farmers will support me — that we are prepared at any 

 moment to abolish them." Germany was at the time a 

 great grain-exporting country, and the Junkers had no 

 interest in duties which would bring them nothing and 

 would create difficulties for their exports. But in 1879 

 Bismarck, yielding to the pressure of the big industrialists, 

 decided to introduce Protection for the manufacturing 

 interests, and in order to conciliate the Agrarians, who 

 looked with disfavour on the industrialisation of the 

 country, he offered them a duty on corn. Not all 

 Agrarians accepted the bargain. Some fought against it, 

 and only accepted a duty of 5 marks per ton for purposes 

 of import "registration." But others saw in the proposed 

 duty a compensation for the possible decrease of exports, 

 and even effected an increase to 10 marks per ton. Herr 

 Wedell now himself declared* that "the protection of 

 iron and of rye is equally indispensable to the welfare of 

 the Fatherland." "The welfare of the Fatherland" has 

 since then become synonymous with a high import duty 

 on corn and other agricultural produce. In the very year 

 1879, when he was creating industrial as well as Agrarian 

 Protection, Bismarck declaredf that "even the most in- 

 sane Agrarian will never think of a duty of 30 marks per 

 ton." But in 1885 the duty was raised to that figure, and 

 two years later it even rose to 50 marks. With the fall of 

 Bismarck and the advent of Caprivi there came a period 

 of comparative relaxation, due to the new policy of com- 

 mercial treaties, and the duties were lowered to 35 marks 

 for wheat and rye, 28 marks for oats, 20 marks for barley, 

 and so all round. The amount of Protection thus offered 

 to the pockets of the Junkers was still very ample, but so 

 used had they become to make additional profit from 



* Janssen, I.e., p. 53. 



t Gothein, " Der von der staatlichen Wirtschaftspolitik in Deutschland 

 erzielte Effekt auf industrielle und landwirtschaftliche Entwicklung," 

 Berlin, 1909, p. 2. 



