their chief excellence, at last, consists in their conformity to truth, real or ideal, real when they profess to represent visible objects, ideal when the main subject is imaginary. But do not bring together those objects which are incongruous in nature or far separated in history. Do not, in historical works which pertain to modern times, put the bust of a man upon the body of a horse, or the head of a general upon the body of a Hercules. Do not borrow robes from the Romans to cover the nakedness of Americans, or substitute the sword of Rome, which enslaved the world, for the glorious weapon raised by our revolutionary fathers, whose gleamings are lighting mankind on the path of liberty. If you have not genius enough to make modern realities interesting, confine yourselves to works of mere fancy or to imitations of Greek and Roman originals.

It may be, that for these remarks we shall be considered barbarian in taste ourselves. One thing is certain, we shall never affect an admiration we do not feel, for the purpose of being considered a man of taste. Our taste, whatever name it may merit, cannot endure a figure which presents the head of a man upon the body of a beast, or the head of a beast upon the body of a man, the dress of an American on the body of a Roman, or the dress of a Roman on the body of an American. Such combinations, we think, belong either to the first or the last stages of the art; to the first, before its true objects and principles are properly understood, or to the last, when taste is vitiated and genius extinguished in vice and corruption, and not to that glorious middle age when practical virtue and cultivated mind teach men to recognize as beautiful only that which is true.

Upon the statue of Washington we look with mingled emotions of reverence and disgust. Who can but feel reverence on looking at those venerated features? But when the eye falls upon the body and its incidents, deep in our bosom is the feeling of sorrow and disgust that a head so sacred should be made to surmount objects so profane. But for the head, we should say, Remove it, put it out of sight, out of memory. As it is, we say to Congress, Do what you please.

In justice to the artist, we feel it our duty to add the tribute of our admiration for the manner in which the work is executed. On this point, we believe there is no difference of opinion. It is the design, and not the execution, which meets with extensive condemnation. And if what we have said shall wound the feelings of the artist, with whom we are not acquainted, we shall sincerely regret it. Our object is not to wound the feelings of any one, but simply to protest against, and prevent if we can, the introduction of what we call a barbarian taste into our works of art.

CHAPTER XVI.

OUR OWN AFFAIRS.

To the Democracy and to Practical Printers.

THE "Union Democrat" has been published six months, and numbers less than 1,200 subscribers. Of nearly 11,000 who took the first volume of "Kendall's Expositor," less than 1,600 have subscribed for the second. The entire subscription to both will barely pay expenses, and our current receipts are not sufficient to pay our printer. Our pecuniary arrangements were based on the confident expectation of receiving and retaining to both papers 8,000 to 10,000 subscribers. Of course they are all deranged, and we find our finances very much in the condition of those of the government.

Our friends attribute it to the hardness of the times, and we get kind letters from retiring subscribers; but "good words butter no parsnips." Our family must be supported, and creditors must be paid. For the means, we have no resource immediately available but our personal exertions. Lands we have, which we do not mean to give away, like our Whig economists; but it takes time to sell them, and they cannot be sold at this time without great sacrifice. Yet, unless better supported in our present business, we shall be obliged to abandon it, to sell property at whatever sacrifice, pay debts, and at the age of fifty-three begin the world again. To this turn of fortune, if it must come, we shall most cheerfully submit, though produced by responsibilities not originally our own, and by law expenses and damages imposed upon us in consequence of having been honest in office.

Could we give our time to it, we doubt not the number of our subscribers might readily be doubled. But our health, which has been greatly improved by manual labor, requires that at least half of each day shall be so devoted, and the other half is not too much for that reading and writing necessary to make a paper interesting and instructive.

In May, 1842, after an existence of nine months, the publication of the "Union Democrat" ceased for want of adequate patronage.

PRESENTS TO PUBLIC MEN.

There is a mode of operating upon public men, common in this country, so nearly akin to corruption as to make the difference practically unimportant. The good will and kind feelings of the officers of government inclining them to lean, perhaps unconsciously, to the interests of individuals, and sometimes producing the mischievous effects of direct bribes are secured by presents, personal favors, and pecuniary obligations.

On taking charge of the Fourth Auditor's Office, we learned that some of the pursers of the navy and navy agents were in the habit of making valuable presents to the clerks who examined their accounts, thereby creating advocates in the office. We forbade the clerks receiving any present of value from those whose accounts they had to settle, on pain of instant removal.

A similar practice prevailed to a greater and more mischievous extent in the Post-Office Department. We were scarcely warm in our seat there, before presents from contractors began to come in upon us. On one occasion a whole deer, just killed, came down from the mountains and made its appearance one morning in the passage of the Post-Office Department. By a letter on our table, we learned that it was a present from a mail contractor. Said we to ourself, "An application for an extra allowance is not far behind."

