A Statistical Account of the British Empire, exhibiting its Extent, Physical Capacities, Population, Industry, and Civil and Religious Institutions. By J. R. M'Culloch, Esq., assisted by numerous contributors. Second Edition, Enlarged. London: Printed for Charles Knight & Co. 1839 [pp. 416-450]

1841.~ M'Culloc~'s Britisk Empire. 445
starves his operations, and the excitement of an overtroductioi~ by ~vhich he is but too certain to iiicnr an nlti~iate loss.
if the government be true to the interest of nineteeii-t~veI~tieths of the population, it must, as the report of the cornn-~ittee
of 1840 recon~~~ends, ahat~do~~ tl~e protective policy, 15 iiot
only no longer needed, but as positively baiiefnl to the best
prospects of the country. The maiiuticttiriiig interest has
beei~ fostered to a gro~vth atid niagtiiti~de at ~viiich it oiily
needs scope and field of action to realize the highest hopes
~vhich the friends of protectiotl could ever have eiitertaiiied.
Its po~ver must no'v t)C called forth; an an~ple i~iarket for all
the merchandize it cati yield, caii be obtaitied l)y sitiiply receiviiig in returti tl~e bread, meat, sugar, tea, coffee and o lier
articles of food ~vl~icl~ ~vill feed the fan~isliitig niultitt~des
who now pitie in beggary. Stich a policy, while it gladdeiied
the hearts of the poor, would iii tell years cause a greater advaiice in the wealth and prosperity of the nation (ban any
equal term of its history. It`votild call into actioli tl~e`vlioie
productive power of its population, and the industry of every
operation wotild be rewarded by aii ample supply of the
necessaries of life. The cotnn~erce of the cotintry would be
nearly doubled, and large additioiis to tfie ratiks of tlie commercial, shipping atid manufacturitig interests would be required to perforu~ their increased ~vork. A mad~et for the
s~~pply of ten to fifeen millions of people at home, with articles they had not previonsly been aL~e to purchase, would be
established.
All ti~is seems clear (0 115, anti all this and more has
been urged ill a thotis~iid various`v~ys upoti those holditig th political power itl Great Britain, for matly years,
~vithont the least apparent sticcess. The poor are still half
employed and scjrcely half fed: they are still unsootlied atid
left witltont hope in the`vorld.# They form a mass of aiigry,
strugglitig, revengeful wretchedness, heaving ~vith the fires
* Since these rem~rks were written we are cheered by the intelligence that the
Britis!) ministry have determ'ned to brit~g f~rward at an early dQY a measure lbr
the re1~eal or rela~ation of the corn law systeln. The present mlllistry, whatever
m~y he said of the wi~doiii or talents of its men~bers moat be adn~ittcd to be
a1r~~it ill r~ading tli' signs of the times, aiid this moveiliejit shows they deem it
sate to ~)ress even now this n~ea~ure so friu~ht with re~ults to the best il)tesests
of c')Ifl~oerc,', itidustry and huinanily. Doubtless tlie r~~(~rt of tS4~, t()`vhi('h
we have reterrel, a~id w ich has teen ~videly circulated 11 Great Biitaiii, has
c~~ijtrihuteJ to ha~ten the ii~trt~ducti~~n ijjto i~arliamel~t of this l)r~)p~sItIon. Jt
n~ust succeed eveiitually, but peihaps it may suffer years of poatj)Onenieiit. If
the present ministry can maintain their position, we may e~pect a favoura~e
resnit at no distant day.