Re: priming the world pump

[Bruce McFarling <brmcf@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

For Thornton, who I hear via the grapevine asking:

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Would you say the average tarriffs during the 19th century were lower
than they are now?  I may be wrong, but I am not so sure that I am if you
look at the total picture.
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	Nope, I did look at the total picture, size of government sector
*and* direction of effective protection.  However, to work out effective
protection in the Age of Steam you *must* consider shipping costs -- rail
and steamship.  Shipping costs fell, and fell dramatically through the
period.
	Now, obviously some countries engaged in more protectionist
policies than others -- notably the U.S., Japan, and Germany.  But its an
awful short list in a globe awfully open to international trade.  Of
course, I may be missing something on the big picture side, because right
now there seems to be something funny about that list of relative
protectionists in a lazy fair era ...  Naaah, it's probably just some odd
coincidence. ;)

Virtually,

Bruce McFarling, Knoxville
brmcf@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx