The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1893-01-17
PROTECTION IN CHINA.

The Chinese Government has awarded
FIRST prize 10 an essay showing the advan-
tages Of protection 10 home industries In
China. The pith of the argument is that as
China does all kinds CT work by hand. pro-
lection is necessary while they are learning
to use machinery. The cheap labor of
China cannot compete with the machinery
Of u esteTn nations. In spite of all the Chi
nese can do foreign nations send their goods
to China and carry away ChinG's gold
and silver. The essay says: st is now
some hall a century since China has had
trade relations with other countries, aud
while the latter have derived great benefit
from the commercial intercourse the good
that has accrued to the former is pro blem-
| atical." This is putting the case mildly.
There is no advantage in cheap goods that
are made in other countries unless the other
countries buy in proportion TO their sales.
Ii there were no maehine-manufacture
goods imported into China the natives would
supply the market at perhaps higher prices,
but the money would remain in their own
country. The principle of protection as
applied to China is precisely the same as the
protective policy Of the United States rests
upon. The point each country has to gain
is to make the cost of imported goods equal
TO the cost of homemade goods. In China
they have cheap labor but no machinery; in
the United States dear labor has stimulated
inventive genius to an extent mat is hardly
paTalleled in any other country. In Europe
t2eY have both cheap labor and machinery.
The countries that combine the two are able
to produce standard goods at lower cost
than the United States with its dear labor
or China with its cheap hand labor.
The adoption of a comprehensive pr0tec-
tive policy by China would be severe blow
to England, and. to less extent, to the rest
Of Europe. The essay says that the trade
balance between China and England is
always in favor of the latter country. while
between China and the United States and
Russia the balance is favorable to China
The reason for this is that England is the
cheapest all-round worker. and consequently
sells her goods more largely 10 markets
| open to all nations. There seems to be a
tendency in the markets of the world to
| slip out of the grasp of the nations that
have been enriched by their trade. a pro-
tectiye policy in the United States has par
italy taken this country from the general
market and preserved it for our own people
Protection would do the same for China
Ii would take time, as the knowledge and
use of machinery cannot be acquired in a
day. There will also be a prejudice in
China on a change of method which SEEM
| ingly takes work from the people. But in
the end China would be an immense gamer
! by the use Of machinery. In another period
| as long as has elapsed since China was open
! to the world China would bring her i'm
| mense lab0ring force 10 the use of labor
| saving machinery and would bacoma a
| formidable rival to Europe for the trade
which Europe has practically enjoyed a
| monopoly of. The drawback in the case OF
| China would be the difficulty of infusing
new ideas into the Chinese brain. They
will 20 on for some years taxing exports
| and admitting imports free