[Sophisms of the Protectionists by Frederic Bastiat]@TWC D-Link bookSophisms of the Protectionists PART I 14/107
Wool would exclude cotton; cotton would exclude wool; and thus on, until the scarcity and want of every thing would cause man himself to disappear from the face of the globe. If we now go on to consider the immediate interest of the _consumer_, we shall find it in perfect harmony with the public interest, and with the well-being of humanity.
When the buyer presents himself in the market, he desires to find it abundantly furnished.
He sees with pleasure propitious seasons for harvesting; wonderful inventions putting within his reach the largest possible quantity of produce; time and labor saved; distances effaced; the spirit of peace and justice diminishing the weight of taxes; every barrier to improvement cast down; and in all this his interest runs parallel with an enlightened public interest.
He may push his secret desires to an absurd and chimerical height, but never can they cease to be humanizing in their tendency.
He may desire that food and clothing, house and hearth, instruction and morality, security and peace, strength and health, should come to us without limit and without labor or effort on our part, as the water of the stream, the air which we breathe, and the sunbeams in which we bask, but never could the realization of his most extravagant wishes run counter to the good of society. It may be said, perhaps, that were these desires granted, the labor of the producer constantly checked would end by being entirely arrested for want of support.
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