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Show A CONCISE REVIEW ' Of PROTECTION vs. FREE TRADE. Some Valuable Points Given. On Maicli 28, 1!04, Mr. Williams (Democrat) made the follow ing statement state-ment upon the question of ptotcctlvc tariff which was at that time being discussed In the house of representatives. representa-tives. "The system is one of legalized lobbery. That Is the lesult and that is the effect. It Is lobbery for tho leason that it prostitutes the Government Govern-ment to do what Government lias no light to do, viz., to build up or hot; house one man's Industiy, one man's capital, one man's labor by levying a tax upon the labor and capital of all men." The protective policy was adopted by the American people July 4, 1781). The icpublic was young, and suffoilug fiom the effects of the evolution which brought to the United States her Independence. During the war enterprises had been sacrificed and tho resources of the country exhausted. exhaust-ed. Six short jcais after the enactment enact-ment of the tirst protective tariff law, President Washington's annual message mes-sage to Congress in 17115 leads as follows: fol-lows: "Our agilculluic, commerce and manufactuips prosper beyond former example, with buidens so light scarcely to be perceived." This same policy of piotectlon continued, and In President Jefferson's llrst annual message mes-sage he wrote tho following: "Other clicuinstauces, combined wltlithe Increase In-crease of numbers, have produced an augmentation of revenue arising fiom consumption In a ratio far beyond that of population alone; and though the changes in foiclgn lclatlons now taking place so desirable for the whole woild may for a season affect this branch of levcnue, yet weighing all' piobabllltles of expense as well as of. Income, theic Is icasonabte ground of, confidence that wo may now' safely dispense with all tho Internal taxes, compichendlng excise, stamps, auctions, auc-tions, licenses, carriages, and lclliied sugars, to which the postage on news-papeis news-papeis may bo added to facilitate the progress of Infoimalion, and that the leinalnlng souices of icvcnuc will be sufficient to provide for the suppoit of the Government, to pay the inteicst of tho public debts, and to discharge the principal within shoiter periods than the laws or the general expectation expecta-tion had contemplated." This same policy was continued thiough the peilod of President Jeller-son'sseivlceas Jeller-son'sseivlceas President, and In his last message ho stated the following: "The accounts of the lecclpts of revenue during the year ending oi the 30th day of September last being not yet made up, a con cct statement will be hereafter transmitted from the treasury. In the meantime It Is ascertained as-certained that the receipts have amounted to near $10,000,000, which, wltlithe five millions and a half in the treasury at the beginning of the year, havc'enabled us, after meeting tho current demands and Interests Incurred, In-curred, to pay more than four millions of the principal of, our funded debt. These payments, with those of the piccedlng five and a half years, have extinguished debt $25,500,000, being the whole which could be paid or purchased pur-chased within the limits of the law and of the contracts, and have left us In tho tieasuiy $8,500,000." In older to meet tho expenses of the war In 1812 tho tariff schedules were doubled, and at the close of the war our country was richer and more pios-r perous than it was at the beginning. In 1810 the tail ffs were reduced and hereafter note the disaster that overtook over-took the country during the continuance continu-ance of this schedule. Not long after the passage of this law It became evident that prices weio not high enough to meet tho conditions In the old world. When Amcilcau Manufactuiers undertook to compete with those of Europe It was soon found that tho Euiopeans could undeisell them In their own market. Imported goods fiom foiclgn foi-clgn countries Hooded our country, swamped our Industries and absolutely absolute-ly ruined manufactuic, agilculturo andlot her Indus tiles, so that a condition condi-tion of hopeless despair was appaient on evciy hand. A period of hard times set In at once. Agriculture was unprofitable, manufactuics wcie suspended, sus-pended, laboreis without employment; and tho revenues of the country vveie iusutllcient to meet the expense of the government. In 1824 Ileniy Clay, speaking of the condition of the Countn under that lcvislon of the tariff bj tac Democratic party said: In casting our eyes around us tho most prominent circumstances which 4xes our attention and challenges our deepest respect Is the geneial distress .which pervades tho whole country. lt is forced upon us by numerous facts of the most Incontestable chaiaeter, l"It Is Indicated hy the diminished Mxpoitsof native produce; by the dc-.niessed dc-.niessed and icduced state ofourfor-ipJgu ofourfor-ipJgu navigation; by our diminished cpmmeree; by successive unthrashed piopsqf grain pel Ishlng in our bains Mid bainjards foi want of a market; l)V the alaiming diminution of the circulating medium; by the numeious Ojinkruptcles, not limited to the Had-log Had-log classes, but extending to all ohlcrs of society; by an unlvcisal complaint com-plaint of the want of cmploj incut and consequent i eduction of tho wages o labor, and, above all, by the low and depressed state of the valve of almost every description of the whole mass of the property of the nation, which has, on an average, sunk not less than about 50 pei cent, w lt.Ii-Ifi lt.Ii-Ifi a few years. This distiess pervades every part of the Union, eveiy class of society; all feel it though It may be felt at different places In