St. Paul daily globe., 1893-03-13
AMONG THE REVIEWS.

The Forum-George w. Medley, an
Englishman, member of the English
Economic association, Golden club
Man, and student of economic ques-
tons from the practical standpoint of
the business man, sees in the presden-
tial election the dawn of "A New Era
for the United States" full of moment
ous consequences for this country and
the world. If in the new era the United
States shall throw down the barriers lof
protection aud take her place side by
side with Britain as free trade com
petltor for the commerce Of the world,
he sees in the former formidable and,
with her greater resources, a successful
rival of the latter in the trade of the
nations, with that resultant wealth
which has made England the great
capitalist nation.
10 gain position for forecast of
what will be the place Of this country
under free trade policy, he examines
the present industrial and commercial
situation. One nation among them all
in manufactures, navigation and inter-
national commerce holds, either rela-
lively or absolutely, the first place.
This is the British nation. Her capital
is motive force In the development of
industrial enterprises on every con-
tinent. In the United States it is in
vested in our railways, mines, mills,
elevator systems, brewerleS, and so on.
South America owes major share of her
development to British capital. India
and Australia, the Cape colonies. and
now Central Africa, are fruitful fields
for the employment of capital gathered
i'm the trade Of the world by the two in
significant islands that are on Europe's
western skirmish line. Half of the
tonnage OF the worlds marine belongs
to Britain. Her exports and imports
for 1890 were nearly S100 per capita, as
against about $54 for France and Ger
manV and $40 for the United States.
at is computed that the world stands
indebted to her in no less sum than
two thousand million pounds sterling
ten thousand million dollars of lndebt-
edneSS in.cOuntleSs formS-Which grows
larger daily and is an ever-increaSing
lien on creation"
This the writer attributes mainly to
the policy of commercial freedom pur-
sued for nearly half century by that
nation. Inevitably, the nation that ex-
cludeS or restricts commercial inter-
course leaves the field of international
commerce open to the nation that in
YiteS exchanges by the freedom Of her
ports. NOI are the efforts to protect its
own trade against the competition of
the free trade nation successful unless
duties are made prOhiDtory. Our i'm
ports from England have steadily in
creased in the face of the laws designed
10 diminish them, and in a uniform
proportion to our exports to that country.
While prOtectiOnist nations have been
impoVeriShing their people by lncreas-
ing the cost OF what they buy, England
has been permitting her people to buy
where they can buy the cheapest, with
the inevitable result Of increase Of
wealth.
Ii now the United States reverses
the policy it has pursued since lS6l,a
enters the international arena with all
its resources, Its productive capacity,
its energy and enterprise. if it becomes
a competitor with Britain for the
worlds trade, Mr.. Medley sees eventual
"great changes involving displacement
of capital and labor throughout the
world On the largest scale, causing loss,
disturbance and suffering in various dl-
rectionS. especially to the old country"
Britain could not maintain her present
position, which, he says, is an abnormal
one, the result of abnormal trade con-
ditionS in other countries. 1.-The action
of other countries has driven her ener-
gies into directions which are not alto
gether good Mining and manufactures
have been Overstimulated. to the detri-
ment of the manly vigor of her popula-
tiOn."
"With regard to the effect of the
adoption of free trade by the United
States on the other protectioniSt ma
tions," the writer concludes, lit is diff
cult to conceive how they could very
long resist following her example, and.
in that case, it is simply impossible to
Overestimate the blessings to mankind
which such a copsummation would
bring with ii. have likened war and
protection to parent ana child. They
may also be likened to those twins
which appear occasionally, body joined
to body, the life of one depending on
the other. Abolish protection through
out the world, knit the peoples together
in the bonds of trade and common inter-
est. and you cause the warlike spirit to
wither and die. Abolish war and mill
tarIsm and you destroy projections;
there would then be no need for these
exactions of blood and treasure which
are now eating up the resources and
sapping the vitaIs of mankind in the
very center of civilization. A new era
would dawn on mankind"