The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser. — 1846-04-14 (Liverpool, Merseyside, England)

EMPLOYMENT FOR THOSE WHO LABOUR FOB. THEIR BREAD.  This, in reality (apart from Anti-Corn-law slang and humbug) is the GREATEST AMOUNT Of BREAD FOR TSB  In the now imminently artificial state of this country, I would be willing to advance to the extremest point of liberality to the foreigner to induce a reciprocal trade with him.  I would even arrange to take his wheat on the same duty-free footing as home and colonial wheat, if the foreigner takes payment in the labour of the British artisan.  I_ would do this as a duty to the working classes, even if the tearing up of every treaty and parchment in existence was involved.  But for us to adopt a system that not only gives, but professes to give, our HARD MONEY TO THE FOREIGNER TO TAKE TO THE NORTH OF EUROPE AND AMERICA, FOR THE AVOWED PURPOSE (A W)SI` SENSIBLE AND  PATRIOTIC ONE ON HIS PART) OF BUILDING UP RIVAL MANUFACTURES TO THOSE OF THE BRITISH MECHANIC,  AND THEN TO ADMIT THESE DUTY FREE TO COMPETE  WITH OUR OWN HEAVILY TAXED LABOUR, SEEMS TO ME TO AMOUNT TO SUICIDE ON THE PART OF BOTH THE MANUFACTURING AND AGRICULTURAL INTERESTS OP  THIS COHN') RY  I view THE FREE TRADE PROPOSED as only removing the resit ictions from, and giving freedom to, the industry of foreign countries.  Far from being an encouragement to native industry, FREE TRADE PRACTICALLY DENIES THE BRITISH ARTI• SAN'S RIGHT TO LABOUR, BY TARING AWAY HIS OPPOR TUNITY TO DO SO  Small though the exports to the Colonies show in your tables, it is wonderful to me to see the amounts they are, knowing how grievously the progress of the Colonies has been neglected. Neither the two most practical of purposes—the AMELIORATION OF THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE BRITISH  ARTISAN, AND THE PROCURING PERMANENT MARKETS FOR OUR MANUFACTURES, through planting in our Colonies a population with British habits—have come home to governments, which have not usually been many months at a time otherwise engaged than in mere struggles for existence.  The comparative value of Home and Colonial, as compared with Foreign trade, must not be judged by mere figures.  —lt should be remembered that as much or more profit accrues, in the Home and Colonial trade, to British subjects on the goods after they leave Manchester as before, and that the Home and Colonial trades take no gold, while to the Americans we pay more gold than gools, and do not materially increase our exports to the United Stitteg; although in 1815 we took from them 1,499.6'10 bales of cotton, against 329,906 bales in 1822, with a similar increase in most of our other imports. From the Colonies yoU have an increasing demand, as the population increases; but the United States, with a population of twenty millions, do not take double the quantity of goodiihey did when a colony, with scarcely over two millions Zra  'Tis true that your tables show a large business with the Americans in 1835 and 1836, but your readers will scarcely forget the immense distress through the abrupt stoppage of the mighty machinery set in motion in Manchester and Hudd,r-field to supply fancy goods for a demand which was so artificial, that the arrival of one packet from New York blew it all to the Rinds!  (Continued on page 8.)