the laborer, by reducing their cost. By this combined agency, it has increased at the same moment the wealth of the rich, and the indigence of the poor. It has accumulated poverty in greater masses, aggravated its misery, and rendered it more terrific."

Mr. Speaker, let me implore you, sir, to look steadfastly, at the real picture of the actual condition of the British nation, and population; and compare it, with the brilliant, delusive, factitious one, exhibited by the splendid orator. Then, mark the contrast! You cannot then, avoid seeing, sir, either, that the orator was himself grossly misinforned, of the actual condition of the British nation, and population; or that, he had omitted to give that information, which was most material, to enable others to make a just estimate of it: That his statistics, however sonorous, and redundant, have failed to present its most material features, to the public view. For, suppose the actual condition of the British nation, and population, be such, as is here described by an authentic document, which will not be disputed, would it not add a new, deplorable, and destructive feature, to the brilliant, enchanting picture, drawn by our orator?Would not this feature totally deface all the pristine beauty, and symmetry of the original; and strip it of all its fascinating charms? Would you desire, sir, that the American nation and people should change their present condition for that of the British, under its true, instead of its factitious representation? Pray, sir, examine well, and see, what the condition of the British nation, and population is, which is recommended to our adoption. To save time, take a single feature. Of 21,000,000 of people, 280,000 only, own all the property in the nation; whilst 20,200,000 are destitute of income; and nearly the whole of that immense mass, suffering pauperism, in some degree or other. About 1,500,000 are technically paupers ; and five millions, in England and Wales, depend "for permanent or occasional relief upon the constrained charity of the residue." Is this condition of the British population, so desirable, that you wish to assimilate that of the United States to it? That you so ardently wish it, as to sacrifice for these ineffable British blessings, brilliantly pourtrayed and recommended to you by our Orator, all your fundamental laws? All your sacred ramparts, raised for protecting your own greater blessings; and amongst the rest, your own blessed liberties? Yet, sir, you cannot but see, that pauperism, misery, wretchedness, and vice, are largely commixed with the glittering, delusive blessings, promised you through the adoption of the Tariff. The Orator says, in substance, that this condition of the British nation, and people, which he describes as superlatively blessed, is mainly to be ascribed to her restrictive system. The orator says: "Great Britain protects most her industry, and the wealth of Great Britain, is consequently the greatest." Admit the fact, as to the astonishing degree of wealth, what distribution of this mass of indescribable wealth, is made by this protecting policy? By this restrictive system? By the great desideratum of political economy?" the aggregate wealth of the nation, distributed at the capricious will of the government!" The whole mass, distributed amongst two hun

dred and eighty thousand, whilst twenty million two hundred thousand are left to starve! What a mass of human misery, compared with this mass of human luxury? Twenty millions, two hundred thousand of wretches, steeped to the lips in poverty-two hundred and eighty thousand noblesse, overwhelmed with luxuries, and riches! Such is the inevitable result of the long continuation of the restrictive, monopolizing system. Its perpetual tendency is, to make the rich richer, and the poor poorer; so much has this been the case, under the natural operation of the British system in the course.of two hundred years, that the rich have become so rich, they do not know what to do with their riches; whilst the poor are stript of every comfort, and enjoyment of life, and whilst the middling class of society is almost annihilated. So far then, from the condition of the British people being superlatively blessed, I think it superlatively wretched. It is to this deplorable, miserable condition that you are advised to bring the American population, by the adoption of the same unwise, wicked, and despotic policy, which has produced this effect in Great Britain? It is the simplest thing imaginable to see; how this effect has been produced by British policy. It has been done by assuming a control over all the proceeds of the labor of the country; and distributing them, in such a way, as to take from the productive, and give them to the unproductive laborers; to take from one man, that which he labors for, and give it to another, who labored not for it.

