f all those who have been intrusted
with the regulation of the industry of our country. It would not be
just to reproach them with this; for this principle becomes that of
our administration only because it prevails in Congress; it prevails
in Congress only because it is sent there by the voters; and the
voters are imbued with it only because public opinion is filled with
it to repletion.

Let me repeat here, that I do not accuse the protectionists in
Congress of being absolutely and always Sisyphists. Very certainly
they are not such in their personal transactions; very certainly each
of them will procure for himself _by barter_, what by _direct
production_ would be attainable only at a higher price. But I maintain
that they are Sisyphists when they prevent the country from acting
upon the same principle.

CHAPTER IV.

EQUALIZING OF THE FACILITIES OF PRODUCTION.

The protectionists often use the following argument:

"It is our belief that protection should correspond to, should be the
representation of, the difference which exists between the price of an
article of home production and a similar article of foreign
production. A protective duty calculated upon such a basis does
nothing more than secure free competition; free competition can only
exist where there is an equality in the facilities of production. In a
horse-race the load which each horse carries is weighed and all
advantages equalized; otherwise there could be no competition. In
commerce, if one producer can undersell all others, he ceases to be a
competitor and becomes a monopolist. Suppress the protection which
represents the difference of price according to each, and foreign
produce must immediately inundate and obtain the monopoly of our
market. Every one ought to wish, for his own sake and for that of the
community, that the productions of the country should be protected
against foreign competition, _whenever the latter may be able to
undersell the former_."

This argument is constantly recurring in all writings of the
protectionist school. It is my intention to make a careful
investigation of its merits, and I must begin by soliciting the
attention and the patience of the reader. I will first examine into
the inequalities which depend upon natural causes, and afterwards into
those which are caused by diversity of taxes.

Here, as elsewhere, we find the theorists who favor protection taking
part with the producer. Let us consider the