Free Trade; Cryolite Tariff Bill

FREE TRADE LYING.

The Chicago Tribune of Saturday last, says :

"The Moorhead Tariff bill has its origin in Pittsburgh, where a company of enterprising capitalists have conceived the idea of making salt out of a mineral called cryolite, which is imported from Greenland. This company have secured from the King of Denmark a monopoly of the cryolite mines; but, after digging the stuff and transport­ing by sea and land to Pittsburgh, and con­suming certain quantities of coal in ex­tracting the salt, they find that it don’t pay, even under a tariff of 160 per cent, on the latter article. In order to protect home industry, (to-wit, that of the Greenlanders) this tariff bill was invented by Moorhead. To carry through an increased duty on salt, and the other products of cryolite, it was necessary to admit a band of thieves into the ring, and promise them increased duties on other things. This is the history of the Moorhead tariff. This country will look with interest on the progress of the Cryo­lite bill through Congress."

"The Pittsburgh Salt Manufacturing Com­pany" is the one referred to in the para­graph quoted. The works of the Company are situated at Natrona, some twenty miles up the Allegheny river from this city. It manufactures salt, as other companies and individual operators do, from saline waters, abounding in wells from the head of the Ohio one hundred miles along the Alle­gheny. Salt is not made from cryolite, and cannot be made from it, only one element of salt, soda. existing therein.

This Company has a monopoly of cryo­lite in this country, being exclusively authorized to bring it hither by the Crown of Denmark. From this article is produced oil of vitriol, concentrated lye, soda, and a number of other commodities.

From cryolite, also, flint glass and hot-pressed porcelain, the latter fully equal to the celebrated goods of Dresden, are man­ufactured. This is a branch the Com­pany here is not engaged in, but they fur­nish cryolite on reasonable terms to other parties who do manufacture those goods, and are ready to furnish all other parties who may desire on the same conditions.

The Company here is not asking, either through Mr. MOORHEAD or any body else, an increase in the rate of import duties on foreign articles corresponding to those manfactued [sic] manufactured by them. So well satisfied is that Company with its business, and especially that portion of it depending on the use of cryolite, that it contemplates building another mammoth establishment, near Phil­adelphia, to supply the seaboard while the immense concern here shall be left to supply the Mediterranean trade.

When the Tribune shall cease to dogma­tize and denounce; when it shall acquire a respectable amount of knowledge of the matters with which it presumes oracularly to deal; and when it shall learn to use such knowledge as it may possets with a decent degree of honesty, it will elevate its reputa­tion so far as to be entitled to respectful consideration.