But in Great Britain, at the present day, there it not only a reason, but a necessity, for taking from the productive laborer, the whole produce of his labor; and giving it to the unproductive laborer, who does not labor for it; neither this reason, nor necessity does, as yet, apply to this country. The British government, therefore, is under an indispensable obligation to take the whole productive labor of society, fo rgovernmental purposes; and is, consequently, excusable for the ruinous plunder; whilst the real legitimate purposes of our government, do not call for the whole productive labor of society; our government, therefore, would be without pretext, or excuse, were it to plunder the whole. But the practical government, not having neceesary demands, seems to be engaged in inventing artificial demands, for the purpose of affording a pretext to plunder the whole proceeds of productive labor, as the great desideratum, in their political economy; as the great desideratum, for their individual aggrandisement. In Great Britain, the distribution of the proceeds of labor, is made by tythes, and taxes; and most deplorable for the laboring class, when all the demands for the tythes, and taxes, become satisfied, there is not sufficiency left to furnish the poor operative, with food, and raiment. These demands are said, however, to be indispensable to pay for loans heretofore made, or for services. now rendering. After one tenth of the whole productive labor is given to the Priesthood-one million pounds sterling for the King, and his civil list, the expenditures for army and navy, and interest upon the public debt, defrayed, the whole proceeds of the productive labor are gone, so that there is no hope for bettering the condition

of the British people, so long as the present order of things shall remain in that country; a state of things, brought on, mainly, by the restrictive system. The great mass of population must be doomed to pauperism, and starvation. The demands upon the people of the United States, are not yet equal to the whole proceeds of the productive labor of the nation; but the practical government is determined to make it so, by artificial expenditures, and variations in the distributions of labor; by taking from one man, the product of his labor, and giving it to another, who does not labor for it, without compensation, and not for public use; by splendid schemes for internal improvements; and by every other species of profligacy, which their imaginations can invent, and which, they believe, the people will bear. Whenever the demands upon the labor of society here, shall absorb the whole proceeds, then will the condition of the population become assimilated to that of the British. Is this the condition, so devoutly wished for? If not, avoid the British restrictive, monopolising system, which has produced it there, and which will produce the same effects in every country, that shall make the experiment. The difference here, then, between the splendid orator and myself, in relation to one point, is reduced to a simple matter of fact. He represents the condition of the British nation, and population, as the most wealthy, the most prosperous, the most splendid, the most powerful, and the most happy in Europe. I represent it, as the most miserable, the most wretched, and the most oppressed people in Europe. His statement applies to 280,000 souls. Mine to 20,200,000-Estimating human happiness, by numbers, which representation is then the true one? Surely, that which goes to describe the condition of the greater numbers. So eager has the splendid orator been, to make, his description of the perfectibility of the British population, complete; that he has not failed to notice their houses, food, and clothing, "and a people better fed, and clad, and housed, are not to be found under the sun, than the British nation!" 20,200,000, I presume, excepted out of the general mass of 21,000,000. Surely 1,500,000 technical paupers ought to be excepted and the 5,000,000 living upon constrained charity. Now, what says the authentic report, as to food, and raiment ?

"In addition to the preceding annual expenditure, for a series of many years, an average annual sum, amounting to near twenty-six millions of dollars, has been levied in the several counties of England, and Wales, for the clothing, and subsistence of their indigent poor, while of this fund no part whatever has been bestowed upon their instruction. During this period the annual average of all the charitable donations from every other source to this object, has not much exceeded $330,000."

Can it be believed, that a population can be well fed, clad, and housed, which requires twenty-six millions of dollars annually, of forced contributions, to furnish food, and raiment to the indigent, and destitute poor? Our Orator, sir, must have confined his brilliant representation, exclusively to the rich. It is readily admitted, that the rich are so rich, that they have not genius enough to know

how to spend their riches; and instead of making themselves happy, have, by luxurious indulgencies, effeminated their mental, and their physical faculties.