The contractor, in his letter, requested us to send a piece to his old friend, Parson B. Availing ourselves of this request, we sent for the Parson, and delivered him the whole animal, not caring to eat meat for which we expected to be called on to pay out of the funds of the PostOffice Department. Sure enough, in a few days, here came the contractor with a project for an improvement in his mail service, which would increase his pay, and in other respects greatly promote his private interests. We were as little inclined to swallow his project as his present.

We were not two weeks in the Department before a clerk spontaneously offered to lend us money! In our heart we pronounced him a corrupt man, and took the first convenient opportunity to get rid of him. We have since ascertained that he was an agent and a spy of certain powerful contractors in the Department.

The subject of the tariff is usually considered a dry one, suited only for the consideration of legislators and politicians.

The luminous pen of Mr. Kendall invests this theme with so much light, clearing it of mystery, and bringing it within the comprehension of minds capable of reasoning upon any subject, that

we have deemed his articles worthy of insertion in full. The most of them were written in the spring of 1843.

TARIFF TAXATION.

The Principles and Effects of Duties on Imported Produce and Merchandise, whether for Revenue, Protection, or Retaliation, clearly illustrated by fact and argument.

A tariff is a duty or tax levied upon produce or merchandise transported from one country to another.

In most commercial countries, both exports and imports are thus taxed; but the Constitution of the United States forbids a tax on exports. A tariff is a tax upon the surplus products of human labor, falling directly upon the domestic consumer, and indirectly on the foreign producer. It increases the prices of all the articles on which it is levied. If it be 33 per cent on the value of the article taxed, the importer pays 33 per cent more for it than he otherwise would. He gives four dollars for that which would otherwise cost him but three. Of that four dollars, three go to the foreign merchant or producer, and one to his own government.

But the amount of the tax does not ultimately come out of the importer. With him it is a part of the price of the goods, and in selling them to the merchant he charges it as such and adds his profit upon the whole. With the wholesale merchant the original cost, the government tax, and the importer's profit constitute the cost, and upon the aggregate of all three he calculates his profit. With the retail dealer, the original cost, the government tax, the importer's profit, and the wholesale merchant's profit constitute the cost, and he puts his profit upon all four. Finally, to the farmers, mechanics, and others, who purchase for consumption, the cost is made up of the original price, the government tax, the importer's profit, the wholesale merchant's profit, and the retail dealer's profit, all of which they refund out of the fruits of their own labor or the proceeds of their income. Thus:

The cost of three yards of cloth imported into New York is three dollars

$3.00 1.00

If the goods pass through more hands, the cost to the consumer is still further increased. To the frontier settler who receives his foreign goods from the petty dealers in his vicinity, they undoubtedly cost on an average three times their original price.

The amount of the government tax is of course increased in the same ratio. In the foregoing case the government tax paid by the importer is.

Importer's profit, 5 per cent

Government tax as paid by wholesale merchant.

Wholesale merchant's profit, 10 per cent

Government tax as paid by retail merchant

Retail dealer's profit, 20 per cent

Government tax as paid by the farmer and other consumer

$1.00

5

1.05

101

1.15

23

1.38

Thus the farmer and other consumers pay one dollar thirty-eight cents for every dollar raised for government by a tariff tax of 33 per cent. If the tax be less, the consumers pay less for the article itself; if it be more, they pay more; but whatever the amount of the original tax may be, they pay the same rate of increase upon it arising from merchant's profit. Over our whole country, that increase cannot fall short of 331 per cent on an average. It may be less in the Atlantic cities where the goods have passed through few hands; it is much more in the distant interior, where dealers' profits have been multiplied.

For every $100, therefore, raised by a tariff tax, the people pay $ 133}; for every $1,000, $1,333}; $1,333,333 for every $1,000,000. If the government raise $20,000,000 by a tariff tax, the people pay no less than $26,666,6663, and that when the tariff is purely for revenue.

Cost of Collection, etc.

Cheapness of collection is sometimes alleged to be one of the advantages of a tariff tax. The preceding facts show a cost to the people exceeding that which attaches to the collection of any other description. of tax known among communities or nations. Yet it does not include the salaries and fees of those employed in the collection which come out of the amount of the original tax. Those expenses are probably 8 to per cent more, and bring the cost to the people of collecting a tariff tax up to about 45 per cent upon the amount which actually goes into the Treasury.

10

The commission for collecting the United States direct taxes was, we believe, five per cent, and there are probably few taxes laid by States or corporations upon which the commission for collecting exceeds that

rate.

Nor are its comparative advantages greater in reference to the num