dlffeicut degrees." Relief came In 1824afterhavingelght years under a lcstrlcted tariff formed by the Demociats,sev en years of which was the greatest depression and hard time period know n In the country up to that time. The people " icturned again to piotectlon for teller, but not In vain. In 1821 a protective tailff law vviis passed and the countiy witnessed ailinarvelous piospeilty thioughout icjWy industry. Agricultuie and TrHiiiufactuic levlved on every hand; idle laboicis letuined to icmuueia-tlve icmuueia-tlve employment; levenues pouted Into In-to the treasuiy, the national debt was paid, and the expenses of the government govern-ment fully met without lcsortiug to a bond Issue. Aftetthe levlslon of the tariff under a piotcctivo schedule, note what Henry Clay has to say eight y ears after he made his foimer speech. "Eight yeais ago It was nij painful duty to present to the other House of Congress an uncxaggciated plctuie of the geneial distress pervading pervad-ing the whole land. We must all yet lennmbcr some of Its filghtful feat-uies. feat-uies. In short, sir, if I weio to select any term of seven veais since the adoption of the present Constitution, which exhibited a scene of the most widespread dismay and desolation, it would be exactly the term of seven yeais which Immediately preceded the establishment of the tariff In 1824. "I have now to perform tho more pleasing task of exhibiting an imperfect imper-fect sketch of the existing state of tho unparalleled piosDerlty of the country. "We behold civilization extended, tho arts nourishing, the face of tho country Improved, our people fully and profitably employed, and tho public pub-lic countcuanco exhibiting Manqulll-Ity, Manqulll-Ity, contentment, and happiness. And, If wo descend Into partlculais, wo have tlio contemplation of a people peo-ple out of debt; land rising slowly In value, but In a sure and salutary de-gicc; de-gicc; a ready, though not extravagant, maikct for all the surplus productions of our industiy; innumerable flocks and herds browsing and gamboling on 10,000 hills and plains coveicd with rich and veidant grasses; our cities expanded ex-panded and whole villages springing up, as It weic, by enchantment; our exports and impoits Increased and increasing; in-creasing; our tonnage, foieign and coastwise, swelling and fully occupied; tlio rivers of our Interior animated hy the peipetual thunder and lightning of countless steamboats; tho currency In an abundancojtho public debt of two wais neaily redeemed; and, to crown all, tho public treasury ovei flowing. If the term of seven years weie to bo selected of the greatest prosperity which this people have enjoyed since tint establishment of their present Constitution, It would be exactly that period of seven yeais which Immediately Immed-iately followed the passage of the tariff of 1824." It would seem that after tho experiences ex-periences tho people had suffered vvlillo tho low tailff prevailed, that they would bo contented with the piosperous oonditlons that again surrounded sur-rounded them. Hut not so. The Dcmociatlc party called legalized robbery; rob-bery; they wore dissatisfied and In 1832 they agalned tinned the wheels of progress backwards, and dlsastei again overtook the countiy. In the first annual message of Piesldent Huchanan In 1857 he stated the following: follow-ing: "We have possessed all the elements ele-ments of material wealth In ileh abundance, and yet, notwithstanding all these advantages, our countiy In Its monetary Interest Is at the piescnt moment In a deploiable condition. In the midst of unsurpassed plenty In all the productions of agriculture and In all the elements of national wealth, we find our manufactuics suspended, our public works tetaided, our private pri-vate enteiprlscs of dlffeicut kinds abandoned, and thousands of useful laboieis thiown out of employment and reduced to want. "The levenuc of the Government, which Is chiefly dcilved from duties on Impoils fiom abioad, has been gieatly icduced, whilst the appiopila-tlons appiopila-tlons made by Congieis at Its last session ses-sion for the current lisc.il year aic very largo n amount. "Under these circumstances a loan may bo lepulred befoie the close of your present session; but this, deeply to be legietted, would prove to be only a slight misfortune when computed com-puted with Hie suffering and distress picvalllng among the people." The above is but a brief review of what transpired In the early history of our country as It has been governed by the dlffetent tailff systems. The depiesslon that was experienced In early aays under the Democratic ic-vlslon ic-vlslon of tlio tariff Is similar to that which pievalled under the Gorman Wilson tailff. It Is still fresh In the minds of many, the Coxoy's army marching on to Washington, an army of unemployed men who wanted something some-thing to do. Many of these samo honest hon-est men voted for the policies of the Democratic party, and what did they bring upon themselves? Suffering for themselves and families. What do wo see today since the Gorman Wilson bill was swept aside and the Dlngley bill became a law? The conditions of today speak for themselves. Do Mothers and wives deshe thelt husbands hus-bands and sons to letuin to those bitter bit-ter bold days of tlioCoxey aimy, to see those who by light should be tiller piotectors, btought down to tlio level of liamps, and walk from city to city begging for subsIstanceV No! No!! Under tho Dlngley law, funned by the Republicans, Idle labor has found Its way to Industilcs that have been able to open its doois to the unemployed. unem-ployed. There is activity on every hand, the people ate piosperous they feel happy and all should be willing to leave well enough alone. |