THE FARMER AND THE TARIFF. 305 



greatly impaired powers of maintaining their commercial and 

 political integrity. On the contrary, such a wise applica- 

 tion of the protective principle as the circumstances of each 

 nation will suggest to its statesmen, will maintain the natural 

 resources of each nation in equilibrium within itself, tend to 

 better cultivation of agricultural districts by reason of the 

 home markets which render it possible, and to a longer and 

 more useful national life for all nations. To recur to the 

 illustration employed in behalf of the free-trade argument; 

 while it is true that the river will flow more freely if left 

 unobstructed, it is only by damming at proper places that it 

 can be made to do the most work of which it is capable. 



The usual argument for a protective tariff begins by deny- 

 ing that abstract economic truth has very much bearing 

 upon the subject. It is claimed that we have to deal not with 

 a world wherein the standard of life is uniform, and all busi- 

 ness ordered with an eye to the equal comfort of all, but with 

 one in which each individual and each nation is struggling 

 for advantage over all others. Finding ourselves in this 

 hurly-burly, we must protect ourselves or be trampled. Our 

 resources are so vast and varied that we can produce every- 

 thing essential to our welfare, except the products of the 

 tropics, somewhere within our bounds, as cheaply as the same 

 goods can be produced elsewhere by those whose standard of 

 life is equal to our own. We know that whatever we may do, 

 our products can not usuall}^ pass from our borders without 

 meeting tariff walls erected by others. We must so arrange 

 our own tariffs that we do not suffer in the contest. The 

 tendency of civilization is doubtless towards an equalizing of 

 condition for those following the same occupation throughout 

 the world. This is favorable to those having low standards of 

 life, but unfavorable to those of high standards. Our standard 

 of life is a high one, and it is our interest to prevent the leveling 

 of standards as long as we can. It is true that to some extent 

 our high standard is maintained by the exploitation of natural 

 resources which it would be graceful to leave for the enjoyment 

 of future generations. As a matter of fact, however, no human 

 being has ever refrained from the use of opportunity available 

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