444 TEE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY 



sure, there is something better than any liberty in an unquestioning 

 submission to a higher guidance; greater than being our own master 

 is unshaken loyalty to God as our master. Yet in practise, all attempts 

 that have been made to find a ruler of a state, whose government could 

 be in like manner better and greater than free citizens^ government of 

 themselves, have proved failures, and personal liberty remains a nat- 

 ural right — not because " the voice of the people is the voice of God," 

 but only because of the imperfection of every accessible substitute. 

 Perfect wisdom, we may readily admit, would easily guide us to pur- 

 chase more wisely, and make a better selection of persons to purchase 

 from, than is possible to our free choice ; but it is absurd to look to the 

 authors of tariff laws for such perfect wisdom, and our natural right 

 remains. The country's defense occasionally calls upon its citizens 

 for sacrifices of personal liberty, and may call sometimes for sacrifices 

 of the liberty of purchase as well as other liberty. But to make the 

 rare occasions when sacrifices are needed for defense an excsue for a 

 perpetual infringement of this natural right — liberty of purchase — is 

 preposterous. To maintain an oppressive tariff for such a purpose 

 would be ridiculous, if it were not tyrannical. The only difference 

 between this liberty and other liberty — an adventitious and not essen- 

 tial difference — is the facility with which the argument from patriot- 

 ism may be applied against it. Yet in every such application we must 

 see a confusion of thought, or exhibition of ignorance, unless we leave 

 out of view the necessary reciprocity of international trade. Imported 

 merchandise must about equal exported merchandise in value, unless 

 there is an exceptional demand for specie in the country trading, or in 

 some country trading with it, or unless the payment is made in service 

 instead of merchandise in value, unless there is an exceptional demand 

 for specie in the country trading, or in some country trading with it, or 

 unless the payment is made in service instead of merchandise. The 

 British, for example, always import a large excess of merchandise be- 

 cause they have a large credit balance abroad, from their services in 

 ocean carriage, yielding five hundred millions annually, and even more 

 from interest on foreign loans. Our own country, on the other hand, 

 having " protected " its ocean merchant-marine to death, must export 

 an excess of merchandise to pay for carriage both ways, and must also 

 pay a heavy interest bill to foreign investors. The important point is 

 that there is always a practical equality which our import taxation 

 system can not disturb. Hence it follows that the so-called encourage- 

 ment to foreign labor and enterprise in buying an article made abroad, 

 is at the same time an equal encouragement to labor and enterprise at 

 home required to produce the merchandise that is to go abroad to pay 

 for it. It follows, also, that if we make ourselves, as is alleged, de- 

 pendent on some foreign country by buying from it something that may 

 be needed by us in warfare, we make some foreign country dependent 



