A  foreign  demand  is  only  necessary  to  us  because  it
enables  us  to  dispose  of  our  surplus.  But  this  foreign
demand  is  inconsiderable  compared  with  our  domestic
demand — that  is,  we  sell  abroad  a  very  small  percentage
of  what  we  consume  at  home.  It  is  estimated  at  less  than
ten  per  cent.  And  if  our  honie  markets  were  so  increased
as  to  become  sufficient  for  the  consumption  of  this  small
percentage  of  surplus,  we  should  be  entirely  independent
of  foreign  markets,  and  the  prices  of  our  products  would
not  be  subject  to  the  fluctuations  which  grow  out  of  the
necessities  of  other  countries — that  is,  they  would  be  fegu-
lated  by  home  and  not  by  foreign  demand.  To  leave  them
subject  to  the  latter  makes  our  increase  of  wealth,  to  the
extent  of  the  value  of  our  surplus,  to  depend  on  external
causes  beyond  our  control  —  so  that,  whether  all  or  part  of
our  surplus  should  be  sold  would  depend  upon  whether  it
was  needed  by  foreign  countries  or  not.  What  they  did
not  need  we  should  be  compelled  to  keep,  and,  in  the
absence  of  a  home  market,  it  would  be  lost  entirely.  And
thus  the  inducements  for  the  employment  of  the  industry
necessary  to  produce  a  surplus,  would  be,  in  a  most  import-
ant degree,  removed,  and  the  rewards  of  our  industry
lessened.
Since  our  Government  was  established  we  have  had
but  a  short  period  of  non -intercourse  with  England — that
is,  during  the  war  between  the  two  countries  in  1812-15.
