The Times' money article of Tuesday calls attention to a
curious circular issued by Messrs. Hambledon, of Baltimore. The strong position of America is asserted to be the fact that Europe must take her breadstuffs, while America is not obliged to buy her wares and goods. "It would not, in our opinion," says the circular, "be an unmitigated evil if our present very large importation of foreign goods were checked ;" and it goes on to explain that this blessed result may be achieved by means of the cholera germ, which ought to be looked for, and arrested, in foreign goods as well as on foreign persons. "Fine and costly goods cannot stand fumiga- tion, and, consequently, will be shipped in diminished quantities, and our merchants will not be anxious to import goods of any description from infected ports. If we are right in these conjectures, our exports will soon largely exceed our imports, which will effectually stop the ex- port of gold, if, indeed, it does not turn gold in. our direction."
Here we have the root idea of Protection in its crudest and most naked form. Buy nothing ; sell everything." That is the method under which the Protectionists imagine they will grow rich. We wish they would tell us what they intend to do with the gold when they have got it. They cannot wear it or eat it, and if they succeed in keeping it in America, it must send up prices and so counteract the effects of Protection.
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