any wiser for the separate
nations-say our own? tits done in the
name of protection to American indus.
tries; but in the nature of things it can
protect only part of them. Even so
high and conservative an authority as
Edward Atkinson says that from the
class helped by protective system
must be omitted all those engaged In
trade and transportation and in profess
sional and personal service; over half
of those engaged in the mechanic and
kindred arts. and from 80 to IS per cent
of the vast class engaged in agriculture
But while helping SO small part OF
our people as the producers, it harms
all consumers by making half the
necessaries of life so much more costly.
Where is the protection in forbidding
us to buy our clothes in Canada, when
we could thereby save third or more
OF the cost? Where is the protection in
forcing us to overpay in like manner
60, Drnf Of la
college, says that during the decade
ending with 1870 if we had imported
all our iron free of duty. we
should not only have saved all
the ore and coal we consumed in
its production, but saved enough be-
sides to have paid full interest on all
the capital and full wages to all the
wOrkmen we employed in producing it,
and should have still made S2,000.000 a
year by the operation. Mr.. Atkinson.
in his new book, says that during the
decade ending with 1887 we paid for our
iron $560.000,000 more than its price in
Great Britain--a sum greater than all
the capital EOw invested in our iron
mines, blast furnaces, steelwOrks and
rolling mills. And he thinks there has
been not only so great material.
but some moral loss to the cOun-
try, and suggests that it might be "a
blessing in disguise. even for Pennsyl-
vania, if system of special legislation
which has for so long period blighted
her public men and depraved her poll
tics, should be done away"
Free trade seems to have enough even
Of moral interest to make it worthy of
discussion in the pulpit. 1t has a re-
ligious interest. too. A French mer-
chant, when asked by Colbert the best
way for government favor commerce,
said by "leaving it alOne;' and seeing
how much better that and many other
social movements go of themselves than
meddlers can make them, one learns to
have more faith in the world and its
Maker