Upon a review of all these facts, can you avoid drawing the conclusion, sir, either, that our splendid Orator did not understand the actual condition of the British nation, and population, himself; or if he did understand it; that he has withheld from others, the most material facts, to enable them to understand it? I think one of these conclusions must be undeniable, even by the splendid Orator himself. But I will leave this part of the subject, although far from being exhausted, and proceed to the examination of part of the same statistics, introduced by our Orator for another object; and to prove, still more evidently; that he misconceives, their most obvious bearings, and results.

Extract from Speech,-pages 21, 22.

"The amount of her wealth annually produced, is three hundred and fifty millions sterling; bearing a large proportion to all of her pre-existing wealth. The agricultural portion of it is said by the gentleman from Virginia, to be greater than that created by any other branch of her industry. But that flows mainly from a policy similar to that proposed by this bill. One-third only of her population is engaged in agriculture; the other two-thirds furnishing a market for the produce of that third. Withdraw this mar

ket, and what becomes of her agriculture? The power and the wealth of Great Britain cannot be more strikingly illustrated, than by a comparison of her population and revenue with those of other countries and with our own. [Here Mr. Clay exhibited the following table, made out from authentic materials.]

1.4,500,000

1.0 9 0

The United States of America, 10,000,000

"From this exhibit, we must remark, that the wealth of Great Britain, (and consequently her power,) is greater, than that of any of the other nations, with which it is compared. The amount of the contributions which she draws from the pockets of her subjects, is not referred to for imitation, but as indicative of their wealth. The burthen of taxation, is always relative to the ability of the subjects of it. A poor nation, can pay but little. And

the heavier taxes of British subjects, for example, in consequence of their greater wealth, may be easier borne, than the much lighter taxes of Spanish subjects, in consequence of their extreme poverty."

And again-page 23.

"The Committee will observe, from that table, that the measure of the wealth of a nation is indicated by the measure of its protection of its industry; and that the measure of the poverty of a nation is marked by that of the degree in which it neglects and abandons the care of its own industry, leaving it exposed to the action of foreign powers. Great Britain protects most her industry, and the wealth of G. Britain is consequently the greatest; France is next in the degree of protection, and France is next in the order of wealth. Spain most neglects the duty of protecting the industry of her subjects, and Spain is one of the poorest of European nations. Unfortunate Ireland, disinherited, or rendered in her industry subservient to England, is exactly in the same state of poverty with Spain, measured by the rule of taxation. And the United States are still poorer than either."

The object of our splendid, deluded orator, in introducing this table of statistics, is, "most strikingly to illustrate" the superior comparative power and wealth of Great Britain over all other nations comprehended within the table. For, says our orator, "from this exhibit, we must remark, that the wealth of Great Britain (and consequently her power) is greater than that of any other nation with which it is compared. The amount of the contributions, which she draws from the pockets of her subjects, is not referred to for imitation, but as indicative of her wealth;" and he states, in the next page, the test of this comparative wealth to be taxation-" measured (says our orator) by the rule of taxation." I have heard of the rule of three, and other rules of proportions, but never before heard of the rule of taxation, as a measure of wealth. But sir, however wealthy and powerful Great Britain may be, I peremptorily deny that taxation, and particularly the taxation contained in the statistical table, is any test whatever, either of that wealth, or of the relative wealth and prosperity, of the several nations mentioned in the table; or of the relative ability of the inhabitants of each to pay taxes. The table does not state the fact, that any one of the governments mentioned in it, has taxed its subjects to the whole extent of their ability to pay; nor does our splendid orator assert that fact; and, until that fact is added, taxation is no measure whatever, of what the inhabitants of a nation can pay. I had thought that there was not a clodhopper in the U. States who could not see that the taxation imposed by governments upon their subjects, was no test whatever, of the whole those subjects could pay, until it was conceded that the governments had drawn from them every thing they could pay. Until this be conceded, it is self-evident that taxation affords no rule nor test, nor indication whatever, of the whole ability of the people to pay. This fact is not asserted, and, it is devoutly to be hoped, that it has no