tion I do not know; but nevertheless I feel confident that it represents his real sentiments.

THE EFFECT OF THIS REPEAL OF THE DUTIES ON WOOL.

Again, the wool growers of Ohio and some other parts of the country are much disgruntled at the trifling reduction made last winter in the duties on wool, which, by the way, fell mainly on carpet wools, which we never have grown and could not be induced to grow in this country-and a motion will undoubtedly be made early in the coming session to put back this wool tariff to its old figures. Meeting a few days since George William Bond of Boston, the highest authority on wool in this country, the expert relied upon by the Treasury to fix the grades and the prices of wool for the custom's service, and a gentleman who has always had the confidence of the protectionists, I put to him the question, as to what effect a complete abolition of the duties on wool would have on the interests of the American wool growers and woolen manufacturers. He replied that he had recently given to Mr. A. M. Garland of Ohio, late president of the American Wool Growers' Association and a member of the late tariff commission, an answer in writing to substantially the same question; at the same time offering me a copy of the latter, with permission to make such use of it as I might deem expedient. And as Mr. Garland, for obvious reasons, does not seem to have given the public a chance to see this important letter, I do not think I can do better than to here make known the most essential portions of it.

་

Mr. Bond begins his letter by saying "that high duties on wool are now maintained as a bounty to States which raise comparatively a small part of the clip, for the rest do not require it. The oft-repeated claim that the United States should raise all the wool she consumes is folly. You ask, at what point does any tariff on wool begin to affect the price of the domestic clip?" I should say at that point which

shuts us out from the competition of the world, so that we are restricted in the range of our manufactures. Our fine wools have always been higher, other things being equal, when we were able freely to import the wools of other coun. tries at a low duty, or at no duty at all. When the tariff of 1857 was passed, fine wools became virtually free, so that we went into full, or nearly full, competition with Europe. What was the effect? Wools advanced immediately in the markets of production abroad twenty-five to thirty-three and one-third per cent., so that we got them no cheaper than before, and the prices of domestic wools advanced. Now, this was an advantage to our manufacturers, as it enhanced the cost to the foreign manufacturers, so that ours could well afford to pay the advanced prices. Reduced to gold, the average prices of wool have been lower under the tariff of 1867 than they were under that of 1857, and I believe that, if wools were to be made free to-day, there would be no material decline in the value of our fine American wools. Thus we see that, by exacting a duty which shuts us out from competition in the world's markets, we give our competitors the raw material enough lower to materially lessen the protection afforded by the duty on the manufactured article." Fickle fashion is so changeable that protection cannot always protect our fine wools:

"The present indications are that goods with finished face will soon again be in fashion. As yet, we have found almost no wools in this country adapted to this manufacture. We shall again be obliged to import, and if the tariff should be too high to allow of that, many of our mills must be closed, for the people will follow the fashion. Should this come, you may look again for a decline in the bulk of the wools of this country. Looking to the general interests of wool grow. ing in this country, I believe-and this from a careful study of the wool manufacture, its successes, its failures, and vicissitudes-that the lower the duties are upon wool, and the

closer to the absolute requirements under the greatest appli cation of skill and energy, is the protective duty upon the manufactures, the greater will be the success of these two great interests.

"You and your friends will not probably agree with me in these views, but they are the results of fifty years' study and experience. Yours very truly,

"GEO. WM. BOND."

THE NECESSITY OF THE HOUR..

The pressing necessity of the hour, therefore, with us, as I again repeat, is a reduction of tariff taxes, with a view and certainty of obtaining thereby an extension of markets for our products, and in default thereof we are certain to be smothered in our own grease. But how shall we secure the extension of markets and thereby continued national development and prosperity? Certainly it will not be through further bounties, subsidies, restrictions, fine-spun legislative contrivances, or appeals to patriotism and the talk of the fathers. All this is only more hair of the same dog that has heretofore afflicted us. Neither do we need more brainsCongress excepted-or courage, or capital, or intelligent laborers, for none of these have ever been lacking in America, when a fair chance offered for their employment. But what we do want is more liberty-liberty for labor and capital alike to buy where and what they want, and sell where and when they please, without the interference of the legis lature, or of any interested capitalists who may try to influence legislation; and unless the country can have such a degree of freedom, all other remedies will be useless. But, on the other hand, with production and exchange freed from all artificial burdens and restrictions, save such as an economical administration of the State may find necessary to impose for the sake of revenue; this nation will, I feel assured, speedily attain to such a supremacy in the world's commerce,

and to such a degree of domestic prosperity and abundance as has hardly yet been dreamed of by the most sanguine of our countrymen.

And as showing that intelligent and far-seeing Englishmen foresee that such may be the result if we once fairly abandon our narrow, illiberal, worse than old Chinese policy, and dread our competition in the world's market under such circumstances, I will read to you an extract from a letter addressed to me under date of August last, from one of the leading railroad authorities in Great Britain-the projector, in fact, of the proposed tunnel under the Straits of Doverto whom I sent some free trade publications. "I have read," he says, "your two brochures with pleasure. But as an Islander, I have never been an enthusiastic well-wisher for free-trade in the United States. For when you throw overboard the burden of monopoly and walk straight out into the free world of industry unweighted, then 'Bull' must look out. It will be a grand day for you; but after five years, a sad day for Bull.' So keep up restrictions as long as you like, say I. Save that one would like-as an old pioneer for commercial freedom in 1833-to see Englishspeaking people all over the world with one free-trade tariff, if only to show to all nations that all sorts of freedom spoke from that tongue of their forefathers."

·

DR

CHAPTER XXIV.

VIEWS OF PRESIDENT LINCOLN.*

CLINTON, October 11, 1859.

R. EDWARD WALLACE:-My Dear Sir:—I am here just now, attending court. Yesterday, before I left Springfield, your brother [Dr. Wm. S. Wallace] showed me a letter of yours, in which you kindly mention my name, inquire my tariff views, and suggest the propriety of my writing a letter upon the subject. I was an old Henry Clay-Tariff Whig. In old times I made more speeches on that subject than on any other. I have not since changed my views. I believe yet if we could have a moderate, carefully-adjusted, protective tariff, so far acquiesced in as not to be a perpetual subject of political strife, squabbles, changes, and uncertainties, it would be better for us. Still, it is my opinion, that just now the revival of that question will not advance the cause itself, or the man who revives it.

I have not thought much on the subject recently; but my general impression is that the necessity of a protective tariff will ere long force its old opponents to take it up; and then its old friends can join in and establish it on a more firm and durable basis. We, the old Whigs, have been entirely beaten out on the tariff question; and we shall not be able to re-establish the policy until the absence of it shall have demonstrated the necessity for it in the minds of men here. tofore opposed to it. With this view I should prefer to not now write a public letter upon the subject. I therefore wish this to be considered confidential.

I shall be very glad to receive a letter from you.

Yours truly,

A. LINCOLN.

*Lawson's Life of Lincoln.