Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1911-03-09
THURSDAY. MARCH 8. 1911.
ENGLAND'S w
f.

The phrase Tariff Reform" means
in the United States a revision OF
schedules and a lowering of duties on
imposts. In free trade in England it
means the imposition Of duties and a
reversal of the policy of freedom of
trade with the people Of other countries.
But protectionists in both countries are
losing ground. There will be freer
trade in the United States; but there
will be no departure in England from
the policy which has made her com
mercially great. The West Briton,
published in Truro, in a recent issue
showed our great England's trade is
Referring to Balfour and others who
stand for the policy of protection The
West Briton says:
UNFORTUNATELY for them our trade
keeps on making records almost year
by year until this year it has quite
eclipsed not merely all that we had
ever done, but all that has been accom-
plished by any nation under the sun.
The imports for the year 1910 were
e678, 44O, 173; which was e53 ,735,216 in
excess of 1909 and G85 ,486, 686 more
than in 1908. For the same period ex-
ports were 1884 1855 ,915, an increase of
e64, $40, 749 over 1909, and of Ell $3.50
over 1903. We come, therefore, to this,
that our overseas trade for the twelve
months reached the magnificent total OF
81 ,212, 500, 088, being an advance over
the previous years return of e118,575,
$50. The figures are so vast as to be
difficult Of comprehension eve by those
of commercial and statistical mind, but
the splendid totals are overwhelming in
their effect, and one fact at least would
seem to be driven home by them-that
the nation which had reached such an
unexampled success would be acting
very unwisely if they attempted to
change the system to which this success
was due. There is nothing in the
position of England itself which would
warrant it's attainment of the immense
superiority that it has achieved. 1t is a
comparatively small island set in the
Northern Sea, with no CONSPICUOUS
advantages W it's supplies of coal and
iron, and it's centuries of comparative
peace and economical activities. The
United States, which it easily Outstrips
in it's overseas commerce, is a huge
Continent with unmatched natural
wealth, while Germany, which is so
frequently put into comparison with the
United Kingdom, has a population of
nearly twenty millions more than we
possess.
The lessons Of these latest Board of
Trade returns have been well pointed
out in an article in The Daily Chron-
icle." 1.-The great Sir Robert Peel"
runs this article, said more than sixty
years ago that the best way to fight
hostile tariffs was by free imports. Our
happy experience in this country has
proved the truth of that memorable
saying. The great free and open
English market acts like a magnet
drawing unto itself commodities from
every land and every cline. Inter
national trade is merely exchange of
goods for goods, or of goods for services.
People who sell to us must buy from
us. We pay for the commodities that
we import by the expectation of
manufactures, by u services as ship
pers, bankers, and tinanciers. Hence
the larger the volume of our imports
the greater must be our exports. The
fact is ignored that this property must
sooner or later benefit all classes of
the community. Unemployment and
pauperism are diminishing and will
continue to diminish as long as the
trade of the country continues in its
present f%iourishing condition"