The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1918-02-13

us alone.
 The Outcome of Free Trade
 Not a single Ally could have surviv- ed without the aid of the British EX- chquer-a Free Trade Exchequer. London remained the financial centre of the world for three years, in spite of two thousand millions advanced to our Allies, and many thousands more spent by ourselves. And the city of London, such as it became, was the outcome of seventy years of Free Trade. Our industries showed unri- vailed facility in adapting themselves to war demands, and they were indus tries which had grown up during our Free Trade period. Our merchant fleet was the rlainstay of the Allied commissariat and the Allied arsenals, without which every enemy of Ger many in western Europe would have been starved, possibly defeated. Our strength under all these stupendous strains, which would have broken France, Russia, or Italy, although our area is less and our population no lar ger than theirs, is surely prima facie ground for faith in Free Trade, and not for mistrust of it's benefits to this country.
 Expanding Revenue
 Even as regards taxation, we alone, of all the European countries, found ourselves with a revenue basis capable of expansion, and we have pushed our revenue up from two hundred millions year to nearly six hundred and for ty millions on a Free Trade basis. No other basis could have been of any use, as indeed France, Italy, Russia and Germany alike discovered. Even America has had to resort to Free Trade tax ss in order to raise her rev. enue to a war level; and she has had to adopt various forms of-income tax instead of extending her tariff. He would indeed be a foolish fellow who allowed himself-with these facts (not mere economic doctrine, but facts) to guide him-to doubt at this time of day the wisdom of those who for seventy years depended on the Free Trade system which has established such record in time of war
 The Future
 So much for the present; but what | of the future? Is not revision of our view necessary? That is the question put to Free Traders in public and in Irivate conversation; and in response it is as well to say frankly that we are always prepared to re-examine our guiding rules of fiscal or econom- ic policy. Let us, then, think of ou1 conditions, not as they were, but as they are now.
 I have already pointed out the ur- gency greater and more essential thar ever, of cheap and abundant supplies of food, clothing, household goods an6 utensils, of semi-manufactured goods and machinery, tools, and materials for our industries. Without cheap an6 abundant supplies our industries anC finance cannot recover. This aspec disturbs the mind of doubters less than vague feeling that we ough to withhold "most favored nation treatment from Germany and Austria Whether we have or have not th' power to do this depends on the term: of peace. To say definitely now wha we will grant or withhold whether il our own interest or for some othe, [ reason, is to commit ourselves or tt threaten uselessly.
 The Capacity of the Allies
 In measuring strength, however between the Central Empires ant their enemies, we may point out t the world, (not emitting German. and Austria) that in a war a'outranc
 the economic capacity of the Allie and the Americas is supreme. Ger
 many can get little or no cotton ex cept from the United States or Bri t:sh Empires: her raw wool come
 mostly from these countries and tn
 Argentine; she can get no rubber ex ! cept from the Brazils or the Britisl
 Empire, with the exception of smal amount under Dutch control; only fraction of her copper can reach he if the UniteG States and the Allie withhold supplies she has no man
 ganese except from India or the Bra gil; very little wolfram from outsid
 the Allied countries, and not muc zinc. Germa1y's food may be supple
 mented by what she captures in Ru
 mania or buys in Russia, but she zoe
 short so long as North and Sout American, Indian and Egyptian croI $ are shut off from her. Terrible cor - trols remain with her enemies, an . just as in peace negotiations she ma @ Haunt her well-organized legions, S ? equally are we entitled to remind he e of her peoples dependence on the A ' lied and American raw materials. |. The Economic Weapon
 n That is the economic weapon in ol q hands, and yet for the purpose of S,
 curing a satisfactory peace it will 1 n of little future value (beyond tf 1t present effect of the blockade) unle if we are able to say to the Germa l- plenipotentiaries: "An unsatisfacto1 V peace for the world will involve yc
 in such future shortage as our col - trols make possible; a satisfactol
 peace will free you from these pena
 ties" In other words, to make t1
 weapon effective at the psychologist