Domestic industry, particularly in textiles, had expanded greatly under the impetus of the War of 1812, which virtually blocked foreign trade and imports of manufactured goods. The textile industry, in particular, was hit by the impact of foreign and especially British competition in the postwar period. Leading the complainants were the cotton manufacturers, and they were joined, among others, by the woolen manufacturers, the paper manufacturers of New England, the bar iron manufacturers, and the Louisiana sugar planters.1 Many protectionists charged that there was a British conspiracy afoot to dump their goods in the United States and crush infant American competitors.2 The tariff of 1816, adjusting American rates after the abnormal restrictions of the war period, established a moderate tariff, largely for revenue, averaging about 20 percent of value. Duties on cotton and woolen goods were set at 25 percent, but were supposed to fall in 1819. Thus, the higher rates were conceived as a temporary measure to ease the adjustment of domestic manufactures to the new competitive conditions.
