Year: 1874

A West Virginia Political Economist


The Greenbrier Independent Of o late
date has an article on "iBaAtion" which
In the midst Of much loose verbiage, and
not little cloudlness, contains one or two
nuggets oil good advice that are, like
BRANDRETn's celebrated pills, well
adapted TO general use. While we do NOT
agree with the,editor in saying that there
Is not much inthesubiect one way or the
other, "as a!ptactical question" yet we
nevertheless endorse the following obser-
vAtion as being emlneutly practical and
forcible 4


'1ufAtion WILDE Of but little benefit to
us OF any other section until some practi
cal lnduCement 10 offered TO bring money
into the country. II, Tor illustration,
farmer sells five hundred or Thousand
dollars worth Of produce or stock from his
iarm annually, and for the same period
buys double that amount from foreign
State or country, the natural consequences
must necessarily follow that 30 long as
such state oil trade exists, he must be
cone, In the same ratio, deeper and deep.
or in debt every year, and pHst finally
wind up bis matters In condition ol total
and abject bankruptcy.


The above enuncis:ion Is neither new
For original, but II nevertheless contains
principle that Is worthy Of general at
tention at time like this, when there is
90 much talk about more currency. The
particular application Of the principle is a
matter that every community must de-
eide for itself. AS to how Wheeling or
Greenbrier can best protect themselves
from an adverse balance of trade, Is some.
thing they must each ascertain and de-
eide with reference to the popularity Of
It's resources and situation. The Green.
brier editor holds that his people import
too much from New England. he says
that "New England IS sucking the very
lie and substance from their bodies."


"For Illustration, nearly every man or
woman you may meet-children and ne.
groes too.Are clothed and shod with stuff
furnished bya foreign people. The brooms
you use, your buckets, your axe shelves,
and even toshoe pegs, you buy from Yam
keedom. an these things could be made
right here in your own Jmidst. II you
want Q wagon or carriage, or buggy, no
market suits you better than market
from home. Horse shoes are now brought
here and sold, and II matters continue
10 go on In the some way, after
awhile the horses we drive and ride
will be sought after In the same way.
This will allend In ruin and bankruptcy,
and the consequence will be that q new
people will come in and possess and in
habit the land. Furthermore, ii q man
here hasa son or daughter to educate,
as general rule, some other section or
point cults hiu better than his own i'm
mediate section or country. He considers
that i've hundred dollars, or even more,
constitutes good fund for such purpose,
provided the money is spent al foreign
institution. What good will inf ltion do
snch peopler Can any one tell usP
VIII any one rise and explainp


The editor Of the IadepCndcht Is prob
ably mistaken in supposlng that 1t is pos
sible for the people Of the Greenbrier re-
glon TO free themselves from a large
measure Of dependence on other COM
munities, aud still more in manifesting SO
much impatlence as he does, further on
In his article, because they have not al.
ready thus freed themselves. He
should aim at practical results. 1t is
not necessary. to cut of Importation from
abroad to carry out his principle. Such
an application Of 1t would be destructive
to commerce! Tho true application Of
his principle istoiturn the labor Of the
Greenbrier people into profitable chan.
nels, such as are best adapted to their re.
sources, their transportation facilities and
the.general state Of the markets. II they
cannot compete with New England in
manufacturing shoes and shoe.peg they
can probably make their agricultural and
mineral resources available in exchange
for those products and have a balance In
their favor at the END Of the year. The
principle laid down does not rsquire every
community to be a manufacturing peo.
pie, but simply not to import more values
than they export. Time and the growth
OF wealth and population will bring manu-.
featuring industries. The whole country
cannot have them in full blast at every
point at once. Their spread is now quite
equal TO the demands Of the country, and
cannot be prOatAblY rushed forward.