The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1891-03-29
STUDYING PROTECTION"

Prof. A. L. PERRY, professor Of political
economy in Williams college, says that in
1888 he made calculation, approximate, of
how much Americans had paid in current
prices of protected goods yearly from 1862
20 1881, inclusive He went on certain
hypotheses that would be granted by any
body familiar with the facts, and going
through that line of calculation the result
showed the people paid S632, DOC, 900 in every
one of those twenty years-an aggregate
of over $4,000, 100000 in the extra price.
That was the motive to lift prices of do
mestic wares by shutting off competition of
other countries. He tried another process
and the result came out nearly the same
from independent data namely, $685., 600, 600
a year in artificial prices paid on the
necessaries of life. He says he believes
that GoD made this world on ever
lasting lines OF order. Each should do
that which he is able to do best and ex-
change the results of his own foresight and
effort against the results of the foresight
and effort of other men. There is a profit
in foreign trade for the American people or
it never would be prohibited. If our pro-
tectionist friends can furnish Just as good
domestic goods st just as cheap rate they
are on the ground and have that advantage
If they could do thai they would not run 10
Congress with their lobbyists to get a law
passed TO prohibit foreign trade. The fact
that there is this Chinese wall proves that
COPS plan is best, that every man shall
follow his own bent and sell the product in
the best market and get his pay.
The estimate of another scholar made in
dependently of that of Prof. PERRY shows
approximately the same result.
All students of science know that after a
pound of water has been brought to the
boiling point it requires great many de-
grees more heat to be applied to and stored
up in the water, before the water viii pass
into steam, and that the steam is then no
warmer than the water was. AS nearly as
we can remember this particular point
which we here use for illustration, it is
that if pound of ice water be brought to
the boiling point by the application of
uniform heat, it viii be found that the heat
must be continued five times longer to
change the boiling water into steam, than
TO bring the freezing water to boiling
point The steam has taken in over five
times the amount of heat that had previ-
ously raised the temperature of the water
PIP degrees, and is still no warmer than the
boiling water was.
Now, man might say he knows better
than this: that common sense'' tells him
that if heat is applied to water to turn it
into steam, the steam must be hotter than
the water was. He will also say that you
cannot take heat IRON the steam without
leaving it colder than before. Yet he
would be as far wrong as if he maintained.
as barbarians still do, that the earth stands
Still. Common sense" in the meaning
that implies conclusion formed without
actual careful examination of all the facts
on any subject, is quite as worthless. SO
far as truth is concerned, as the opinion of
the barbarian that the earth is fiat ann
stands still.
Ask almost any man if he doesn't believe
in protection to home industry;' and if he
has never investigated that subject, he
will say, Eyes, common sense makes me-
believe in protection" Those who inyesti-
gate, like Prof. PERRY and the economists.
know that protection to home industrvn
is really hindrance to home industry
Those who do not investigate are content
TO be deceived by the pleasant-sounding
word protection" into the belief that they
have faculty called common sense -
which renders investigation of the subject
unnecessary.